Karahi Paneer

I like MDH Karahi Chicken Masala and use it pretty often when I make a chicken curry dish such as ‘Karahi Chicken’. I used the same masala this time to make a vegetarian dish – Karahi Paneer. Paneer is a form of cottage cheese that is prepared in a number of ways- scrambled, curries, stuffed and so on. It can be very easily made at home and when in a pinch can be bought from almost all Indian stores. Paneer dishes find their way in most North Indian menus.

Karahi Paneer is a mildly spiced yet a flavorful dish with undernotes of onion and coriander seeds (from MDH masala) ,green bell peppers,black cardamom and fenugreek leaves.

You need:

1 lb. Paneer, chopped in medium sized pieces
2 onions, sliced
4 medium tomatoes, coarsely chopped
1/2 green bell pepper, coarsely chopped (more if you like the flavor)
3-4 tbsp cooking oil
3 tbsp MDH Karahi Chicken Masala (or more if you like spicy)
4-6 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp ginger paste
2 pieces black cardamom (halved)
1-2 tsp MDH Kasoori Methi (When I buy a pack, I slightly dry roast them in a pan and store them in an airtight container)
salt to taste
1 tsp lemon juice
1 bay leaf

Heat the cooking oil in a Karahi or deep heavy bottom pat. Add black cardamom and bay leaf and fry for few seconds. Add chopped onions and garlic, reduce heat and fry until golden brown. Add ginger paste and fry for few seconds. Add MDH Karahi Chicken Masala, 1/2 tsp salt and cook for few seconds. Add tomatoes and cook until tomatoes are mushy, spices seem to be nicely blended and the mixture seem to leave oil. Add pepper and cook for few more minutes.

Add Add two cups of water and bring it to boil. Add paneer and and cook for about 5 min on high heat and simmer for 5 more minutes. Sprinkle mashed leaves of Kasoori Methi and add the lemon juice. Adjust salt if needed. If needed, add more water to adjust curry (if adding more water, make sure to bring it boil). Garnish with chopped fresh coriander leaves and serve with naan or rice.

Servings: 4-6

This is not a very hot dish however you can increase the ‘hot’ factor by increasing the quantity of the masala.