Butter Paneer Masala
June 16th, 2007 filed under Gluten Free, Paneer (Indian Cheese)
Butter Paneer Masala is a rich entre made with Indian cheese and a creamy sauce. This dish is tasty when served over white rice or with Naan or Tandoori Roti.
Serves 2 to 4.
Ingredients:
- 1/2 lb. paneer (cubed)
- 2 medium tomatoes
- 1 green chili
- 1/4 inch piece ginger
- 1/2 cup green peas (optional)
- 1/2 cup yogurt, whipped
- 2 tablespoons oil
- Pinch of asafetida (hing)
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds (jeera)
- 1 tablespoon coriander powder (dhania)
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric (haldi)
- 1/2 teaspoon red chili powder (lal mirch)
- 2 bay leaves (tajpat)
- 1 teaspoon salt adjust to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro (Green coriander)
- 1 teaspoon sugar (optional)
Method:
- Deep-fry the paneer on low-medium heat until the paneer has a little golden- brown color. Set aside.
- Blend tomatoes, green chilly and ginger to make a puree.
- Heat the oil in a saucepan. Test the heat by adding one cumin seed to oil; if seed cracks right away oil is ready.
- Add hing and cumin seeds.
- After the cumin seeds crack, add the tomato puree, coriander powder, turmeric, red chili powder and bay leaves. Cook for about 4 minutes on medium heat.
- Tomato mixture will start to leave the oil and will reduce to about half in quantity.
- Add the whipped yogurt into the gravy. Stir occasionally for about 3 minutes on medium heat.
- To thicken the gravy, dissolve the cornstarch in 3 tablespoons of water and add to the gravy.
- Add the green peas and paneer. Let it cook for a few minutes until the peas are tender.
- Add the garam masala and cilantro. Add a little sugar if the gravy is sour.
Variations:
- You can substitute the yogurt with heavy cream for a richer flavor.
- 1 tablespoon of fresh or dried methi leaves (Fenugreek leaves) can be added at the end.
- Add in the yogurt powder of 4 to 5 cashews to make it creamier.
- This gravy can be used in any combination of vegetables you desire.
- This recipe is only a method – feel free to be creative and experiment!
hi manjulaji,
i tried butter paneer masala and it came out very well. My family members liked it a lot. It is easy to make . It is quick to make .
Thanks a lot.
at last i got a recipe site that does not use onion and garlic. thanks a lot! pls give more veg recipes.
Many Indians, Jain and non-Jain do not eat onions and garlic. If you like onions and garlic, you can add them into the recipe.
hi manjulaji
why are you noy use oninon in any your recipe?
we people like onion in all punjabi dishes
so witch recipe you use onion ..tell me plssssssssssss
thanks
hi supriya, i read somewhere on majula Ji’s website that as she is jain and so she does not use onion and garlic and that is how jain people cook.She also mentioned that the real tastes of food is without onion and garlic as they overpower the real taste of he other ingredients.It is also good for health and easy on stomach for digestion.she does not have any recipes with onions (don’t think so).hope this helps.
Thank you very much Manjula Ji for your recipes I have regularly been watching. We bengalies are normally nen-vegetarians but certainly follow some veg-days once or twice in a week for religious purpose. So, on those occassion your pure veg -recipes are really helping me a lot. Again a many many thanks from the bottom from my heart. Please keep posting recipes for us . Regards. Swati Roy
Hello Aunty,
Why is this dish called ‘butter’ panner when we dont use butter?
Also I find that the process and ingredients for butter panner masala and mattar paneer are the similar except for the yoghurt in butter paneer masala. What is the diffrence?
Hello manjula-ji
cooking is my hobby, and i’ve tried out some recipe’s from your site and its amazing.
and my wishes to keep up the work.
Delicious, and so easy, because I cheated and used canned tomatoes and packaged paneer!
Hello mam,
Every receipe is very useful for us to learn so thanks a lot for spending time and wonderful receipes.Once again thanks a lot and keep going
sorry !someone had already asked about the alternative to cornstarch..I read your reply to that..thanks anyway Manjula-ji !!