Paneer Tikka without oven or Tandoor

Paneer Tikka  

Paneer Tikka- the dish that needs no introduction, the starter that decides the success of a party and every vegetarian's guilty pleasure. COVID-19 may have managed to deprive us of the parties that serve Paneer Tikka religiously as a starter but it can't deprive us of the dish itself. I managed to make the Tikka without tandoor and the results were satisfying to say the least. The advantage of this recipe is that it's a complete meal that anyone and everyone can enjoy. A health conscious person can also enjoy this once in a while as the Tikka is not fried and rich in protein. So use this recipe to remind yourself of the luxurious and royal taste Paneer Tikka offers, after all a pandemic is no excuse to come between you and Paneer Tikka.

Preparation Time : 2 hours.

Cooking Time : 20 - 30 Min

Video Link :

Ingredients :  

• Paneer (Cottage Cheese) 400 gm cut into pieces
• Capsicum 1 deseeded and cut into pieces
• Onion 1 cut into large pieces
• Hung curd 1/2 cup
• Gram flour (besan) 1 tablespoon
• Mustard oil 1 Tablespoon
• Ginger Garlic paste 1 tablespoon
• Kasuri Methi 1 tablespoon (dried fenugreek leaves)
• Readymade paneer tikka masala 1 tablespoon ( if it is not available you can make it at home take red chilly, haldi powder, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, black pepper, green cardamom, sunf seeds, 2 cloves dry roast them and then bring in in mixer ) use as desired
• Lemon juice 1 Tablespoon
• Salt according to taste
• oil for cooking

Procedure : 

• Prepare hung curd and keep aside
• Finish all cutting and chopping 

• In a bowl take hung curd add ginger garlic paste, salt and paneer tikka masala mix all together nicely 
• In a pan, dry roast gram flour.  Once it is done, you get a nice aroma, then add Kasuri Methi to it and roast for few seconds. Now add this to the marinade mixture
• Now in a same pan heat mustard oil till you get a nice smoke. Add this to marinade mixture. add lemon juice to this.
• Add paneer cubes to this marinade and leave for 1/2 hour. Now add onion and capsicum pieces to the marinade and leave it for 1/2 an hour. 

• Now take a bamboo stick or a skewer and arrange marinaded onion, capsicum and paneer on it. Repeat the same step with rest of the material. 

• Now take a grill pan sprinkle some oil on it and arrange panner tikka stick as shown in picture. Cook it from all the sides 

•  Now to give it a smoking flavour just cook it on medium flame as shown in picture 

• Serve it with mint dip, onions and lemon 

Mint Iced Coffee Latte

Mint Iced Coffee Latte 

I am certainly not a morning person and the only coping mechanism I have for an early morning is my cup of coffee. As someone so eloquently said, " My morning coffee makes me feel I got my shit together. I DON'T. But it feels like it." But monotony gets a little boring and so I decided to experiment yet another variety of coffee. Each variety of coffee compliments a particular activity the best. The freshness offered in this recipe because of mint makes it the perfect drink to enjoy while reading your favourite book in the balcony whilst enjoying the summer heat.

Being a willing participant in this Lockdown's got talent, I have experimented various types of coffee (from Dalgona to Frappes). This recipe enhanced the fresh aroma of coffee along with mint and hence became a very calming drink for me. I hope this drink serves the same for you and becomes your companion for "Me Time" or just a great excuse for your family to bond over.

Preparation Time : 10 Min

Cooking time : 8 to 10 Min

Resting time :  4 to 5 hours

Serves : 2

Video :  

Ingredients : 

• Instant Coffee Powder 2 Teaspoon
• Brown sugar 2 Teaspoon (you can increase the quantity of sugar according to your taste )
• Mint Leaves 15 to 20 leaves
• Milk Chilled 200 ml
• Water 200 ml +2 tablespoon
• Ice cubes 8 to 10

Procedure :  

• Lets first prepare Coffee shots. Traditionally it is made by coffee beans but we are using an instant powder. So take a pan, add water, once it starts boiling add coffee powder to this. Boil this for 2 minutes. 

