Foods & cuts · Paneer
Paneer
A fresh cheese that browns without melting, cooked in slabs or on skewers. It behaves like halloumi and is not halloumi.
What it is
- Form
- Cheese block
- Typical weight
- 200–400 g
- Typical thickness
- 15–25 mm
- Cut
- Not a cut of anything
Why it behaves as it does
Paneer is acid-set and never went through the stretching that gives most cheeses their melting curd, so heat browns it rather than collapsing it. It is much less salty than halloumi, which matters on a barbecue: halloumi arrives seasoned and paneer does not. It sticks harder than halloumi too, because it is drier at the surface — a hot, clean, oiled grate is doing more work here than the timing is.
When is it done?
Food-safety endpoint
BBQHQ holds no food-safety rule for this food. We are not showing you another jurisdiction’s figure in its place — check your national food-safety authority.
When it goes wrong
- It came out tough
- Halloumi or paneer stuck, melted or would not brown — 2 distinguishable causes.
- It stuck to the grate
- Halloumi or paneer stuck, melted or would not brown — 2 distinguishable causes.
- It never browned
- Halloumi or paneer stuck, melted or would not brown — 2 distinguishable causes.
Also relevant to paneer
Afterwards
Cooling, keeping and reheating what is left is general guidance for barbecue leftovers. Neither UK authority publishes anything specific to paneer, and BBQHQ does not invent a distinction they do not make.