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Kadhai (Kadai) Paneer

Kadhai (Kadai) Paneer

Kadhai Paneer

Kadhai Paneer is a great main dish for any special occasion. Paneer and colorful bell peppers are sauteed in spicy tomato gravy.
4.50 from 2 votes
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine Indian
Servings 4 people

Ingredients
  

  • 1/2 lb paneer
  • 1 medium red bell pepper shimla mirch, capsicum
  • 1 medium green bell pepper shimla mirch, capsicum1
  • 3 tbsp oil
  • 3 medium tomatoes
  • 1/4 inch ginger
  • 1 green chili
  • 1/8 tsp asafetide hing
  • 1 tsp cumin seeds jeera
  • 1-1/2 tbsp coriander powder dhania
  • 1/2 tsp turmeric haldi
  • 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
  • 2 tbsp chopped fenugreek leaves methi
  • 3/4 tsp salt

Instructions
 

  • Cut paneer and bell peppers into ½ inch cubes.
  • Blend the tomatoes, ginger, and green chili to make a puree.
  • Heat the oil in frying pan on medium heat and stir fry paneer for about 2 minutes - take them out before paneer starts changing color.
  • Next stir-fry bell pepper until they are tender. Do not over cook the bell pepper. Take them out and drain on a paper towel.
  • Using the same frying pan, Test the oil by adding one cumin seed to the oil; if seed cracks right away oil is ready. Add the asafetida and cumin seeds.
  • After the cumin seeds crack, add the tomato puree, coriander powder, turmeric, fenugreek leaves and cayenne pepper. Cook for about 4 minutes on medium heat.
  • Tomato mixture will reduce to about half in volume. Add about 2 spoons of water, and the salt.
  • Wait till gravy comes to boil add paneer and bell pepper and let it simmer for about five minutes on low medium heat. Now it is ready to serve.

Notes

Serving Suggestions
Kadhai Paneer can be served with Aloo Naan, or Paratha or your choice of bread. 
Keyword Gluten Free, Kid Friendly, Party Food
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

How To Make Kadhai Paneer – Manjula’s Kitchen 

Kadhai Paneer stands as a delightful and gluten-free culinary masterpiece, presenting a luscious and creamy gravy that not only indulges the taste buds but also earns the favor of kids, making it an excellent choice for family meals. Kadai Paneer is indeed a versatile dish that brings joy to the table, offering a delightful culinary experience for all as a party recipe.

1. Preparing Kadhai Paneer: 

To embark on the culinary journey of crafting Kadai Paneer, start by cutting paneer and bell peppers into uniform ½ inch cubes. This meticulous preparation ensures a symphony of textures in every bite, with the paneer and bell peppers contributing to the dish’s delightful balance. The precise cubing sets the stage for the essence of the Kadhai Paneer recipe.

2. Creating the Flavorful Base:

In the next step of the Kadai Paneer recipe, blend tomatoes, ginger, and green chili to perfection, forming a vibrant and aromatic puree. This puree serves as the foundation for the rich and flavorful gravy that will envelop the paneer and bell peppers, creating a harmonious blend of spices and freshness.

  1. Sautéing Paneer to Perfection: 

As the journey continues, heat oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Stir-fry the paneer for approximately 2 minutes, ensuring they are taken out just before the paneer undergoes any noticeable color change. This swift yet precise stir-frying imparts a delectable texture to the paneer cubes, setting the tone for the forthcoming Kadhai Paneer’s culinary symphony.

  1. Tenderizing Bell Peppers: 

Following the sautéing of paneer, shift focus to the bell peppers. Stir-fry them in the same pan until they achieve a tender texture. It is crucial not to overcook the bell peppers, preserving their vibrant color and crispness. Once done, drain them on a paper towel, ensuring they retain their natural freshness and contribute a delightful crunch to the Kadhai Paneer.

  1. Infusing Flavors into the Kadhai: 

Returning to the same frying pan, it’s time to infuse the Kadhai Paneer with a burst of flavors. Test the oil by adding a cumin seed; if it crackles immediately, the oil is ready. Introduce asafetida and cumin seeds, allowing their aromatic essence to fill the air. This marks the beginning of the dish’s flavorful transformation.

