Easy Paneer Butter Masala Recipe Step by Step, a very popular North Indian dish made from soft and succulent Paneer also known as Indian cottage cheese cooked with different spices in a tomato based rich creamy gravy.
Editor’s note: This post was originally published in December 2014 and has been updated with Video and replaced with edited pictures for comprehensiveness and freshness.
I guess any Vegetarian menu is incomplete without a paneer recipe. Paneer is a very healthy ingredient and is a great choice to include in a vegetarian meal. It is definitely a high calorie food, but when you enjoy it in moderation, t’s completely fine. You can make Paneer at home or buy it readymade from the store. The taste of homemade paneer is without any doubt better than store bought as it is soft, moist and melts in your mouth.
Definitely it is not something to be indulged on every weekend but perfect for parties or on special occasions. I cook it occasionally in my kitchen, as it’s my son’s favourite. He just adores paneer. Contrary to that my husband and daughter are not great fans of paneer. It is traditionally loaded with butter and cream, but I try to use very little or sometimes even avoid using these ingredients and yet promising in taste. I explored my best to achieve this version of a healthy Paneer butter masala :P.
Though variations abound where spices are used as per individual preferences of the cook, but with such ingredients can it be less delicious? This is my take on Easy Paneer Butter Masala Recipe, which is better than the Paneer Butter Masala Restaurant Style!!
Steps to follow for
Easy Paneer Butter Masala Recipe
- You can use homemade paneer or store bought paneer. Click HERE for the recipe!!
- Cut the paneer into cubes and marinate for about 15 minutes with ingredients under the heading “ To marinate”. See the recipe card at the end of the post for measurements before proceeding. Keep in mind the prep time increases if you are making paneer at home.
Let’s make the 3 pastes:
- Now we have to prepare 3 pastes- onion paste, tomato puree and masala paste.
- Remove skin of onions and cut into 4 pieces.
- Make two slits in tomatoes and immerse in water and blanch them along with onions for 8 to 10 minutes., drain and peel tomatoes.
- Grind blanched onions and tomatoes separately into paste. So now the onion paste and tomato puree are ready.
- For the masala paste, use ingredients under the heading “ For the masala paste”.
- Heat oil in a small pan over medium heat and add ginger, garlic, cloves, cinnamon, cardamom and some cashews.
- Roast the till they turn light brown and you get a nice aroma. Turn off the heat and let it cool. Grind these to a smooth paste adding a little water. The masala paste is now ready.
Shallow Frying Paneer:
- In the same pan sauté marinated paneer for 2 to 3 minutes on medium flame till you get a light brown colour, remove and keep it aside. if you do not prefer to fry paneer, skip it. But I think by marinating and frying, the paneer is infused with the spices and is not too bland in taste. Make sure not to fry too long, otherwise paneer becomes hard.
- You can use butter and oil/only butter/only oil (today I’m using mix of both). I frankly don’t see a great difference, so feel free to use whatever suits you best.
Let’s make the Gravy:
- Heat another skillet over medium heat with butter and oil, season with bay leaf, cinnamon, cloves and cardamom. Stir for few seconds till you get a nice aroma.
- Add onion paste and fry till you get a nice brown colour. This takes about 5 to 7 minutes.
- At this stage add the tomato puree. To this add red chilli powder, turmeric (under the heading “Other Ingredients”), mix well and sauté for 3 more minutes.
- Now add the ground masala paste and sauté till the raw smell goes away. This takes another 3 to 5 minutes.
- Add some water, little sugar, adjust salt, simmer the heat, and bring to boil.
- Now add fried paneer cubes, slit green chillies, garam masala powder, mix well and let it boil for 2 more minutes or till you get the desired consistency.
- Add chopped coriander and some cream (optional). Allow it for another boil and turn off heat. Normally in restaurants they add food colour and that’s the reason its very colourful.
