Paneer Butter Masala/Paneer Makhani (Simple method)

Paneer Butter Masala/Paneer Makhani is  the most famous Restaurant Paneer recipe,which is loved by people of all the ages. I have already mentioned  many times that I love Paneer so much and love trying different recipes made with paneer and I shared many recipes with Paneer like Masala Paneer curry,Paneer burji,Paneer 65,Paneer-capsicum curry,Shahi Paneer,Indian spinach curry  etc.,. This particular Paneer Butter Masala can be called as The best recipe  of Paneer. Today I am sharing the simple method to prepare this recipe.I have seen it long back in a Television Cookery show conducted by super chef Sanjay Thumma. I have made simple changes to it and tried,It came out very well and  so thought of sharing  it with you all.

In this recipe paneer is cooked in Makhani gravy which is a blend of tomatoes,onions,cashews and spices(with curd,optional).This recipe which I am sharing here is the most easiest recipe,which can be prepared very easily by the learners also.This is a fail proof recipe which turns out perfect every time. This is  a great combination for rotis and chapathis.

Preparation time : 20 mins

Cooking time : 20 mins

Yield : 2

Ingredients :

Paneer : 200 gm

Tomatoes : 3 no

Onions : 2

Dried fenugreek leaves /Kasuri methi : 1/4 tsp

Red chilies : 7-9 no.

Cashew nuts : 9-10 no.

Cardamom/elachi: 1-2 no.

Cinnamon/Dalchina : 1 '' stick

Ginger :  2 " piece

Garlic : 5 pods

Butter : 2 tbsp

Cumin powder : 1 tsp

Coriander powder : 1 tsp

Garam masala powder : 1 tsp

Red chili powder : 1 tbsp

Salt : as per required

Method of Preparation :

1. Cut Paneer/Cottage cheese into cubes and fry them by heating a  tbsp of butter in a kadai,keep aside.


2. Heat another small kadai (without oil),off the flame,add Kasuri methi and dry roast,rub between palms to make powder and keep it aside.


3. Cut each onion into 4 pieces,tomatoes also into 4 pieces each,grate ginger and keep aside.


4. Bring water to boil,to this boiling water add onion pieces,tomato pieces,red chilies,grated ginger,garlic pods,cashew nuts,cinnamon,cardamom and boil them for 15 mins. Then cool them and grind them and sieve it and keep this puree or paste aside.


5. Heat 1 tbsp of butter,add cumin/jeera powder,coriander powder,garam masala,red chili powder,stir once,then add the puree or paste which we prepared and cook for 5-7 mins .


6. Then add salt and kasuri methi powder,mix thoroughly.


7. Finally add the fried Paneer cubes,dish out and serve with rotis,parathas,chapathis.

[caption id="attachment_625" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Paneer Butter masala/Paneer MaKani[/caption]

 

 

Shahi Paneer Korma/Kurma

Shahi Paneer is a  simple yet delicious paneer curry, cooked with minimal ingredients.  As already mentioned in one of my previous recipes 'Vegetable Shahi Korma', In the name 'Korma/kurma' indicates 'vegetables or meat which is cooked in Yoghurt/curd' and 'shahi' indicates 'Royal' which means rich gravy made from Cashew nuts,coconut,tomato etc., Thus,totally indicating that its a special festive recipe in which Paneer is cooked with rich gravy and curd. Here for the gravy I am using tomato paste and poppy seeds paste,which add richness to the dish.

Preparation time : 20 mins

Cooking time : 30 mins

Yield : 2

Ingredients :

Paneer/Cottage cheese : 100 gm

Onions : 2

Tomatoes : 3

Poppy seeds/gasagasalu/gasagase : 1/2 cup

Ginger-garlic paste : 1 tbsp

Red chilies powder : 1 tbsp

Turmeric powder : a pinch

Salt : to taste

Curd : 3/4 cup

Garam masala powder : 1 tsp

Coriander leaves : for garnishing

Sugar : 1/4 tsp (optional)

Oil : 1 tbsp

Method Of Preparation :

1. Grind onions and tomatoes into paste separately. Cut Paneer/cottage cheese into uniform cubes. Dry roast poppy seeds and grind them into paste by adding little water,keep aside.


