Paneer Masala

Paneer masala is a dish that’s a speciality of my mompa. I can guarantee you that there is a small fan base, particularly for this dish. I remember those days when it will be over within a few minutes whenever I take it to college. This is his recipe. I have not made any changes to it. Oh, I did try using butter and other oils as a substitute for groundnut/peanut oil but I couldn’t achieve the same flavour. Maybe because the flavour of his dish is ingrained in my brain and I was not satisfied with the outcome. He was an excellent cook. Today, it has been a year since I last saw him alive. Its a simple dish and not as complicated as it looks. Be sure to use paneer and not cottage cheese while making this dish as cottage cheese may not be as firm as paneer. Here it goes.

Ingredients:

• 400 grams Paneer, cut in bite-sized cubes
• 20 Cashew nuts
• 1 teaspoon Poppy seeds/Khas Khas
• 1/2 cup Water
• 2 Onions, sliced
• 8 cloves Garlic, peeled and chopped
• 2 inches Ginger, peeled and chopped
• 3 Tomatoes, chopped
• 1 teaspoon Fennel seeds
• 2 inches Cinnamon stick
• 5 Cloves
• 4 Cardamom pods
• 2 teaspoons Kashmiri red chilli powder
• 2 teaspoons Coriander powder
• 1 teaspoon Garam masala
• 1 teaspoon Salt or as required
• 1/4 cup Groundnut/Peanut oil
• 1 tablespoon Dried Fenugreek leaves/Kasuri Methi
• Coriander leaves for garnish(optional)

Preparation:

Take cashew nuts and poppy seeds along with half a cup of water in a bowl. Boil it over a medium flame for about 3 minutes. Take it off the heat and allow it to cool down. Meanwhile, prepare the rest of the base for the masala. Take onions, ginger and garlic together in a blender and grind it to a smooth paste. Transfer it to a bowl and set aside. Similarly, take the chopped tomatoes in the blender, blend it to a nice puree, transfer and set aside. Do not add water while grinding(*refer notes). Once the soaked cashew nuts and poppy seeds have cooled down take them in the blender along with the water used for soaking and grind it smooth as well. Keep the rest of the ingredients handy.

Heat 1/4 cup of oil over a medium flame, in a deep bottomed pan or skillet and, shallow fry the cut paneer cubes in batches till they turn golden in colour. Set aside.

In the same pan or skillet add fennel seeds, cinnamon sticks, cloves and cardamom pods. Fry for about 30 seconds. It releases a lovely aroma. Make sure not to burn the spices. Next, add the ground onion-ginger-garlic paste. Sauté till the raw smell leaves.

Add in the pureed tomatoes. Stir them all together. Add in Kashmiri chilli powder, coriander powder, garam masala and salt. Mix well. Let the mixture to boil.

Now, add in the ground cashew nuts and poppy seeds mixture. Stir. The colour of the masala turns from a deep red to a lighter shade. Add in the fried paneer cubes and mix them through. Lastly, add the dried fenugreek leaves/kasuri methi after rubbing it in between your palms. 

That’s it! Garnish with few coriander leaves and serve with chapati, poori, any other Indian flatbreads or jeera rice.

Notes:

• Make sure the paneer is defrosted before starting with the preparation.
• Add a little water, about 2 tablespoons, to grind the onion-ginger-garlic paste in case your blender is struggling. But it is an absolute no while grinding the tomatoes. It ruins the masala.
• The spice level is mild in this recipe as I have used Kashmiri red chilli powder. If you want it to be spicy, use regular red chilli powder.
• You can use any other oil other than groundnut/peanut oil as well. Let me know in comments if you used other oils and if you liked it.