Shahi Paneer
It is a delicious North Indian curry made with paneer (cottage cheese) and tomato based spicy gravy laced with spices. This is a traditional recipe that has been followed from generations and has been mainstay preparation in Indian cuisine since the time of Moguls. This shahi paneer recipe uses cashew nut based tomato gravy to bring in the rich texture and flavor.
| Ingredients: |
| 250 gms Paneer (cottage cheese), cubed into 1-inch pieces |
| 1 medium Tomato, crushed |
| 2 medium Onions |
| 5-6 Cashew Nuts |
| 1 teaspoon Coriander Seeds, roasted |
| 1-2 Cloves (lavang) |
| 1/2 piece of Bay Leaf |
| A small piece of Cinnamon Stick |
| 2 Green Cardamoms |
| 1 tablespoon Ginger Garlic Paste |
| 1/4 teaspoon Turmeric Powder |
| 1/2 teaspoon Red Chili Powder |
| 1/2 teaspoon Coriander Powder |
| 1 drop of Red Food Color, optional |
| 1/3 cup Curd (not sour), beaten |
| 1/3 cup Warm Water |
| 1/2 teaspoon Sugar, optional |
| 2 tablespoons Fresh Cream |
| 1/4 teaspoon Garam Masala Powder |
| 2-3 strands of Saffron, dissolved in 1 teaspoon water, optional |
| 3 tablespoons Cooking Oil or Ghee (clarified butter) |
| Salt to taste |
| 1-2 teaspoons Kasuri Methi , for garnishing |
Directions:
- Grind cashew nuts with roasted coriander seeds into smooth powder and keep aside until required.
- Blanch the onions by following the directions given in the “How to Blanch Onion” recipe and crush the blanched onion to medium coarse paste in a grinder. Heat oil in a kadai (or pan) over medium flame. Add cloves, bay leaf, cinnamon and green cardamom. When they begin to crackle, add crushed onion.
- Stir-fry until it becomes light brown for approx. 3-4 minutes.
- Add ginger-garlic paste, turmeric powder, red chilli powder, coriander powder, a drop of red food color, cashew nut powder (prepared in step-1) and stir-fry for a minute.
- Add crushed tomato puree and salt.
- Stir-fry for approx. 2-minutes.
- Add curd, sugar and 1/3 cup warm water.
- Mix them and let mixture boil until oil starts to separate.
- Takeaway kadai from flame and let the mixture cool for 5 minutes. Discard whole spices (cloves, bay leaf, cinnamon and green cardamom), transfer mixture to a blender jar and blend it to smooth puree in blender or food processor. Again, transfer it to same kadai and place on the stove.
- Add fresh cream, garam masala powder and dissolved saffron.
- Mix well and cook for a minute.
- Add paneer cubes and mix properly to coat them with gravy.
- Cook for 3-4 minutes and turn off flame.
- Garnish it with kasuri methi and serve hot with Punjabi butter naan or tandoori roti in lunch.
Tips and Variations:
- This best shahi paneer recipe uses uncooked paneer (paneer in its basic form); however, you can deep fry paneer cubes in butter/ghee or oil until light brown and add into the curry for variation.
- To give an extra creamy texture and taste to shahi paneer gravy, add 1/4-cup fresh cream instead of 2 tablespoons in step 10 in above recipe.
- Make sure to remove and discard the whole spices before blending the tomato gravy in mixer-grinder.
- To give prepared shahi paneer a tempting look, garnish it with a cream. The contrast of white and yellow-red color of gravy gives it a delicious look.
Taste: Spicy
Serving Ideas: Shahi paneer can be served with butter naan, tandoori roti, paratha, kulcha, etc. for lunch or dinner. It also tastes better when served with steamed rice or peas pulao.