2. Heat oil in a kadai,add onion paste,saute till the paste changes color slightly to pink,then add ginger-garlic paste and saute till the raw smell goes off,Add tomato paste,saute for 5-7 mins,then add poppy seeds paste,salt,red chili powder,turmeric powder,cook till the oil comes out.


3. Add curd,little water and paneer cubes,cook for 7-10 mins by closing it with a lid.Then add garam masala powder,sugar(optional).Dish out  and garnish with coriander leaves. This dish goes well with rotis.

[caption id="attachment_452" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Shahi paneer kurma[/caption]

Paneer 65

Any dish made out of paneer will be definitely super tasty and delicious,this is due to the rich taste of Paneer.I am sharing one of the best tasty dish with paneer, which is' Paneer 65'. I have made few changes  according to my taste, to the original recipe. I am not using food color,as it is harmful to the body.This recipe requires very less ingredients and very simple to prepare.

Preparation Time : 10 mins

Cooking Time : 20 mins

Yield : 2

Ingredients:

Paneer : 100 gm

All purpose flour/maida : 1 cup

Cornflour/Mokka jonna pindi/Jolada hittu : 2 tbsp

Red chilli powder /karam/ona menasinakayi pudi : 2 tbsp

Turmeric Powder/pasupu/arishana pudi : 1 tsp

Salt : as per required

Garam masala powder : 1 tbsp

Ginger-garlic paste : 1 tbsp

Green chilies/pachi mirchi/menasinakayi  slices : 1/2 cup

Curry leaves/karivepaku/karivebina soppu : few

Curd : 1/2 cup

Water : as per required

Tomato Ketchup : 2 tbsp

Oil : for deep fry

Method Of Preparation :

1. Cut Paneer into cubes. Chop green chilies into longitudinal slices.


2. In a bowl add maida,cornflour,red chili powder,turmeric powder,salt,ginger-garlic paste,garam masala powder and little water to make batter.The batter should be of medium thickness (not too loose or too thick).


3. Dip Paneer cubes into it and deep fry them.


4. Heat another kadai and add 1 tbsp of oil, allow it to get heated and add green chili slices, curry leaves ,saute for 1 minute,then add curd,tomato sauce and stir once, then add fried paneer cubes into it and saute for 2 minutes and dish out.


5. Serve along with biryani/pulao/roti or even as a starter.

[caption id="attachment_173" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Panner 65[/caption]

Note : If you want extra color,you can add food color to the batter before adding paneer cubes to the batter.

Paneer Bhurji/ Cottage Cheese Bhurji

I always love to try different dishes with Paneer/Cottage Cheese. This recipe Paneer Bhurji is a famous North Indian recipe. 'Bhurji' means 'scrambled'. In south India Egg Bhurji is prepared commonly but Paneer /cottage cheese bhurji is rarely prepared. This is served for breakfast along with bread in North India, but it goes well with roti or even with plain rice.

In this recipe I  did not completely crumbled the Paneer/ Cottage Cheese, I just  chopped it into very small pieces as I like this way rather than crumbling. I have made few changes to the normal Paneer Bhurji recipe, accordingly to my requirements.

