Uma Prem Kumar shared her version Shahi Paneer with us…. a favorite with her kids. The original recipe called for green chilies but she skipped those and instead sneaked in some veggies like cauliflower and french beans along with the paneer. For the health conscious she suggests that the dish can be made as low fat as possible using low fat milk instead of cream and cashew paste.
Ingredients:
Ghee – 1 Tbsp
Onion – 2
Grated Coconut – 1 Tbsp
Cashews – 1/3 cup
Cinnamon stick – 2
Clove – 2
Pepper corns – 5 crushed
Star Anise – 2
Cardamom – 2
Cumin – ½ tsp
Ginger Garlic Green Chilly paste – 2 tbsp
Yougurt – ¼ cup
Garam Masala – ½ tsp
Paneer Cubes – 500 gm
Method:
Chop a couple of white onions and sauté them in ghee/oil till golden. Add 1tbsp of freshly grated coconut to this and stir well. Cool and blend to a puree.
Meanwhile soak 1/3 cup cashews in milk and grind to a smooth paste and set aside.
In a saucepan heat ghee/oil, throw in a cinnamon stick, cloves, pepper corns, star anise, cardamom, cumin seeds and then the onion puree. Cook for a while and then stir in ginger-garlic-green chili paste. Fry again, add the cashew paste, salt, sugar,1/4 cup thick yogurt, 1/2 tsp garam masala powder, and paneer cubes (which have been soaking in warm diluted milk), 1/4 cup light whipping cream (optional), a few pieces of steamed cauliflower(optional). May add some warm milk at this point to adjust for consistency and cook till done .
Serve with warm paranthas and jeera rice.
– Recipe by Uma Prem Kumar, Compiled by Mona Malik