A Gut-Healthy Take on Restaurant-Style Paneer Masala
Here is a paneer masala recipe that sneaks in tons of veggies and yet tastes like the restaurant-made stuff. This quick recipe can easily be made on a weeknight if you do a bit of prepping up in the morning.
As a gut health coach, this is one of my favourite “hidden win” recipes to share. Between the tomato, onion, carrot, garlic, and cashews in the gravy base, this dish quietly stacks up four or five different plant foods in a single meal — a simple, tasty step toward the 30-plants-a-week goal I encourage clients to work toward for a more diverse, resilient gut microbiome. And because the vegetable puree isn’t strained (more on that below), none of the fibre from those vegetables goes to waste.
How to make paneer from scratch
Paneer is Indian cottage cheese made from curdled milk. It is unripened It is easily available in the stores in fresh or frozen forms. Paneer is a good source of proteins (16-18%), calcium and phosphorus, especially for vegetarians. It is also rich in vitamins A and D. Paneer can be a nutritious source for expectant mothers, growing children and adolescents.
It is equally easy to prepare at home. Homemade paneer has the added benefit of not having any preservatives that are found in store-bought versions. It is one of the simplest examples of what cooking from scratch buys you: fewer additives, more control over what’s actually in your food. I also find it to be the best way to use up milk that’s about to turn.
To make paneer — called chenna in some parts of India — boil the milk, then add an acidic ingredient to curdle the protein. A litre of milk needs approximately 2 tbsp of vinegar or lemon juice. Bring the milk to a boil before adding the vinegar or lemon juice; you’ll see it curdle almost immediately. Remove from the heat and allow it to cool to room temperature, stirring to ensure the milk curdles uniformly.
Once the mixture cools down, you can strain the curdled milk into muslin or cheesecloth. Keep the cheesecloth containing the curdled milk under a heavy object for some time to squeeze out the whey. The weight will also help the paneer to take shape, making it easier to cut.
Paneer has a fairly short shelf life. Store any unused paneer under water in the refrigerator and use it within 7 to 10 days, changing the water every 2–3 days to keep it fresh. Don’t use paneer if it develops a slimy coating on the surface.
Paneer is traditionally cut and fried to firm it up before it goes into the gravy. I just add it directly instead — it avoids adding extra fat to the dish, and honestly, I’d rather skip the frying mess in the kitchen.
Ingredients for paneer masala
- 200 gm paneer
- 1 medium sized onion, sliced
- 2 medium sized tomatoes, cubed
- 1 large carrot
- 10-12 cashewnut
- 3-4 pods of garlic
- 5-6 black peppercorns
- 1 stick of cinnamon
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tsp kashmiri chilli powder
- 1tbsp garam masala powder
- 0.5 tsp honey
- 2 tbsp oil
You can use fresh or frozen paneer if you are not able to make it at home.
A note on the honey: it’s a small amount, but if you’re watching added sugar closely, this dish holds up perfectly well without it — the spices and roasted cashews already carry plenty of sweetness and depth.
Step-by-step recipe
Add the tomatoes, onions, carrots, cashew nuts and garlic to a pressure cooker/instapot and cook till soft (3 whistles is a pressure cooker/ 8-10 minutes in Instapot). Allow the cooker to cool down. I usually do this prep in the morning so I can quickly rustle up the paneer masala for dinner in the evening.
Garlic is one of my favourite ingredients to build into a base like this — beyond flavour, it’s a natural source of prebiotic fibre that feeds beneficial gut bacteria, so it’s doing more work here than just seasoning.
Grind the cooled vegetables and cashew nuts to a smooth paste. Reserve the water in which the vegetables were boiled for use later. We don’t want to lose any nutrients released into the water. Remember to remove the skin from tomatoes before grinding.
Restaurants typically strain this puree for an ultra-smooth texture. I just grind it extra fine and skip the straining. Straining might improve texture slightly, but you lose the vegetable fibre in the process — and that fibre is a big part of why this dish makes my “gut-healthy” list. I’d genuinely encourage you not to bother straining it either.
