Methi Malai Paneer – Creamy Cottage Cheese with Fenugreek

Methi Malai Paneer – Creamy Cottage Cheese with Fenugreek

I'm a hard-core carnivore but give me this cottage cheese dish and I’ll happily tuck into it. Non-spicy, yet rich and delicious, this would be an ideal dish to make when you're entertaining guests who prefer vegetarian food. Enjoy!!

Ingredients:

250 grams cottage cheese/paneer
2 tablespoons oil or clarified butter
Extra oil to shallow fry
2 teaspoons ginger-garlic paste
¾ teaspoon red chili powder
2 teaspoons garam masala powder
1 teaspoon roasted cumin seed powder
A pinch of dry mango powder/amchur
1 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons dry fenugreek leaves/kasoori methi (retain a few for garnish)
200 mils fresh cream
200 mils milk
Salt to taste

For paste:

1 tablespoon poppy seed
1 tablespoon melon seed
2-3 green chilies
1 small onion, chopped
10 almonds
10 cashew nuts
6 tablespoons milk or water

Method:

1. Grind the paste ingredients, listed above, until smooth and keep aside.
2. Chop the paneer into squares or cubes. Shallow fry them for 2 minutes and place aside.
3. In a pan heat oil / clarified butter on low heat. Add the ginger-garlic paste. 
4. Sauté until the raw smell disappears. 
5. Add the grounded white paste. Stir well. 
6. Mix garam masala powder, roasted cumin powder, sugar and red chili powder. 
7. Combine and cook for 2 minutes. 
8. Roast the kasoori methi lightly, crush it and add it to the gravy. 
9. Take the vessel off the stove. 
10. Add the cream and milk gradually to the thick masala paste. Stir well and put back on fire on very low heat. Stir continuously till the gravy heats up and is gently bubbling. 
11. Add the shallow fried paneer. Stir gently but continuously. 
12. Add the amchur powder and salt to taste. Simmer for a few seconds. 
13. Garnish with dry-roasted fenugreek leaves. Take the pan off the hob and serve with rice, paratha or roti. 

Chef’s Notes:

1. Frying the paneer is optional. I did fry it. 
2. Please do not over-fry the cottage cheese/paneer as it toughens and becomes rubbery. 
3. Once you add the milk and cream please ensure that you keep the gravy on a very low flame and stir it continuously because not doing so may result in curdled gravy.
4. The base recipe for Methi Malai Paneer is courtesy Flavours Of Mumbai. I made various changes to the base recipe and these are my changes from the original one that i had read.
   (a) I increased the milk proportion for grinding the nuts into a paste.
   (b) I increased the quantity of cream and added milk to adjust the consistency of the gravy.
   (c) I added extra green chilies as 1 green chili was a tad bland.
   (d) I chose to roast the kasoori methi before crushing it to enhance the flavor.
   When you try the recipe please feel free to adjust the flavours and the consistency to your liking as the end result should suit to your taste buds. 
5. You may share the direct blog-link of the recipe/s but do NOT publish my recipes and my photographs on any blog-site or website without my explicit consent or attempt to pass off my recipe/s as your own. You will be held accountable for plagiarism.