  1. Crafting the Kadhai Paneer Gravy: 

Once the cumin seeds crack, add the previously prepared tomato puree, along with coriander powder, turmeric, fenugreek leaves, and cayenne pepper. Allow this aromatic medley to cook for about 4 minutes on medium heat, witnessing the reduction of the tomato mixture to about half its volume. This stage is critical for developing the rich and well-balanced flavors of the Kadhai Paneer.

  1. Achieving the Perfect Consistency: 

To achieve the desired consistency, add about 2 spoons of water and salt to the simmering gravy. As the mixture comes to a boil, reintroduce the stir-fried paneer and bell peppers, letting them simmer for approximately five more minutes on low-medium heat. This step allows the flavors to meld, creating a delectable union of textures and tastes in the final presentation of Kadai Paneer.

  1. Savoring the Kadhai Paneer Creation: 

With the simmering complete, Kadhai Paneer is now ready to grace the dining table. The result is a tantalizing amalgamation of well-cooked paneer, tender bell peppers, and a flavorsome gravy. Serve this culinary delight hot, savoring the symphony of spices and textures that characterize the perfect Kadhai Paneer dish.

If you liked this Recipe you must also try Paneer Pakora, Moong Dal With Spinach, Besan Cheela, Masala Bell Pepper Curry, and Papad ki Sabji.


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109 thoughts on “Kadhai (Kadai) Paneer

  1. So delicious and easy. I did brown the paneer, which I thought added to the flavor but that’s a personal preference. Thanks again for this lovely recipe, Manjulaji!

  2. Aunty thanks for your mouth watering receipe we enjoy your receipe very much but I have a problem that when tomato mixed with all is added it’s fragrance is somewhat like of non veg which my husband don’t like can you give any alternate suggestion aunty please

  3. Namaste Manjula ji
    I really love your recipes they are so simple and easy. Tonight I made the kadai paneer and it turn out good my husband loved it. One thing I want to confirm is lal mirch a cayenne pepper in english or is it just a normal chilli power? Because I know cayenne pepper is different from chilli powder but my husband thinks a lal mirch is the same red chilli powder that we use it in everyday cooking.

  4. Hi Manjula Aunty,
    i made Kadhai Paneer from your site and it was delicious…. 🙂
    thanks for sharing the recipe…
    i would like to know the quantity of ingredient for kadhai paneer (for 16 number of people).

    Thanks

  5. Hi aunty,,’

    your recipes are simple and very good.. for paneer recipes, instead of frying in oil, if you boil them in water and drain the water, the paneer wil be very very soft..

    thats my observation.

    regards
    raji

  6. Thankx lot …….. MAM,

    Me and My wife every Saturday wath your video recipe and make.Now we newly-married couple in bangkok ( Thailand ).

    Againe thankx for your all videos………….

    Thankx

    Kunal Patil

  7. Hi manjula Aunty,

    I recently visited your site through FB and I loved all your recipes very much. Today I tried to do kadai paneer, though I dint had red bell peppers so I replaced it with onions. It came out very well.. Thanks you for such a easy and quick recipe that looks and tastes delocious. 🙂

  8. Dearest Manjula Aunty,
    Thankyou so very much for your wonderful recipes and showing the correct techniques. I’m a busy college student and this has helped me immensely, and has encouraged me to stay vegetarian.

    Sending you all me best wishes and love!

  9. anty i loved this recipe altough i m 13 years old but i love to make food and this recipe is awesome i m surely going to make this thanks allot ..
    love your recipes

  10. This recipe is awesome! After finding an economical source for paneer I cant eat enough of the stuff. Dont know if fenugreek powder is a good sub, but i used it and it sure tastes good! Thanks for your site.

  11. Dear mrs. Manjula, thank you very much for all your interesting recepies. I really enjoy receiving every now and than a new one. But the problem I have, it’s really difficult to get the right ingredients in this area. What can I f.i. use instead of the fenugreek leaves? I was able to buy the seeds but not the leaves. Can I use these seeds instead? Thank you for your answer already.
    Have a pleasant day, Alexandra

    1. Alexandra, if you have the seeds you can plant several of them in some soil either in the garden during the summer or in a planting pot inside and grow your own fenugreek plant. When it matures, you can snip off the leaves and use them in cooking. Google “growing fenugreek” and you can find more advice on growing it.

  12. you are like a teacher to me,
    seriously, all your recipes which i have tried, are amazing and without a doubt delicious. My boyfriend just loves your dishes and the most praiseworthy thing is you never use onions…..

