Aachari Malaii paneer tikka stuffed in paneer basket

Aachari Malaii paneer tikka stuffed in paneer basket is spicy, creame mild, crunch snacks or appetizer. This whole idea is my own creation.

Actually, I made this snacks​ for one online food competition. I got an email about this competition from sponsor. At the time of writing this recipe results are still awaited. Theme of competition was to make an appetizer or snacks or side dish using paneer ( Indian Cottage Cheese) as main ingredients. One condition was to make your own recipe and it should not be a copy paste or stolen from somewhere else.
I made up mind to participate in this cooking competition so I started collecting my all recipes, exploring new ideas new creativity. Before knowing about this competition I was collecting my basket recipes and exploring too so I thought to make basket of paneer. Now filling in paneer basket was my main concern and had many ideas about like vegetables, cheese, peanut salads, coleslaw, chat stuff and many more but I did achari malaii paneer tikka Stuffing​ because paneer should be the main ingredients. Trust me this Stuffing combination in paneer basket is really really unique and awesome taste.

In stuffing of achari malaii paneer tikka, I used a just contrast combination so you guys might think whether this would work.... but believe me its taste was great. Spicy taste and flavour of achari and mild flavour of cream or malaii worked really awesome. You can also use this combination in roll or wrap. I add a peanut curd sauce (chutney) to paneer tikka stuffing and it enhanced the taste of filling.

As there is very less oil used so health wise it is great snacks or appetizer. Spice can be adjusted as how much you bear this and paneer is also nutrition item as it is full of protein. So you guys start making this for your kids. They would sure like it


Ingredients: Serving for 4 (No. Of basket: 8-9)

For Paneer Basket

1. Paneer : 200 gram
2. Corn flour: 1 tsp
3. Chat masala: 1 tsp
4. Salt : 1/2 tsp ( As chat masala is carrying salt)
5. Oil: 5 to 6 spoons

For Aachari Malaii paneer tikka

1. Paneer: 150 gram
2. Curd: 1 tsp
3. Ginger garlic paste: 2 tsp
4. Cumin powder:1tsp
5. Green chillies paste: 1tsp
6. Red Chilli powder: 1 tsp ( If you have stamina to beat it)
7. Fennel seeds: 1/2 tsp
8. Yellow Musterd seeds: 1/2 tsp
9. Fengruek seeds: 1/2 tsp
10. Oil : 1 tsp
11. Salt 1 tsp ( Or as per your taste)

For Stuffing

1. Cream : 3 - 4 tsp
2. Onion: 1 small sized, finely chopped
3. Peanut: 20 - 25 pieces
4. Curd: 3 - 4 tsp
5. Green chillies: 2
6. Garlic: 2 pods
7. Lemon juice: 1/2 tsp
8. Salt: 1tsp

For Garnish

1. Pomegranate: Few Seeds
2. Salads of your choice.

I also used
Radishes: few long strands
Beetroot: few long strands

Method of Preparation

1.    In this recipe, we first prepare aachari malaii paneer tikka. For that, we take paneer 150 grams and cut into small pieces.
2.   Take fennel seeds, yellow mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds in a pan together and roast it until it starts cracking and aroma starts coming.
3.    Now take these roasted spices in a mixer grinder jar and grind it into a fine powder.
4.    Now put small pieces of paneer in a bowl. Add curd, Ginger garlic paste, green chillies paste, cumin powder, grinded spices powder, red chilli powder and salt. Marinate small pieces of paneer. Keep it inside the freeze for atleast 2 hours.

                                                           Paneer in small pieces

                                                       Grinded fine spice powder

                                                             Marination of paneer

5.   Mean while, prepare peanut curd sauce for Stuffing. For this sauce, take pan or griddler and heat it on high flame. When smoke starts coming from griddler, put all peanut in to griddler and roaste it on high flame. When peanut starts popping up and turning dark brown  then stop the flame and leave it for cooling. When it cool down remove the skin of peanut pressing with palm. Now take peanut in to a grinder jar, add curd, garlic, green chillies and salt. Grind this mixture fine like sauce texture.

6.   After 2 hours, take marinated paneer out from freeze. Line up baking tray with parchment paper. Preheat the oven at 200 degree centigrade for 10 minutes. Grill the marinated paneer in oven for 10 to 12 minutes at 200 degree centigrade.

7.    While paneer tikka is being grilled inside oven, take 200 grams paneer separately in a bowl. Crumb the paneer and now add corn flour,chat masala and salt. Mix all well and make a smooth dough.

8.   Divide the dough into 8 - 9 small lemon size balls. Cover it with kitchen towel. In between keep eyeing on paneer tikka too inside oven.

9.  Now take an appam stand. Heat it on medium flame. Put few drops of oil in each mould of appam stand. Now take a dough ball of lemon size and place in a mould of appam stand. Now with the help of fingers make a hollow in between of paneer dough ball. Keep this paneer hollow shell thin. It will look like a bowl. Do same process with other dough balls of paneer​. Cover it with lid on low flame. After 2 - 3 mintues, remove the lid. Hollow shell of paneer starts leaving side of appam stand and turning golding brown. Turn each of paneer bowl keeping bottom part of bowl up and hollow part facing downward. Cook each paneer bowl like this for 1 - 2 mintues. Now remove all paneer  bowl from appam stand and place in plate.

10.    Mean while paneer tikka is also grilled and ready. Take it out in a bowl, add finely chopped onion, peanut sauce, cream and lemon juice. Mix well all ingredients.

11.  Now take paneer bowls . Place one spoon of paneer tikka cream sauce mixture in bowl, topping with pomegranate seeds. Repeat same process with other bowl of paneer.

12.  For serving it, place salads of your choice in serving plate, in between put paneer bowl and serve it with ketchup or any chatani of your choice. You can also serve it with peanut sauce which we used it in stuffing mixture.

Notes:

1. Cut paneer into small pieces (size of each pieces should be like 1 - 1.5 centimeters) for tikka.
2. Keep marinated paneer in freeze for 2 hours atleast. I generally keep marinated paneer in freeze overnight.
3. Keep eyeing on paneer tikka at the time of grilling. Even 1 minute can make a big difference in tikka texture.
4. Marination spice can be adjusted as per your taste and choice.