Paneer masala is a simple and delicious Indian curry dish. It is an onion tomato-based paneer gravy dish popular across the country. It is made with basic ingredients like paneer, Indian spices, and herbs. And it can be served as the perfect side dish for roti, chapati, and most rice dishes for lunch and dinner.
About this Paneer Masala
The recipe given below is a similar version of the Dhaba style in which the paneer is mixed with roasted spices, kasoori methi/dried fenugreek leaves, and besan/gram flour giving a similar unique and creamy flavor to the dish. This paneer masala is a rich, aromatic, and mild gravy that can be served with naan, Roti, or jeera rice and Aloo Gobi aside.
Please find similar paneer recipes below. Visit Veg Recipes and Veg Curries for more.
- Paneer Tikka
- Paneer Tikka Masala
- Palak Paneer
- Bhindi Masala
- Chole
- Meal Maker Curry
- Gutti Vankaya Kura
- Kadala Curry
- Vatha Kuzhambu
To make your life easy, I have also created a collection of Indian Vegetarian Lunch Recipe in one place and I believe it will help you to plan your meal and prepare and enjoy it at home. Take a peek!
Paneer Masala Recipe video
I have shared quick and easy video instructions below to make this recipe at home. And I believe it will help you to prepare and enjoy the dish. You could also find this recipe in story format for a quick reference.
Paneer Masala (Dhaba Style )
Ingredients
- 0.55 lb Paneer, cut into cubes
- ⅙ cup Ghee
- 1 cup Onion, finely chopped
- 2 Tomato, puree
- 1 tsp Ginger Garlic Paste
- 1 tsp Cumin Seeds
- 4 Cardamom
- 1 Bay leaves
- 3 Cinnamon stick, small
- ¼ cup Curd
- 1 tsp Chili powder
- 1 tsp Coriander powder
- ½ tsp Cumin powder
- 1 tsp Garam masala
- 1 tsp Besan, gram flour
- 1 tsp Kasoori Methi, crushed
- 1 tsp Salt, adjust as needed
- ½ cup Water
- ½ cup Coriander leaves, to garnish
Instructions
To Prepare Paneer Masala
- In a pan with medium heat pour ghee and shallow fry the paneer and drain it. Keep it aside for later use
- In the same pan pour oil, add bay leaves, cardamom, cumin seeds, cinnamon stick, and saute
- Add onion and saute until it turns soft
- Now add ginger garlic paste and toss until raw aroma leaves
- Add chili, coriander, garam masala, cumin powder, besan, and kasoori methi and roast everything well
- Add pureed tomato and give a quick mix
- Close the pan with the lid and cook for 5 minutes
- Now open the lid and add curd to the above mixture and combine everything well
- Pour water and add shallow fried paneer to the gravy and incorporate it well
- Simmer the heat and cook for 5 to 7 minutes or until the gravy leaves oil
- Switch off the heat and garnish with cilantro/coriander leaves
To Serve
- Serve the Dhaba style paneer masala warm with roti, naan, chapati, or with jeera rice
Video
Notes
- The key to get perfect Dhaba style paneer masala is roasting the spice powders and besan thoroughly in low medium heat
- Usually ghee is used in every dhaba style recipes which gives rich flavor to the dish
- Use ripe and red tomatoes and sautéing them well until oil leaves from its side. This makes the dish bright colored and gives nice sweet and tangy taste to the gravy
- We have fried paneer in ghee before adding them in the gravy which makes the paneer to stay soft for long
- To make vegan version replace paneer with tofu and ghee with vegan butter which gives similar taste to the dish
- This dhaba style paneer masala is best served with naan, roti, pulkas, and jeera rice
Nutrition
FAQ
The key to achieving perfect Dhaba style paneer is to roast the spices in ghee thoroughly. This gives a perfectly soft and moist paneer masala.
Tofu can be used instead of paneer and ghee can be replaced with vegan butter for the vegan version of this recipe.
Enjoy the recipe and let us know how it turned out for you!
If you have any other questions, please feel free to post them in the comment section below and we will try to answer them as soon as possible.
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