Mint lounge :Cottage Cheese and Vegetable Sheesh Kebab with Harissa Dip

Live Mint :Pavithra jayaraman :16 June 2013

Chef Abhijit Saha, co-owner and chef at Caperberry, Bangalore, makes ‘paneer’ with a Mediterranean twist

Cottage Cheese and Vegetable Sheesh Kebab with Harissa Dip

Serves 4

For the harissa

200g dry red chillies, boiled and kept aside

K tsp oregano

2 tbsp lemon juice

2 tsp garlic, chopped

4 tbsp olive oil

Salt to taste

For cottage cheese skewers

32 pieces of ¾-inch dices of cottage cheese

16 pieces of O-inch dices of leeks

32 pieces of O-inch inch dices of bell peppers

2 tsp of dry oregano

2 tsp roasted cumin powder

1 tbsp garlic, chopped

1 tsp all-spice powder

6 tbsp hung yogurt

5 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp harissa (optional)

Salt to taste

Method

To make the harissa, put all the ingredients in a food processor and make a coarse paste. Add salt to taste. Keep aside.

Sprinkle one tablespoon of olive oil and a pinch each of salt, roasted cumin powder and all-spice powder over the leeks and peppers and set aside. Now, in a large bowl, mix the hung yogurt, harissa, oregano, the remaining cumin and all-spice powders, two tablespoons of olive oil, chopped garlic and salt to taste. Add the cottage cheese to this mixture and marinate for half an hour. Then alternately thread the cottage cheese and leeks and peppers on the skewers.

Cook the skewers on a medium-hot grill, basting from time to time with the remaining olive oil, and serve with harissa dip on the side.