This Air Fryer Paneer Tikka Recipe is sure to become a favourite side dish. Paneer, peppers and onions are coated in a homemade tandoori yogurt marinade, then air fried until lightly charred while remaining soft inside. It’s a delicious vegetarian alternative to chicken tikka. Oven instructions included too.
Try it with my yeast-free garlic naan and coriander mint chutney!
Paneer tikka is always on our order when we visit an Indian restaurant. But it is so easy to make at home. Simply coat the paneer, peppers and onions in the tikka marinade, thread them onto skewers and air fry.
I like to leave the paneer to marinate for at least 30 minutes. If I am making it ahead, I prepare it the night before and keep it covered in the fridge. The flavours are even better the next day. You can also use my homemade tandoori marinade for paneer, tofu, cauliflower and other vegetables.
When I am in a hurry, I replace the individual spices with three to four tablespoons of shop-bought tikka masala paste. It is such a handy shortcut and still tastes delicious.
Jump to:
- Why You'll Love This Recipe?
- Top Tips for Air Fryer Paneer Tikka
- Ingredients
- How to Make Air-Fryer Paneer Tikka
- Oven- Baked Paneer Tikka
- Variations of Paneer Tikka
- How to make Speedy Paneer Tikka Recipe?
- What can I serve with Paneer Tikka kebabs?
- Leftovers and Storage
- Air Fryer Paneer Tikka FAQ's
- More Indian Inspired Air fryer Recipes
- Easy Air Fryer Paneer Tikka
Why You'll Love This Recipe?
- Quick and easy: Once marinated, the paneer tikka cooks in the air fryer in just 8–10 minutes.
- Restaurant-style: The paneer is packed with tandoori flavour, with lightly charred edges and a soft centre.
- Versatile: Serve it as an appetiser, side dish or as part of an Indian meal.
- Three cooking options: Make it in the air fryer, oven or on the barbecue.
- Vegetarian and gluten-free: A delicious vegetarian alternative to chicken tikka.
Top Tips for Air Fryer Paneer Tikka
- Soak the paneer: If you are using firm shop-bought paneer, soak it in hot water for 10 minutes. Drain well before adding it to the marinade. This helps to keep the paneer soft.
- Cut everything evenly: Cut the paneer, onions and peppers into similar-sized pieces so they cook evenly.
- Allow time to marinate: Marinate for at least 30 minutes or leave it covered in the fridge overnight for more flavour.
- Soak wooden skewers: Soak them in cold water for 30 minutes before air frying. You can skip this if using metal skewers.
- Don’t overcook the paneer: Air fry only until the edges are lightly charred. Cooking it for too long can make it firm and chewy.
- Cooking for a crowd: I use the air fryer for a family portion but prefer the oven when making a larger batch.
Ingredients
- Paneer – also known as Indian cottage cheese. It is easily available to buy in grocery stores across the UK, in Costco, or in Asian Stores. Some of the popular ones are Everest Paneer Block Cheese, Shagun Paneer Cheese, Sugam Paneer, and Apetina Paneer Cheese. I would highly recommend buying the cheese block rather than diced paneer. You can also make Paneer at home, however, it is time-consuming!
- Gram Flour - Also known as Besan or Chickpea flour for a tasty crispiness and helps the marinade to stick to paneer and veggies.
- Onion – I prefer using Red Onion for Tandoori Tikka recipes. Although even White Onion works work.
- Pepper - We are using colorful peppers - red, yellow and green. Did you know green peppers are called Capsicum in India?
- Greek Yogurt – I like to use Greek Yogurt as its thick yogurt and you can skip the process of making hung curd and use in the recipe directly.
- Spices – I use Turmeric, Red Chili Powder, Cumin powder, Coriander powder, Garam masala, Chaat masala and Kasuri methi for my tikka masala spice blend.
- Ginger- Garlic – I use store bought Ginger Garlic Paste for convenience, easy to find at any Asian store near you. You can use fresh minced ginger and garlic too.
- Oil – I use hot Sunflower Oil to add to the marinade. Traditionally Mustard oil is used, but I find it too strong in my tikka recipes.