  13. Hello. thanks for all ur receipes. checked some of the paneer dishes. but why dont u add onion and ginger-garlic paste in any dish? i like GG paste flavor in curries. is it okay to add onion and GG paste in these dishes?

  14. Aunty you are so cute, you remind me of my mom (she is in India). Every time I miss her I watch your video. Love you. I love all your recipes 🙂

  15. Namaste Mam,

    I tried many of your receipes. They are all very good. I was a very poor cook one year back. But from the last one year I have been following your receipes and everyone is surprised to see how well I can cook now. Can we add sabut garam masal in Kadai Paneer. Can you post the receipe of vegetable manchurian on your website.

    Thanks

    Neha Singh.

    1. Hi,

      when u fry cumin seeds..after that put onion and fry until their color changes to golden brown…dnt overcook otherwise they will start sticking…after that you can add tomato,ginger and green chilli puree as per Manjula Auntie’s instructions…

      All the best!!

  16. Namaste Manjula Ji

    Thanx for sharing this lovely dish wid me…

    I m a paneer lover…tried dis 4 dinner…

    it turned out to be my speciality now

    pls post the receipe of Shahi Paneer too

    Neha

  17. Hello from WA state.
    I’m so glad you have these videos. I am so tired of the same old italian/french cuisine on all the cooking shows these days.
    I was afraid i would have to move to india in order to learn how to make decent food. Thank you, and keep the videos coming.

  18. Hi manjula aunt,
    I m from Kathamndu, Nepal and tried your kadai paneer receipe during my family gettogether recently, it was superb and all the credit goed to u

    Thanks,
    Girish

  19. Manjula auntie,
    I made this dish today as we had a couple of friends for dinner. It turned out excellent. We all loved it. Thank you for such a simple, yet great-tasting recipe. Love the simplicity of your cooking.

    Gayathri

  20. Hi Manjula Auntie, i tried to make this Kadhai Paneer today, i hope it turns out to be good. I love the way you cook and you make it look so easy. God bless you.

    Thanks
    Amandeep

  21. hello aunty…
    hope u r doing well….

    i made kadai paneer it turned out delicious…

    thanks for sharing it…it was easy to prepare after following ur instructions….

  22. Hi Manjula auntie,
    I tried 4 of your recipes recently and all turned out good and very simple to do and no time consuming.
    I am recently married and my husband always expect me to cook someting new……i never learnt before nor find cooking interesting job……..but your recipes made it so easy for me and i find cooking quite interesting now…
    Please keep on posting new recipes….

    Today i am going to try this kadhai paneer.

    Thanks alot
    Namita

  23. Hi Manjula auntie,
    I made this dish 3 days ago, it tured out good and very simple to do and no time consuming.
    I made 2-3 dishes beefore this, all those tured out excellent.
    I tell all the time ” my manjula auntie”
    In my home they call me Junior Manjula.

  24. Amazing dish, I simply loved it and so did my family. Second time when I made, I added some peas, corns and carrot along with bell peppers. It turned out well too.
    Thank you for your valuable guidance. It has made cooking easy for people like me who are tired to cook after a long day of work.

  25. Hello Manjula Aunty,

    You website is one stop destination for all the Indian Recepies.
    Appreciate you for taking time in making the videos demonstrating the way to cook. This is a great source for people living in India & Abroad.

    I regularly check your websites for new recipes and guidance to cook.

    I thank you and your husband for making such nice videos.

    Please keep the good work…

    Love
    padmini

  26. Hello Manjula

    This was great and easy recipe. I am surely going to try it out tonight. Woul work well as an extra dish for my dinner party tonight!
    Thanks
    Pooja

  27. hi Manjula Aunty

    Thank you so much for all these lovely recipes. I just love the way you show how to make lovely dishes so easily … because of you i will be able to impress my mother in law … God bless you and love you a lot
    regards
    villea

  28. Dear Manjula
    I love your website and I think one of the best things about it is you show us how to do it on the videos. This Kadhai Paneer recipe is one of my favourites. I also love the Aloo Gobi recipe. The recipes I have tried so far are very quick and easy which suits me!. Keep doing it. You obviously have lots of fans judging by the comments.
    You are a STAR of the modern digital age.
    Love Ewan (Edinburgh, UK)

  29. Hello manjula aunty,
    i must say great recipes….i love everything about your websites…
    i hav tried a few of the recipes and they turned out to be absolutely delicious
    thanks a lot
    anu

  30. Hi Manjula.
    Ur recipes.are really cool. pls when are u going to add more recipes.
    Manjula pls do add mor e we are waitting to writ down n cook
    Want try many more of your dishes. keep posting some new recipes

  31. ONE TIP :: instead of frying the paneer, we can also put the paneer pieces in a cup of water and heat it in the microwave oven for 1:30 min. then drain the water and use the paneer immediately.

