Afghani Paneer Masala

I’ll be honest. I haven’t tasted authentic Afghan food. I have never owned an authentic Afghan cookbook either. So if you are from Afghanistan and have no clue how I named the recipe ‘Afghan Paneer’, I’ll tell you how. I saw a Youtube video of an Afghan Chicken side dish  long back. I loved the flavors that went into making the gravy and wanted to ‘vegetarianize’ the same. So here’s my take on some of the flavors of Afghanistan!I wouldn’t call this a quick recipe. But it really is simple. I grilled my Paneer pieces first and then added to the gravy which made it crunchy on the outside & soft inside. I loved the texture. If you’re not too keen on grilling or baking and would like the Paneer just soft, skip the grilling part. And by the way, my latest discovery – Poppy seeds! They are proving to be wonderful in gravies! You should try this recipe!

Here’s what you’re going to need -

Start by grinding poppy seeds, almonds & cumin to a fine powder.

To the curd / yogurt, add the ground mix, chilli paste, red chilli powder, salt & a pinch of sugar

Give it a good mix

Add in the Paneer (cottage cheese) cubes and mix well making sure you don’t break any of the cubes. Let that rest in the marinade for at least 20-30 minutes for the flavors to seep in. (Do the same if you’re using Chicken pieces too)

Arrange the paneer cubes one by one on a grill pan. If you don’t have the grill function in your microwave, you can bake or deep fry.

Grill for 20 minutes or until the outsides turn crispy.

Do not discard the Yogurt & spices mixture remaining. Mix in the milk with it and set aside.

Heat oil. Add cinnamon, onions, garam masala and mix well.

Fry till onions are golden brown

Add in the crushed tomatoes / tomato puree

Add water and mix well. Let that come to a boil and reduce by half

Add the milk mixture to the pan and mix. Taste the gravy & check for seasoning.

Add the grilled paneer pieces. Alternatively, if you aren’t grilling, just add the pieces directly at this stage after marinating.

Mix well & let the mixture come to a boil.

Garnish with Coriander (cilantro) or Parsley leaves

Serve hot with any kind of rice or bread.

Afghani Paneer Masala

 

Print

Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

30 mins

Total time

50 mins

 

Cuisine: Afghan

Serves: 2-4

Ingredients

• 2 cups Paneer Cubes (1 inch) (cottage cheese)*
• 1 cup chopped Onions
• 1 cup crushed Tomatoes / Tomato Puree
• ½ cup Plain Yogurt / Curd (or use cream)
• ¼ cup Milk
• 1 tsp Garam Masala
• 1 tsp Cumin seeds
• 2 tsp Poppy seeds
• 5-8 Almonds
• 2 TBsp Green Chilli Paste (just run the chilli through food processor)
• 1 inch Cinnamon stick
• 1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
• 2 TBsp Salt (to taste)
• a pinch of Sugar
• ½ cup Water
• Vegetable Oil as required

Instructions

1. In a food processor or grinder, add almonds, cumin seeds & poppy seeds. Grind to a coarse powder
2. Add the powder to curd along with green chilli paste, Garam Masala, 1 tsp Salt, 1 tsp Red Chilli Powder & 1 TBsp Garam Masala powder. Mix well.
3. Add paneer cubes to the curd mixture. Mix well making sure the paneer does not crumble and the curd mix coats all the paneer cubes. Let that rest / marinate for 20 – 30 minutes
4. Arrange the cubes one by one on a grill pan & grill for 15 minutes r=or until the outside of the Paneer is golden brown. ALTERNATIVELY, if you don’t have a grill pan, you can bake the same @ 200C for 15 minutes. Set aside. (You can skip this step if you don’t want the crunchy texture of the Paneer)
5. Don’t discard the yogurt mixture leftover. Mix well with milk and set aside.
6. Heat 2 tsp Oil and add cinnamon, onions and saute until the onions are golden brown
7. Ad tomato puree, water and mix well. Let it boil and reduce to half.
8. Add the milk mixture to the pan and mix well. Let that again come to a boil.
9. Add the Paneer pieces to the gravy and mix well.
10. Garnish with Coriander or Parsley Leaves and serve hot with Rice or Bread

Paneer Butter Masala

Paneer. I happen to love it. Do you? This dish happens to be one of India’s prized possessions – the most widely requested dish on any restaurant’s menu!

As I sit editing these photos.. All 35 of them … it reminds me of how good this side dish is, and how fun that night was!! I bought home some fresh paneer intending to make a sweet out of it. My brother, the guinea pig, pleads with me to make his favorite curry instead. I cave. I make this along with my crunchy cottage cheese & peas pilaf. We stuff till our esophaguses  (esophagi? esophagus? What’s the right word? ) are full; and we can’t move a muscle. We swear never to stuff so much food into ourselves ever again! (and yet, we know that the next time I make Paneer Butter Masala, the same episode will be repeated! )
Aaah.. .Good times!

