Matar(means peas in Hindi) paneer or peas paneer is a no onion no garlic recipe. This dish is rich in milk protein, as it contains cottage cheese cubes along with peas and cashews, totally worth trying it for your lunch or dinner menu course.
Matar paneer goes well with roti, garlic naan, jeera rice or dosa and poori. It's little tangy and spicy too, from the green chillies. The flavours of jeera aka cumin seeds, green chillies and dry spice powders give the dish a unique flavour, that distinguishes it from other paneer varities like paneer pulav, paneer butter masala, palak paneer, homemade paneer, paneer sabzi, shahi paneer.
Ingredients
1 cup of paneer/cottage cheese cubes
1 cup of peas/Matar
1 large tomato
1 tsp ginger pieces
3-4 garlic pods, optional
1 tsp red chilli powder/paprika
1 tsp cumin seeds
A pinch of turmeric powder
1/2 tsp Garam Masala powder
2 green chillies, cut vertically
2 tbsp butter or cooking oil
Salt to taste
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp crushes kasoori methi/dry fenugreek leaves
10 + 10 cashews
How to make matar paneer:
1. Soak the paneer cubes in warm water for 15 minutes. If you are using fresh homemade paneer, then you can skip this step. You can check here to see how to make fresh homemade paneer.
2. Heat a pan and add a tbsp of butter or cooking oil. Fry about 10 cashews till they turn light brown.
3. Do not over fry the cashews as it might give a bitter taste to the dish. Switch off the flame and keep the fried cashews aside.
4. Soak the other set of 10 cashews in hot water for 10-15 minutes.
5. In a mixer or food processor, add tomatoes, garlic pods, ginger pieces and soaked cashews. Grind it to a smooth paste.
6. Heat a pan and add 1 tbsp of butter or cooking oil. You can use the same pan used for frying cashews, along with remaining oil/butter. Add cumin seeds and fry for 30 secs.
7. Then add slit green chillies and saute for a minute.
8. Add the ground tomato - cashew paste.
9. Cook the paste for 4-5 minutes on high flame.
10. Add turmeric powder, garam masala and red chilli powder/paprika.
11. Mix all the ingredients well and cook until oil oozes out of the sides of the pan. Then add a cup of grean peas (matar).
12. Then add a cup of water, salt and sugar.
Tip: The amount of water could be adjusted as per the consistency of the gravy.
13. Bring the masala to boil, on high flame.
14. Now add the soaked paneer or fresh homemade paneer.
15. Then add the fried cashew nuts.
16. Finally add crushed kasoori methi/dried fenugreek leaves.
17. Simmer the gravy for 3-4 minutes or until the desired consistency is reached.
18. I wanted the gravy to be little thicker and hence simmered it further down to 5 minutes.
19. Serve the matar paneer/peas paneer gravy with jeera rice, white rice, roti or naan.
20. You can optionally add a tsp of fresh cream before serving!
Matar paneer goes well with roti, garlic naan, jeera rice or dosa and poori. It's little tangy and spicy too, from the green chillies. The flavours of jeera aka cumin seeds, green chillies and dry spice powders give the dish a unique flavour, that distinguishes it from other paneer varities like paneer pulav, paneer butter masala, palak paneer, homemade paneer, paneer sabzi, shahi paneer.
Ingredients
1 cup of paneer/cottage cheese cubes
1 cup of peas/Matar
1 large tomato
1 tsp ginger pieces
3-4 garlic pods, optional
1 tsp red chilli powder/paprika
1 tsp cumin seeds
A pinch of turmeric powder
1/2 tsp Garam Masala powder
2 green chillies, cut vertically
2 tbsp butter or cooking oil
Salt to taste
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp crushes kasoori methi/dry fenugreek leaves
10 + 10 cashews
How to make matar paneer:
1. Soak the paneer cubes in warm water for 15 minutes. If you are using fresh homemade paneer, then you can skip this step. You can check here to see how to make fresh homemade paneer.
2. Heat a pan and add a tbsp of butter or cooking oil. Fry about 10 cashews till they turn light brown.
3. Do not over fry the cashews as it might give a bitter taste to the dish. Switch off the flame and keep the fried cashews aside.
4. Soak the other set of 10 cashews in hot water for 10-15 minutes.
5. In a mixer or food processor, add tomatoes, garlic pods, ginger pieces and soaked cashews. Grind it to a smooth paste.
6. Heat a pan and add 1 tbsp of butter or cooking oil. You can use the same pan used for frying cashews, along with remaining oil/butter. Add cumin seeds and fry for 30 secs.
7. Then add slit green chillies and saute for a minute.
8. Add the ground tomato - cashew paste.
9. Cook the paste for 4-5 minutes on high flame.
10. Add turmeric powder, garam masala and red chilli powder/paprika.
11. Mix all the ingredients well and cook until oil oozes out of the sides of the pan. Then add a cup of grean peas (matar).
12. Then add a cup of water, salt and sugar.
Tip: The amount of water could be adjusted as per the consistency of the gravy.
13. Bring the masala to boil, on high flame.
14. Now add the soaked paneer or fresh homemade paneer.
15. Then add the fried cashew nuts.
16. Finally add crushed kasoori methi/dried fenugreek leaves.
17. Simmer the gravy for 3-4 minutes or until the desired consistency is reached.
18. I wanted the gravy to be little thicker and hence simmered it further down to 5 minutes.
19. Serve the matar paneer/peas paneer gravy with jeera rice, white rice, roti or naan.
20. You can optionally add a tsp of fresh cream before serving!