  32. Hi Majula Aunty,

    I tried this recipe last night and it turned out very well. You remind me of my mother’s cooking, she is also a great cook and loves to try different dishes.
    Will try many more of your dishes. keep posting some new recipes 🙂

    Thanks
    Tanya

  33. Hi Manjula Auty,

    I liked the Paneer Kadai receipe on your video, it just great. I could feel the aroma while watching the video. I like the way you present things, which are very simple, easy to understand and of course your pleasant and smiling face. I can just say everything is simply awesome. Great job aunty, keep it up.

    Regards
    Savita

  34. Dear Manjula Aunty,
    Thanks for the lovely recipe….I tried it today and it came out very good…
    If I am planning to try something new, the first website I check is yours 🙂
    thanks once again and please keep posting new recipes.

  35. I just made some paneer last night; I have some dried methi left over & this seems the perfect recipe for what I have in the kitchen cupboard! Any recommendations on what rice to serve with this???

  36. Hi again Manjula:

    The other ingredient which is not available in South America is Paneer… but from the comments i found out it was possible to replace paneer with tofu… however tofu has no taste… what do you suggest to do with the tofu prior to cooking it… vegetarians use soja sauce to marinade it and add flavor to it… but what would you use as “indian marinade”???
    thank you sooo much!!!

    I adore your site! Greetings from the end of the world..!

  37. Hi Manjula,
    I have been looking at this recepie for a week and I have finally made it. Delicious! My husband has eaten half the bowl. He could not wait for the rice. Thank You for sharing your kitchen with us. Peace,Love,and Blessings.

  38. Hi…Manjula unty..hor r u ? thank you so much for the wonderful receipe of KADHAI PANEER. me and my husband just love it. its simply so delicious. i love wathing your receipes. Thank you so much….

  39. Hi manjula aunty,
    i just love your recepies….they are so simply presented that anyone can dare to try them.I tried this recepie and it turned out to be very delicious….my kids love your site and they have started playing pretend and play Manjula aunty game now….one becomes Manjula ji and the other one is the viewer….they love watching u….keep posting fusion recepies too….thank you!!!!

  40. Dear Aunty,

    thank you for this simple, delicious recipe! I have made this twice now and it turned out delicious each time.. i did include garlic paste as well in the tadka.
    i will share this recipe with my mom back in India too.

    Your recipes are wonderful- and i will definitely keep coming back!

    thank you!

  41. my couise to know you get a exits food to make from a party but I want to knowyou alike a person becuse you great cook but not have a son to meet

  42. Hi Manjula aunty,

    I always wanted to try kadhai paneer,somehow could’nt find the right recipe,thats when I came across your recipe. It was DELICIOUS!! Thank you:)

  43. Hi manjulaji,

    I love to see all your recipies and making it as well.My all family members like that.

    can i have one favour from you,can you please teach me how to make shreekhand.Because i am in Canada and my son love it bur he doesnt like from outside .

    thanks fromall of us.

    1. hi preeti, i have tried this with onion and garlic and it was great….but in this case you should give much more time for frying, because if ginger and garlic are not properly done you don’t get the taste.

  44. I made this recipe today with some minor alterations (no fenugreek, as I did not have any) and it was FAN-TAS-TIC!

    I am excited to have such a delicious recipe to share with more friends and family next time. Thank you!

  45. Excellent dish! Never thought it was so easy to make and came out very delicious. It had the same taste of the one which I had in the Indian Hotel. Also, cannot imagine, how could a North Indian dish be made without onion and garlic but has a yummy taste. Great! Hats off! I’m a vegetarian and like your recipes very much. Thanks.

  46. Hello Manjula-ji,

    one of my favourite dishes. Usually order this one at the restaurant !! I would love to try making this at home..I have a question, if I am going to be making with freshly made paneer, what would the measure of paneer be..?
    Does 1/2 gallon milk make 1/2 pound Paneer?

    Thank u and Regards
    -Sudha

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