Don’t be intimidated by the ‘number of ingredients’ in the recipe. Organization is the key! Arrange all that you need BEFORE you begin. And follow the recipe step by step. You’re gonna have a dish worthy of being on the menu of any 5 star restaurant! Of course, you can make the low-fat version by substituting a lota ingredients. Scroll down to the recipe for ideas on substitutions.
PANEER BUTTER MASALA – The Recipe
What you need -

Soak broken cashews in some warm milk for 5-10 minutes.

To some more warm milk, add Garam Masala powder, Red Chilli Powder, Coriander powder (roast seeds & grind), dry fenugreek leaves (kasoori methi) and tomato ketchup.

Mix well and set aside.

To a blender, add tomatoes. You can blanch and remove the skins if you want.

Blend for 1-2 minutes to a smooth puree.

Set it aside.

In the same blender, add the cashew-milk mixture.

Grind for 2 minutes to form a smooth paste. Set that aside.

Cut the Paneer block into half inch cubes.

You can deep fry the cubes if you want. OR, heat some oil on a non stick pan and arrange the pieces on the pan. Let that fry on each side for 2-3 minutes of medium flame.

Remove and set aside. (This step is optional. You can add the paneer without shallow frying too)

To the same pan with high sides, add the butter, ginger & garlic paste.

Cook for a minute until the butter is fully melted.

Add the chopped onions

Fry for 2-3 minutes until the onions are golden brown.

Add the tomato puree prepared before.

Mix well & let that boil

Let that cook for 10-15 minutes until the tomato reduces to a paste and the ‘fat’ starts to release from the sides.
 
Add the cashew-milk paste as well as the milk-spices mixture.

Mix well and let that boil for sometime. (3-4 minutes till it reduces)

Add half a cup of water to loosen the gravy.

Mix & let it cook for 5 minutes until raw smell of spices disappear.

Season with salt, sugar. (Paneer butter masala is known to be a bit sweet)

Let the gravy boil for 5 more minutes.

Add the Paneer cubes.

Mix well & boil for 3-4 minutes.

Garnish with coriander leaves & serve!

5.0 from 2 reviews

Paneer Butter Masala

 

Print

Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

30 mins

Total time

50 mins

 

Recipe type: Sides

Cuisine: Indian

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 1 lb (500 gms) Fresh Paneer (Cottage cheese)
• 1 cup Onions, finely chopped
• 2 Tomatoes (or 8 oz canned tomatoes)
• 5-8 Cashew nuts (use more for richer version)
• 1 TBsp Butter
• 1 tsp grated Ginger
• 1 tsp Garlic, minced
• 2 TBsp Tomato ketchup
• ½ cup Warm Milk (use cream for richer version)
• 1 TBsp Salt (adjust to taste)
• 1 tsp Sugar (more for a more sweeter version)
• 2 tsp Red Chilli Powder
• 2 tsp Garam Masala Powder (homemade or store bought)
• 1 tsp Coriander (dhania) powder (Roast coriander for 2 minutes & grind to a powder) {optional}
• 1 tsp Kasoori Methi (Dry fenugreek leaves) {optional}
• Water, as required

Instructions

1. Soak broken cashews in quarter cup of warm milk for 5-10 minutes.
2. To remaining warm milk, add Garam Masala powder, Red Chilli Powder, Coriander powder (roast seeds & grind), dry fenugreek leaves (kasoori methi) and tomato ketchup.
3. Mix well and set aside.
4. To a blender, add tomatoes. You can blanch and remove the skins if you want. Blend for 1-2 minutes to a smooth puree & Set it aside.
5. In the same blender, add the cashew-milk mixture. Grind for 2 minutes to form a smooth paste. Set that aside.
6. Cut the Paneer block into half inch cubes.
7. You can deep fry the cubes if you want. OR, heat some oil on a non stick pan and arrange the pieces on the pan. Let that fry on each side for 2-3 minutes of medium flame. Remove and set aside. (This step is optional. You can add the paneer without shallow frying too)
8. To the same pan with high sides, add the butter, ginger & garlic paste. Cook for a minute until the butter is fully melted.
9. Add the chopped onions. Fry for 2-3 minutes until the onions are golden brown.
10. Add the tomato puree prepared before. Mix well & let that boil
11. Let that cook for 10-15 minutes until the tomato reduces to a paste and the ‘fat’ starts to release from the sides.
12. Add the cashew-milk paste as well as the milk-spices mixture.
13. Mix well and let that boil for sometime. (3-4 minutes till it reduces)
14. Add half a cup of water to loosen the gravy.
15. Mix & let it cook for 5 minutes until raw smell of spices disappear.
16. Season with salt, sugar. (Paneer butter masala is known to be a bit sweet)
17. Let the gravy boil for 5 more minutes.
18. Add the Paneer cubes. Mix well & boil for 3-4 minutes.
19. Garnish with coriander leaves & serve!

Notes

1. Skip cashews altogether and you’ll have a less rich gravy
2. Instead of butter, you can use vegetable oil too
3. There’s no need to fry the paneer pieces.
4. Make sure the milk / cream is warm. If its cold, it’ll split when added to the gravy