- Salt and Pepper to taste
How to Make Air-Fryer Paneer Tikka
This is an overview with step by step photos. Full ingredients and instructions are in the recipe card below
Prepare the Paneer, Vegetables & Skewers. – Dice the Paneer to 2-2.5 cm cube. Cut the Onion and Peppers to a similar size.
Make the Tandoori Marinade – To a mixing bowl, add all the ingredients for the marinade and combine to make a smooth mixture. Heat the sunflower oil until hot and add it to the marinade, stir.
Marinate – Add the Paneer, Onion, and Bell Peppers into the marinade and mix them with hand. Cover with cling film and place the marinade in the fridge for atleast 30 minutes. If I have time, I would it over night - The flavours are so good.
Thread the Skewers – Arrange the Paneer, Onion, and Bell Peppers in alternate on the skewers. Prep the remaining skewers in a similar way.
Preheat the air fryer to 180°C. Arrange the threaded paneer tikka skewers in the air fryer basket.
Air fry at 180°C/360°F for 8-10 minutes. Repeat the process with the remaining skewers too.
Sprinkle with chaat masala if you wish, just before serving.
Oven- Baked Paneer Tikka
Until I started using my air fryer, I had always made paneer tikka in the oven. It's convenient for parties and large batches.
Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F. Arrange the paneer tikka skewers on a baking tray lined with parchment paper.
Place the tray in the oven and cook for 15-18 minutes or until the tikka is sizzling, and the paneer is crispy on the outside yet tender inside. Serve hot!
Variations of Paneer Tikka
Don’t have a Skewer, no worries! Try this Non Skewered version. Place the marinated Paneer and Vegetables in the air fryer basket or a baking dish and cook until golden.
Paneer Tikka Masala – Remove the prepared Paneer Tikka from the skewer and serve with a rich onion tomato based gravy. You can use my Paneer curry gravy recipe.
How to make Speedy Paneer Tikka Recipe?
I like to use stir in Jamie Oliver Madras Curry paste or a Tikka Masala paste into the yogurt along with 2 tablespoon of chickpea flour and marinate the paneer and vegetables. Allow them to rest for 30 minutes or so and cook as per the instructions in the recipe card. This is a Quicker version of Paneer Tikka and delicious too.
What can I serve with Paneer Tikka kebabs?
I love serving these paneer tikka kebabs as an appetiser with sliced onions, lemon wedges and Coriander Mint Chutney.
They are also delicious with
Flatbread: Serve with naan bread or Yogurt flatbreads
Raita: With my easy cucumber raita or onion raita.
Rice: Serve with cumin rice, steamed basmati rice or for instant serving use ready to eat microwave-able rice from the packet. Simply heat in the microwave and its ready to serve in 2 minutes.
Poppadoms, Mango Chutney and Mint Sauce.
Leftovers and Storage
Store any leftover paneer tikka in the fridge in a covered container for 3-4 days.
To reheat, place it back in the air fryer and air fry at 150C for 4-5 minutes. Serve.
I don't recommend freezing the cooked paneer tikka for the texture. The flavors will still be delicious.
Air Fryer Paneer Tikka FAQ's
Paneer can become chewy when it is cooked for too long. Air fry it only until the edges are lightly charred and the paneer is hot throughout. Soaking firm shop-bought paneer in hot water for 10 minutes before marinating also helps to keep it soft.
Yes. Add the marinated paneer and vegetables directly to the air fryer basket in a single layer. Leave a little space between the pieces and air fry as directed, turning them halfway through.
Yes. Add the paneer and vegetables to the marinade, cover and store them in the fridge overnight. Thread them onto the skewers just before air frying.
Yes, but make sure the yogurt is thick. If it is runny, strain it first to remove some of the liquid. A thick marinade coats the paneer and vegetables much better.
I recommend preheating the air fryer to 180°C for two to three minutes. Starting with a hot air fryer helps the paneer tikka cook quickly and develop lightly charred edges.
Paneer tikka is a popular Indian appetiser made with paneer, onions and peppers marinated in spiced yogurt. Traditionally, it is cooked in a tandoor, but this version is made easily in the air fryer or oven.