- Garnish with coriander and lip-smacking Paneer butter masala is ready to be served with rotis, naan, paratha, Vegetable pulao, plain rice or any Indian breads of your choice.
East Paneer Butter Masala Recipe | Paneer Butter Masala Restaurant Style
Ingredients
- 200 grams Paneer cubes Yields from 1 litre milk if using Homemade Paneer
To marinate:
- ½ tsp Red Chilli Powder
- A Pinch Turmeric Powder
- 1 tsp Lemon Juice
- ½ tsp Salt
For onion paste:
- 2 Large Onions Peel, cut, blanch in boiling water for 10 min & grind to a paste
For tomato puree:
- 2 Large Tomatoes Blanch in boiling water for 10 min, peel & grind to a paste
For the Masala paste:
- 1 tsp Oil
- 1 inch Ginger
- 6 Garlic Pods
- ½ inch Cinnamon Stick
- 4 Cloves
- 1 Cardamom
- 10 Cashews
Other Ingredients For Gravy:
- 1 tbsp Oil
- 1 inch Cube Butter
- 1 Bay Leaf
- ½ inch Cinnamon Stick
- 2 Cloves
- 1 Cardamom
- 1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
- ½ tsp Turmeric Powder
- Salt to taste
- ½ cup Water
- 1 tsp Sugar
- 2 Green Chillies Slit lengthwise
- ½ tsp Garam Masala Powder
- 1 tbsp Heavy Cream Optional
- Handful of chopped coriander
Instructions
- Marinate paneer cubes for 15 minutes with ingredients under the heading “ To marinate”.
- For the masala paste, heat oil in a small pan over medium heat. Add ginger, garlic, cloves, cinnamon, cardamom and some cashews. Roast the till they turn light brown, turn off heat and let it cool. Grind these to a smooth paste adding little water.
- In the same pan sauté marinated paneer for 2 to 3 minutes on medium flame till you get a light brown colour, remove and keep it aside.
- Heat another skillet over medium heat with butter and oil, season with bay leaf, cinnamon, cloves and cardamom. Stir for few seconds.
- Add onion paste and fry till you get a nice brown colour. This takes about 5 to 7 minutes.
- At this stage add the tomato puree, red chilli powder, turmeric and sauté for 3 more minutes.
- Now add the masala paste and sauté till the raw smell goes away. This takes another 3 to 5 minutes.
- Add some water, little sugar, adjust salt and bring to boil on low heat. Now add fried paneer cubes, slit green chillies, mix well and let it boil for 2 more minutes or till you get the desired consistency.
- Add garam masala powder, chopped coriander and some cream(optional).
- Allow it for another boil and turn off heat.
- Garnish with coriander and lip-smacking Paneer butter masala is ready to be served with rotis, naan, parathas, vegetable pulao.
Recipe Video
Notes
- Adjust spice levels with chilli powder and dry spices in the masala paste to suit your taste.
- You can skip the step to make masala paste and add 2 teaspoons of ginger-garlic paste and make cashew paste by soaking cashews in water for 15 min.
- Sugar is used to balance out salt and sour flavours in a dish.
- Do not overcook paneer, it will become hard and rubbery.
- Tofu is a good substitute for vegans instead of paneer.
- You can sprinkle Kasoori methi (dried fenugreek leaves) at the end just before turning off the heat. It will give a good flavour.
- Prep time increases if you are going to make paneer at home.
Hope you enjoyed my version of Easy Paneer Butter Masala Recipe!!
Do check out other RECIPES FROM PUNJABI CUISINE & VEGETABLE GRAVY RECIPES from blog!!!
Other Paneer related recipes on blog:
- How to make Paneer at home
- Matar Paneer
- Capsicum Aloo Paneer Tikki
- Tandoori Paneer
- Paneer Capsicum Paratha
- Khoya Paneer Gulab Jamun
Many more to come!!…..STAY TUNED!!
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Happy Cooking 
Cheers!!
Padma.
