Matar paneer recipe: A Culinary Delight

Matar paneer recipe is a popular Indian Curry dish made with green peas and Paneer (Indian cottage cheese) in a base of onions, tomatoes, cashews, spices, and herbs.

It’s incredibly flavorful thanks to the vibrant, spicy onion-tomato gravy. And who can resist those soft, succulent paneer cubes with perfectly cooked, soft green peas? This a must-try recipe for paneer lovers!

One of the most popular and perhaps one of the simple and tasty North Indian paneer gravy-based curry recipes. Basically, it is prepared with the combination of paneer and green peas as its hero ingredient in a tomato and onion gravy base.

This simple matar paneer recipe makes irresistibly tasty curry by making some changes to its preparation; the shallow fried paneer cubes bring in subtle taste and texture while cashew nut paste makes it rich and creamy.

Ingredients for Matar paneer

For Gravy:

• 1 cup green peas (matar) – fresh or frozen
• 250 grams of Paneer (Indian cottage cheese)
• 2 tablespoons oil or ghee
• ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
• ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon Red chili powder
• 1 teaspoon Coriander powder
• ¼ teaspoon Garam Masala Powder
• 2 tablespoons cream
• 1 teaspoon Kasuri methi (crushed)
• 2 tablespoons coriander (chopped)
• 1 cup water
• Salt to taste
   

for onion tomato gravy base:

• 1 tablespoon Oil
• 1 cup chopped tomatoes
• ½ cup chopped onions
• 2-3 cloves of Garlic
• ½ inch piece of Ginger, chopped
• 1 Green Chilli, chopped
• 10 to 12 cashews
• 1-inch cinnamon
• 3 pods cardamom

Instructions for Matar paneer

1. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a pan on medium heat.
2. Then onion, ginger, garlic, and green chili. Sprinkle a little salt to speed up the cooking process.
3. saute until the onions turn golden brown.
4. Then add tomatoes and cook until they are softened.
5. Transfer it to the blender jar and add cinnamon and cardamom.
6. Grind all the ingredients to a smooth paste. If needed you can add 2 to 3 tablespoons of water while blending.
7. Set the ground paste aside.
8. Grind cashew nuts with 2 tablespoons water until a smooth paste. Set aside.
9. Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil in the same pan.
10. Add the cumin seeds. Fry the cumin seeds until they splutter.
11. Add turmeric powder, red chili powder, Coriander powder, salt to taste, and garam masala powder.
12. Mix well and saute for a minute. saute until the spices turn aromatic.
13. Once hot add the prepared ground masala paste and the prepared cashew nut paste and let it simmer.
14. Do stir every few minutes to make sure that it is not sticking to the bottom and sides of the pan.
15. keep cooking until the oil separates from the gravy base.
16. Next, add in 1 cup of rinsed green peas or matar. You can choose to add either frozen or fresh green peas.
17. Then, add 1 cup water, and salt (if required now) and mix thoroughly.
18. mix well adjusting the consistency of the gravy.
19. Simmer on medium-low to medium heat until the peas have softened.
20. Finally, add the paneer cubes and mix well or simmer on low heat for a few seconds or until the paneer cubes are fully cooked.
21. cover and cook for 5 minutes or until the peas are cooked well.
22. Add 2 tablespoons of cream, 1 teaspoon of Kasuri methi, and 2 tablespoons of coriander. Mix well.
23. Let it come to a simmer and turn off the stove.
24. Now that your matar paneer is ready to eat, garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot or warm.

Serving Suggestions

Matar paneer goes well with Indian flatbreads like Roti, Paratha, and Naan. It also pairs well with Cumin Rice and steamed Basmati Rice.