More Indian Inspired Air fryer Recipes
Ingredients
- 500 g paneer
- 2 large Bell Peppers or Use a mix of Peppers 200g
- 1 large Red Onion 150g
Paneer tikka marinade
- ¾ cup Greek yogurt 180g
- 2 tablespoon chickpea flour
- 1 tablespoon ginger garlic paste
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- 1½ teaspoon Kashmiri chilli powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- ½ teaspoon chaat masala
- ¾ teaspoon garam Masala
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 3 teaspoon dried fenugreek leaves kasuri methi
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ lemon Juice
- 4 tablespoon sunflower oil
Instructions
- Prep the paneer and veggie: Cut the paneer to cubes - 2-2.5 cm. Soak in Hot water for at least 10 minutes. Drain. Dice the onion and peppers to a similar size.500 g paneer, 1 large Red Onion, 2 large Bell Peppers or Use a mix of Peppers
- Tandoori Yogurt marinade: Combine all the ingredients other than oil in a mixing bowl until smooth. Heat oil in a pan until really hot. Then add it to the yogurt marinade. Mix to combine.¾ cup Greek yogurt, 2 tbsp chickpea flour, 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste, ½ tsp turmeric, 1½ tsp Kashmiri chilli powder, 1 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp ground coriander, ½ tsp chaat masala, ¾ tsp garam Masala, 1 tsp ground black pepper, 3 tsp dried fenugreek leaves, ¾ tsp salt, ½ lemon Juice, 4 tbsp sunflower oil
- Thread the skewers, starting with peppers, onion, paneer and alternate. Repeat.If you don't have skewers, not to worry, simply add it to a baking tray or air fryer basket without overlapping.500 g paneer, 2 large Bell Peppers or Use a mix of Peppers, 1 large Red Onion
Air fryer Instructions
- Preheat the air fryer to 360°F / 180°C. Arrange the paneer tikka skewers in the air fryer basket and air fry for 8-10 minutes until the paneer is still soft but the outer layer is crispy. You'll hear the sizzle as it cooks!
- Remove from air fryer basket and serve with garlic naan, lemon wedges and Green Chutney.
Oven Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F/ 200°C. Arrange the paneer tikka skewers on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Place the tray in the oven and cook for 15-18 minutes or until the tikka is sizzling, and the paneer is crispy on the outside yet tender inside. Serve hot!
Notes
Expert Tips
- For a quicker marinade: Replace turmeric, chilli powder, cumin, coriander, garam masala, chaat masala, black pepper and kasuri methi with 3–4 tablespoons of shop-bought tikka masala or Madras curry paste. Mix it with the Greek yogurt and 2 tablespoons of chickpea flour, then use as directed.
- Soak firm paneer: Soak shop-bought paneer in hot water for 10 minutes, then drain well. This helps to keep it soft.
- Marinate for longer: Allow the paneer and vegetables to marinate for at least 30 minutes. For more flavour, cover and refrigerate overnight.
- Soak wooden skewers: Place them in cold water for 30 minutes before using. Skip this step if using metal skewers.
- Avoid overcooking: Air fry until the paneer is hot and lightly charred around the edges. Overcooking can make it firm and chewy.
Harry says
Authentic Panner Tikka. Simply amazing. Just loved it.
Aurora says
Authentic paneer tikka. Just loved it.
my kitchen says
I am drooling here,delicious tikka
Supriya says
Absolutely mouthwatering paneer tikkas Sandhya.
Home Cooked Oriya Food says
I love your paneer tikkas.
I made it for a barbecue party once and it was such a big hit. I have to try again..
Sandhya Hariharan says
Thank you Bharathy for such inspiring words...
My header pic is of my dessert - Chocolate Biscuit Pudding.
Bharathy says
Sandhya-Sandy?? :D...Cute!!
You have a LOVELY place here, girl!!..just love everything here!..the header!..the pictures..the recipes(so homely)...and the space is so well organised!..
Keep up your great work!..
Swarna says
Nice presentation and a delicious dish ..I am ur follower now...pls do visit my blog
Kitchen Flavours says
Chopping veggies ahead really minimize the time of cooking....panner tikka looks delish...
Anil P says
Paneer tikka - always a pleasure to sample. Surprisingly, paneer is one item that's been inconsistently prepared as a dish out here in Bombay.