Shahi paneer is a recipe from the delicious cuisine in North India. A Healthy, spicy and exotic paneer aka cottage cheese preparation made in thick gravy of milk cream, cashew nuts , tomato and onions. Shahi means Royal in Hindi and so does the dish justify it’s name.
Heat 2 tablespoon of butter and 2 tablespoon of oil in a pan or wok.
Stir and add cumin seeds, whole spices and stir for a minute.
Now add garlic, ginger and onions. Cook for a minute.
Finally add tomatoes and green chillies. Cook covered until tomatoes are soft for about 10-12 minutes.
Cool the mixture and grind it to make a smooth paste.
Make Cashew Paste
Presoak the cashewnuts in quarter cup of hot water for 2 hours.
Now blend them using amilk cream and milk along with any soaked water that has left with cashews.
Make Shahi Paneer
Into the same wok/pan add remaining butter and oil. Stir and add kashmri red chilli powder and kasuri methi.
Stir for a minute and then starin the tomato puree in it. Extract all the juices and flavors of the tomato onuons by adding some water.
Now ad dall the spices powder and salt. Stir and add the cashew paste.
Mix well and add a cup of water or as required by your desired consistency.
Cook on low heat for 15 minutes with occasional stirring until desired consistency of the gravy is achieved.
Remove form heat and serve hot with naan bread and garnished with cream.
Video
Notes
Why my paneer becomes hard in the gravy?
To ensure the paneer pieces stay fresh and soft make sure to add the paneer cubes in the gravy only in the end and cook for 2 minutes only. What I like to do is add the paneer cubes in the shahi gravy and turn off the heat, I would then reheat it for 2 minutes whenever e are ready to serve. The more you cook the paneer the harder it becomes.Another tip is to keep the paneer pieces soaked in warm water before adding them to the gravy.
Is straining the tomato-onion base necessary?
Straining ensures that the gravy is silky velvety smooth without any fibers or skins from tomatoes onions and whole spices. The end result would be a beautiful restaurant-style gravy that everyone would want to lick until the last bite.
How to store the shahi paneer?
Store the leftovers in the refrigerator. It stays well for a couple of days. Reheat before serving again.
Tips to make perfect cashew paste?
To make the perfect cashew cream paste make sure to presoak the cashews in hot water. While grinding the cashews with milk cream and milk it might be difficult to make paste if the weather is cold, use some hot water and it will help to make a smooth paste.
Any other tips or suggestions
Make sure to cook the gravy on low heat as the cashew nuts in the gravy may stick at the bottom of the pan and burn. Do not forget to stir occasionally.
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