• Now with the help of stainer stain the coffee. Keep it aside for 15 to 20 minutes. Once it is at room temperature, keep it in a refrigerator for 4 to 5 hours. So that it is chilled 
• Now take a mortar & pestle, add chopped mint leaves and sugar crush them nicely. Once it is nicely done, add 2 tablespoon of water to this and stain out the mixture. You will get a nice aromatic mint and sugar syrup 

• Now take a serving glass add 1 tablespoon of syrup to each glass, add ice cubes. Now pour chilled coffee to this till 3/4 of the glass, use chilled milk to top up the glass. Garnish with mint leaves and enjoy ... 

More Coffee Recipe 

• Walnut Coffee Frappe 
• Peanut Butter Frappe 
• Dalgona Coffee
• Oreo Coffee Shake 
• Cold Coffee
• Coffee Mousse
• Melon Frappe 
• Thandi Masala Chai

Orange Mojito

Orange Mojito 

COVID-19 is a threat to human race and a difficult situation to be stuck in. However, we can make the best of this situation and get our creative juices flowing (pun intended). Being in a lockdown, makes us crave takeout food and refreshing beverages. The scorching heat intensifies our desire for such cooling drinks. This is a great opportunity for everyone to experiment their skills as a cook. This recipe can also be the start beginners need as it is easy, safe and not time consuming.

This drink includes Orange and Lemon, both are considered vital sources of vitamin C, and hence increase our immunity. Mint is also used in this recipe, including a tinge of refreshment. This drink is the perfect mix of calm, strength, colour and spontaneity, that we crave for in a time like this.

Preparation Time : 10 Min

Cooking Time : 0 Min

Serves : 2.

Video : 

Ingredients : 

• Oranges 4 - 5
• Lemon juice 1 Tablespoon
• Lemon 1/2 finely chopped 
• Mint leaves 10 -12 leaves .. few for garnishing
• Honey 1 Tablespoon or according to your taste 
• Black Salt 1/4 teaspoon
• Soda water 100 ml
• Ice cubes 5 to 6 

Procedure : 

• Make a fresh juice of oranges and keep a side

• In a jar add chopped lemon, lemon juice, chopped mint leaves, black salt and honey with the help of muddler mix all the ingredients nicely. so that the mint leaves and lemon zest releases it aroma and oil nicely

• Now add orange juice to this and mix it well 

• Take a glass add ice cubes now pour the mixture of lemon juice, mint leaves and orange juice in a glass till 3/4 th of the glass

• Now fill the glass with soda water. garnish with mint leaves and serve chilled ... 

Dry Fruit Milk

Dry Fruit Milk 

Summers are a time of conflicts. While children crave something chilled and light, a mother still worries about the lack of nutrition in their desired diet. This recipe is the compromise families require. It has the nutritional benefits of dry fruits and milk and the chilled comfort craved during summers. This recipe was omnipresent in my childhood and stayed in my mom's khazana for quite some while. She told me about this recipe when I became a mom and faced the same dilemma. It now is a khandani recipe.

Serves :  2

Preparation Time :  20 Minutes

Cooking Time  :  0 Minute.

Ingredients : 

• Milk chilled 500 ml
• Sugar 2 table spoon or according to your taste
• Almonds blanched and sliced 2 Tablespoon
• Pistachio nut sliced 2 Tablespoon
• Rose leaves 1 Tablespoon (fresh or dried)
• Green cardamom powder 1 Teaspoon
• 8 to 10 Saffron Strands dissolve in a tablespoon of milk

Procedure  :  

• Slice almonds, Pistachio nut and keep aside . 

• In a jug Take chilled milk.  Add sugar, Cardamom powder, almonds, pistachio, rose leaves and saffron . mix it well 

• Leave this in a refrigerator for atleast 2 to 3 hours. 

• Serve it chilled

Tips  :  

• You can add any other nuts of your choice like cashew nut or melon seeds
• If you like you can add pinch of nutmeg powder t this
• To make it more rich you can boil milk for 20 to 25 min . so that milk is thick and creamy. in that case you need to double the quantity of milk.