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lasooni paneer - delicious paneer curry with aromatic spices and garlic.

Lasooni Paneer

Lasooni Paneer - a delicious paneer recipe from Indian cuisine. onion and tomatoes form the base of the gravy to which we add fragrant spices. Lightly roasted paneer pieces are simmered in the garlic-flavored gravy topped with cream.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Additional Time 5 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Servings 4

Ingredients
  

  • 250 grams paneer; cut into bite-sized pieces
  • 140 grams onion approx. 1 cup; roughly chopped
  • 125 grams tomato 1 cup; roughly chopped
  • 30 grams garlic approx. 8-10 large cloves; crushed
  • 10 grams approx. 1-inch piece ginger
  • 1 teaspoon Kashmiri red chilli powder; adjust to taste
  • 1 teaspoon garam masala ; adjust to taste
  • 1 teaspoon turmeric
  • 8-10 raw cashew nuts
  • 1 teaspoon cumin seeds; see recipe notes
  • 2-3 tablespoon oil; divided
  • 1 tablespoon butter; optional- see recipe notes
  • Salt to taste
  • 1-2 tablespoon kasuri methi
  • 2-3 tablespoon cream - see recipe notes

equipment needed

  • large skillet
  • cooking spoons
  • measuring cups/spoons if you are comfortable with eyeballing ingredients, this is optional
  • small blender/ Indian style mixer-grinder
  • serving dishes.

Instructions
 

how to make lasooni paneer/lehsuni paneer

    prep-work

    • <div>
    • Cut paneer into bite-sized pieces.
    • Peel, wash, and roughly chop onions
    • Wash and roughly chop tomatoes
    • Peel and crush garlic and ginger.
    • </div>
    • <div>

    cooking

    • Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a skillet on medium heat
    • Place the paneer pieces in s single layer and lightly fry the paneer pieces until slightly brown on two sides (approx. 1-2 minutes per side). Remove from heat.
    • To the same skillet, add 1 tablespoon of oil. Add onion, garlic, and ginger, and fry until the onion starts to turn translucent. This will take around 3-4 minutes. Add spice powders - Kashmiri red chilli powder, turmeric powder, and garam masala. Fry for 2-3 minutes or until fragrant.
    • Add tomatoes and salt to taste. Fry until tomatoes are cooked and mushy [this will take about 6-7 minutes.
    • Once cooled, add to a small blender jar. Add raw cashew nuts. Grind to a smooth paste with about ¼-½ cup water.
    • [Note: I give a quick rinse to the skillet to prevent burning in the next steps of cooking]
    • Add oil (and butter if using) to the skillet on medium heat. Add cumin seeds and the ground paste. Fry the paste until almost all the liquid evaporates.[Note: The time it takes for this step depends on the water you used to grind the paste. It typically takes me about 8-10 minutes. Taste and make sure that there is no raw taste or smell before proceeding to the next step. If you are unsure, fry for a few more minutes, without burning the mix. You can adjust the seasoning here as well.]
    • Add 1½ cups of water (adjust to suit your desired consistency [Note: I have made it slightly thick in the video by using a lesser quantity of water]. Bring to a boil. Add paneer pieces and simmer for 2-3 minutes. Sprinkle crushed kasuri methi.
    • Serve hot garnished with cream.
    • </div>

    Video

    Notes

    • 1 CUP = 250 ML. (US cups are typically 240 ml. You can use US cups with no significant change to the dish). 
    • 1 TEASPOON = 5ML; 1 TABLESPOON= 15 ML
    • Grams to cups measurements – we strive to provide these conversions as accurately as possible. There might be some slight variations depending on the brand, weighing scale, etc.
    • serving size - this serves 3-4 people. adjust the serving size to suit your dietary needs.
    • Butter does add a lot of flavor and richness to the dish. Skip it if you want to cut down on calories.
    • I do not always have cream at home. And this recipe needs only a little bit. Instead of cream used in the recipe, you can use the equivalent amount of thick coconut cream. The cream is required to bring in richness as well as mellow down the spices used.
    • If you are using store-bought paneer, make sure it is labeled gluten-free if you are following a GF diet. Some of them may have All-purpose flour.
    • If the cashew nuts are a tad bit dry for your blender to grind, soak them in warm water for 10 minutes prior to grinding.
    • If you don't want to use cashew nuts, avoid them while grinding the paste. Top the dish at the end with some additional cream to bring in richness.
    • If you don't want to see cumin seeds in the gravy, you can use ¾ teaspoon of cumin powder. Add the cumin powder along with Kashmiri red chilli powder, garam masala, and turmeric powder. In step 6 of cooking, do not add cumin seeds. The rest of the steps remain the same.