Paneer aur mirch ka salan – paneer with chilli peppers in melon seed sauce
Mirch ka salan is a Hyderabadi dish of curried chilli peppers – here, the idea is given a twist and served with marinated stuffed paneer in a sauce flavoured with blitzed melon seeds. An interesting, colourful and very delicious combination of flavours which showcase some lesser-known aspects of Indian cuisine.
Ingredients
Metric
Imperial
Melon seed sauce
- 50g of melon seeds, soaked in cold water for 2 hours
- vegetable oil, for frying
- 1 onion, finely sliced
- 90g of ginger-garlic paste
- 1 tbsp of ground turmeric
- 1/2 tbsp of ground coriander
- 1 plum tomato, diced
- 1 tbsp of tamarind paste
- 10g of jaggery, grated
- 1/2 tsp black mustard seeds
- 3 curry leaves
Marinated paneer
- 300g of paneer
- 1 tbsp of mixed pickle
- 1 tbsp of mango chutney
- 25g of paneer, grated
- 1 tbsp of Greek yoghurt
- 1 tsp deggi mirch, (a type of chilli powder)
- 1 tbsp of ginger-garlic paste
- 1 pinch of sea salt
- micro basil, to garnish (optional)
Pickled chillies
- 3 chillies, ideally a mixture of red, orange and green, roughly chopped
- 1 tbsp of vegetable oil
- 1/2 tsp fennel seeds
- 1/2 tsp black mustard seeds
- 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
- 1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds
- 1/2 tsp onion seeds
- 50ml of white vinegar
- 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
- 1/2 tsp red chilli powder
- 1 pinch of sea salt
Method
Begin by pickling the chillies. Heat the oil in a pan over a medium heat, then add the whole spices. Once they begin to crackle, carefully pour in the white vinegar and simmer for 2-3 minutes. Add the turmeric, red chilli powder and a pinch of salt, stir to combine, then remove from the heat and leave to cool
- 1 tbsp of vegetable oil
- 1/2 tsp fennel seeds
- 1/2 tsp black mustard seeds
- 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
- 1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds
- 1/2 tsp onion seeds
- 50ml of white vinegar
- 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
- 1/2 tsp red chilli powder
- 1 pinch of sea salt
Once cool, add the chillies to the pickling liquid and stir to coat. Set aside for at least 1 hour
- 3 chillies, ideally a mixture of red, orange and green, roughly chopped
Meanwhile, marinate the paneer. Cut the paneer into 6 equal pieces and cut a slit into each piece for stuffing. Mix together the mixed pickle, mango chutney and grated paneer with a pinch of salt and use this mixture to stuff each piece of paneer
- 300g of paneer
- 1 tbsp of mixed pickle
- 1 tbsp of mango chutney
- 25g of paneer, grated
For the marinade, mix together the Greek yoghurt, chilli powder, salt and ginger-garlic paste and rub this mixture all over the stuffed paneer. Leave to marinate for at least 1 hour in the fridge
- 1 tbsp of Greek yoghurt
- 1 tsp deggi mirch, (a type of chilli powder)
- 1 tbsp of ginger-garlic paste
- 1 pinch of sea salt
- vegetable oil, for frying
- 1 onion, finely sliced
- 90g of ginger-garlic paste
Add the ground spices and diced tomato and cook for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, drain the soaked melon seeds and blitz into a smooth paste. Add the paste to the sauce and cook for a further 5 minutes, then transfer to a blender and blitz until smooth, adding enough water to create a sauce the consistency of single cream
- 1 tbsp of ground turmeric
- 1/2 tbsp of ground coriander
- 1 plum tomato, diced
- 50g of melon seeds, soaked in cold water for 2 hours
To finish the sauce, place it back over the heat and stir in the tamarind paste and jaggery. Place a separate small pan over a high heat with a splash of oil and the mustard seeds and curry leaves. Once sizzling, transfer these to the sauce too. Keep warm
- 1 tbsp of tamarind paste
- 10g of jaggery, grated
- 1/2 tsp black mustard seeds
- 3 curry leaves
Preheat an oven to 180°C/gas mark 4. Cook the marinated paneer for 8 minutes, turning them over halfway through cooking
To serve, divide the sauce between 2 shallow bowls. Place 3 pieces of paneer into each dish, then top with the pickled chillies, drizzling a little of the liquor into the sauce. Garnish with basil leaves (if using)
- micro basil, to garnish (optional)
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