 

Preparation time : 10 minutes

Cooking time : 15 minutes

Yield : 2

 

Ingredients :

Paneer/Cottage Cheese : 100 gm

Tomatoes : 2

Onions : 1 (large)

Green chilies : 5

Tomato ketchup/sauce : 1 tbsp (optional)

Garam masala powder : 1 tbsp

Salt : to taste

Cumin seeds /jeerige/jeera : 1 tbsp

Ginger-garlic paste : 1 tbsp

Turmeric powder/pasupu/Arishana pudi : a pinch

oil : 1 tbsp

Coriander leaves : for garnishing

Water : 1/2 cup

 

Method of Preparation :

1. Chop Paneer/Cottage Cheese into small pieces or even you can mash it with hands.


2. Chop tomatoes, green chilies, onions also and keep aside.


3. Heat a small kadai and add oil into it, then add cumin seeds/jeerige/jeera and fry for 30 seconds.


4. Then add chopped onions and fry for 2-3 minutes or till they turn transparent.


5. Then add chopped green chilies, fry for a minute and then add ginger-garlic paste and fry for 2 more minutes.


6. Add turmeric powder/pasupu/arishana pudi and chopped tomatoes,cover the kadai with a lid and cook for 3 minutes.


7. Then add mashedor chopped paneer/cottage cheese, salt, water,garam masala, stirr well and cook for 3 minutes. So,that all the masala will be absorbed by the paneer/cottage cheese.


8. Finally add tomato ketchup/sauce and mix well. This step is an optional step, if you want you can omit this step.


9. Dish out and garnish with coriander leaves.

[caption id="attachment_75" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Paneer/ Cottage Cheese Bhurji[/caption]

Note : Those who want to have gravy for this can make paste of tomatoes and add to it instead of tomato pieces.

For extra spiciness, coriander powder and cumin powder can be added.

Masala Paneer Curry

Being a fan of Paneer, I always love to try different recipes with it. I always experiment paneer with various combinations.This recipe is one such experiment. This is a common curry, which I do normally with Chicken. This time I replaced chicken with Paneer with few other changes in Masala. This is a gravy curry which goes well with fried rice,biryani, roti or even with plain rice. Its very simple to prepare, yet super tasty. With very few ingredients we can prepare this. Do try it once and you will definitely like it. Don't forget to share your experience once you tried it.

Preparation Time : 30 minutes

Cooking time : 25-30 Minutes

Yield : 2

 

Ingredients :

Paneer : 150 gm.

Curd : 1 cup

Black Pepper powder/miriyala poddi/kappu menasu pudi : 2 tbsps

Chat Masala : 1 tbsp

Red Chilly Powder/karam/ona menasinakayi pudi : 3 tbsps

Tomato pieces : 1 cup

Salt : to taste

Capsicum Pieces : 1 cup

Jeera powder/cumin powder/jeerige pudi : 1 tbsp

Dhaniya Powder/coriander powder/beeja kothambari pudi : 1 tbsp

Mustard seeds/avallu/sasive : 1 tsp

Ginger-garlic paste : 1 tbsp

turmeric powder/pasupu/arishana pudi : a pinch

Oil : 7-8 tbsps

 

Method of Preparation :

1. First cut paneer into small cubes.


2. Heat a pan and add 5 tbsps f oil and shallow fry paneer cubes, till they turn slightly golden brown. Keep them aside for few minutes.


3. Take a wide mouthed bowl and add curd,salt,1 tbsp of red chilly powder/karam/ona menisinakayi pudi , 1 tbsp chat masala powder,1 tbsp of black pepper powder amd mix them well.


4. Then add fried paneer cubes to this,close the bowl and marinate this mixture for 20-25 minutes.


5. Heat  other pan and add 3 tbsps of oil and add mustard seeds, saute them till they pop out.Then add ginger-garlic paste and fry till the raw smell goes off.


6. Then add finely chopped tomato pieces, keep the lid and cook for 5 minutes or till the tomato pieces become soft.


7. To this add salt,remaining red chilly powder/karam/ona menisinakayi pudi,Capsicum pieces,turmeric powder/arishana pudi/pasupu, jeera powder/jeerige pudi/cumin seed powder and saute for few minutes.


