KADAI PANEER

Hi all, hope and pray that the covid situation in India becomes better and things start looking up with more vaccinations and safety protocols in place. Now, last weekend, wanted to make this popular Paneer dish, never thought it would be this complicated to make. Even though the process was tedious the end result was worth it Here it is,

KADAI PANEER

MASALA STEP 1

Dry Roast in low heat, 2 Red Chillis, 2 Tbsp Cumin, 2 Tbsp Peppercorns, 2 Tbsp Coriander seeds, 1 Tsp Methi seeds. Once cooled, grind this into a coarse powder and set it aside.

KADAI PANEER

MASALA STEP 2

Oil and Butter: 5 Tbsp

Onion: 1 medium finely chopped

Tomato: 2 medium finely chopped

Ginger-Garlic: 2 Tbsp chopped

Turmeric: 1/4 Tsp

Kashmiri Red Chilli Powder: 1-2 Tsp

Coriander-Cumin powder: 1-2 Tsp

Bayleaf : 1-2 medium

Salt as required only for Masala 2

Heat Oil and butter in a pan, once heated, add in the bay leaf, chopped onions, chopped ginger-garlic. Saute it for a few minutes until it turns golden brown. Add in the chopped tomatoes, turmeric, Red chilli powder, Cumin-Coriander powder. Saute for a few minutes with a little addition of water and salt, until the masala is well mixed and the oil starts leaving the sides. Switch off the gas.

STEP 3: PANEER-VEGGIE MIX

Paneer: cut into cubes

Onion: 1 medium diced

Tomato: 1 medium diced

Capsicum: 1 medium diced

Oil: 1 tbsp

Salt as required

In a pan, add oil. Once heated add in the diced Onions, Tomatoes, and Capsicum. Saute it for a few minutes before adding the Paneer cubes. Now add in the Dry roasted Masala 1 powder. Mix it well into the paneer mix with enough salt. Saute it for a few minutes until the paneer and veggies are well mixed with the roasted masala powder. 

Finally, add this dry paneer mix into the prepared Masala 2 gravy. Saute in low heat, until all the masala is well blended. 

Garnish with freshly chopped coriander, and delicious Kadai Paneer is ready to eat. serve it hot with Rotis' or Naans or Paratha's

TIPS/VARIATIONS

In Masala 2, you could also add Tomato puree to take away the spice.

You could dry roast the methi separately and grind it into a powder and add it along with the dry roast masala 1 into the paneer mixture.

As I mentioned, the process is tedious but well worth it.