Heat a saucepan with 2 tbsp of oil or butter. Add the black pepper, cinnamon, and bay leaf. Once the spices release their aroma, pour in the vegetable puree.
Cook on low-medium flame, adding some of the reserved vegetable water as needed. Once the gravy starts to simmer, add the Kashmiri chilli powder (or paprika) and garam masala.
Bring the gravy to a simmer. Add the honey, if using, and salt to taste. You can shallow fry the paneer before adding it, or add it directly, as I do.
Simmer for another 1-2 minutes, just long enough to heat the paneer through. If you haven’t fried the paneer, be gentle while stirring it, or it will break.
Turn off the flame and serve the healthiest paneer masala recipe piping hot!
Variations to the dish
You can do several variations to this dish and keep your family guessing!
- You can vary this recipe in plenty of ways, and it’s an easy one to keep interesting through the week:
- Add other vegetables in place of, or alongside, paneer — mushrooms, peas, baby corn, and sweetcorn all work well.
- Separately roast cubed onions, capsicum, and mushrooms until slightly charred, and stir into the gravy for extra texture and flavour.
- Add a tbsp of dried kasoori methi (fenugreek leaves) at the end for a distinctive finish. Warm the leaves lightly to release their aroma, crush them between your palms, and stir the powder into the gravy.
- For an extra fibre boost, add a handful of cooked chickpeas alongside the paneer, or serve it with a simple lentil side — an easy way to round out the plant variety in the meal.
How to serve paneer masala
Paneer masala can be served as a main dish with Indian flatbreads such as naan, roti or paratha.
You can also serve it alongside rice as a side dish or gravy. A simple rice tempered with cumin seeds, chopped onions, and chillies is a great way to make a special weekday dinner. Just heat 1-2 tbsp of oil and add a tsp of cumin seeds. Allow them to splutter and release their aroma. Then add chopped onions and chillies. Allow the onions to caramelise a bit, and then add a bowl of rice. Leftover rice, which is cooled in the refrigerator, works best for this dish. Toss the rice until it is evenly heated, and finish with a sprinkle of fresh coriander leaves. This simple rice is an excellent accompaniment to all sorts of Indian gravies or can even be had by itself with some pickle and yoghurt on the side.
For an even more plant-diverse plate, pair it with a simple dal or a bean salad on the side — a small addition that adds fibre and another couple of plant foods to your week’s tally.
Do try this recipe, and let me know how it turns out — and if hidden-veggie, gut-friendly meals like this one are your kind of cooking, that’s exactly the kind of everyday strategy I help clients build into their routines.
Paneer masala
Equipment
- Pressure cooker/ Instapot
- Kadhai/ wide saucepan
Ingredients
- 200 gm fresh/frozen paneer
- 1 medium sized onion sliced
- 2 medium sized tomatoes cubed
- 1 large carrot
- 10-12 cashewnut
- 3-4 pods of garlic
- 5-6 black peppercorns
- 1 stick of cinnamon
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tsp kashmiri chilli powder
- 1 tbsp garam masala powder
- 0.5 tsp honey
- 2 tbsp oil
Instructions
- Add the tomatoes, onions, carrots, cashew nuts and garlic to a pressure cooker/instapot and cook till soft (3 whistles is a pressure cooker/ 8-10 minutes in Instapot). Allow the cooker to cool down.
- Grind the cooled vegetables and cashew nuts to a smooth paste. Reserve the water in which the vegetables were boiled for use later.
- Heat a saucepan with 2 tbsp of oil or butter. Add the black pepper, cinnamon and bay leaf. Once the spices release their aromas, pour in the vegetable puree.
- Cook on low-medium flame with some reserved water from the cooked vegetables. Once the gravy starts to simmer, add the Kashmiri chilli powder or paprika and garam masala.
- Bring the gravy to a simmer. Add the honey and salt to taste. You may shallow fry the paneer before adding it or just add it directly.
- Simmer for another 1-2 minutes, just long enough to heat the paneer through.
- Turn off the flame and serve the healthiest paneer masala recipe piping hot!
Notes
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