8. Then add Black pepper powder/miriyala podi/kappu menasu pudi and dhaniya powder/coriander powder/beeja kothambari pudi and saute for few more minutes.


9. Then finally add marinated paneer along with curd mixture,stirr well and close the lid and let it boil for 10-15 minutes.


10. Dishout and serve along with jeera rice/ghee rice/pulao/friedrice etc.,

[caption id="attachment_47" align="aligncenter" width="600"] Paneer masala gravy curry[/caption]

 

Note : Marinating paneer for longer periods makes paneer more delicious.

The ingredients/masala can be altered as per one's taste.

 

Paneer-Indian Spinach Curry/Bachali Aaku Paneer/ Basale soppu Paneer curry

We all are familiar with Palak Paneer, it is one of the best combination of Paneer with leafy vegetable. But this Paneer with Indian Spinach/malabar Spinach is also a good combination. We do cook Palak/Spinach in many ways like in curries,snacks,biryani etc., but we don't usually try different  recipes with  Indian Spinach, we usually cook curry with it,with combination of Kanda/Yum  (kanda Bachali/Indian Spinach& yum). We all know that Spinach is rich in Vitamins and minerals, but this malabar Spinach/Indian Spinach contain high amounts of Vitamin A,C,Iron and Calcium and the main advantage of this is, it is low in calories and high in proteins and it also contains soluble fibre. This Leafy vegetable is used widely used in Chinese Cuisine in preparation of Soups and Stir frys. As this leafy vegetable contains less calories and Paneer contains high calories,the combination works perfectly giving the dish moderate calories. Those who are on diet can replace Paneer with Soy Paneer/Tofu which contains less calories compared to milk  paneer. Also check my other popular paneer recipes, Shahi paneer curry,paneer masala curry, paneer burji,  and paneer 65

 

Preparation Time :  15 mins

Cooking time : 25-30 Mins

 

Ingredients :

Paneer : 200 gms

Indian Spinach/bachali aaku/Basale Soppu : 1-2bunches

Ginger Garlic Paste : 1 tbsp

Green chillies : 5-6 medium length

Onion pieces : 1cup

Cumin seeds/Jeera/jirige : 1tsp

mustard seeds/Aavalu/sasive :1tsp

Turmeric Powder : pinch

Curry leaves/karivepaku/karibevina Soppu : few

Red chilli powder : 2-3tbsps

Garam masala Powder : 1 tsp

Coriander leaves/Kothmir/kottumbari elegalannu : few

Salt : to taste

Oil : 3 tbsps

water : 1/2cup

lemon juice :1-2tsps

 

Method Of Preparation :

1. First clean the Indian Spinach and separate the leaves and keep aside.Soak or dip those leaves in hot water for 1-2 mins and let it cool for some time. (so that the raw smell goes off).After they get cooled down, grind it into paste in a mixer and keep aside.


2. Take the Paneer and just dip it in hot water for few seconds and remove it. Then gently press it so that the water comes out. Then cut it into pieces(this makes paneer more soft and also this method allows paneer to absorb the gravy well).


3. Heat a pan/kadai and put oil into it and heat it.Then add mustard seeds and fry them till they pop out.Then add cumin seeds and fry for few seconds.Now add onion pieces and fry till they turn golden brown.Then add ginger garlic paste and fry till the raw smell goes off.


4. Then add green chilies,curry leaves and coriander leaves and fry for a minute.Now add the Indian Spinach paste which we have prepared earlier and cook for 5-7 mins.Then add paneer pieces and stirr well.Add salt,redchilli powder and water and mix well, close the kadai with lid and cook for 5 more minutes.Then add  Garam masala powder and coriander leaves, stir well and Dish out.


5. Just before serving add lemon juice and mix it well and then Serve.Tasty and Healthy Indian Spinach with Paneer Curry is .ready.

[caption id="attachment_9" align="aligncenter" width="600"] Indian Spinach-paneer curry[/caption]