All about Paneer

[Shoba]

http://forumhub.com/southfood/9345.27002.03.55.19.html

(Mrs Mano's recipes with Paneer)

I have never cooked paneer and I have some questions:

1. What is the shelf life of paneer, if kept wrapped in foil? A friend donated some 3kgs of paneer...

2. Other than with palak and kuruma varieties, does paneer have any flavour of it's own?

3. Does it marinate well?

Would appreciate if hubbers could post on this thread for paneer dishes.

Thanks!
Shoba

[dev]

Paneer does marinate well...Try out paneer tikka...

1. Mix thick(hung) curds, gin-gar paste,salt,chilli powder,turmeric powder,garam masala powder,.A pinch ofcori powder,.A pinch of jeera powder...(can add green chilli paster instead of chilli powder)
2. Cut paneer into big cubes...mix well with the masala...leave aside for 1/2 hr...
3. Put it in a skewer & roast on direct flame(slow-medium flame ) until the edges becomes a bit brown ... pour the remaining masala over the paneer twice or thrice while roasting...
4. Squeeze lemon juice & serve garnished with raw onion rings...

variation: Can add a few diced capscium to the masala 7 roast along with paneer...

[Shoba]

Thanks Dev, I'll give it a try. A grill-oven should work as well no?

Shoba

[dev]

Never tried using a grill oven...maybe u can keep it in the oven till 3/4 done...then use direct flame to get the pungent taste...

[sujathakannan]

Hi dev/Shoba,

Do anybody have any good recipes for kids with panner. My son who is 3 yrs like panner, but does not like any spicy food. I just fry panner and give him with ketchup.

[tomato]

Hi Sujatha,
U can try making paneer burji ( A really quick n easy dish )
Chop 1 small onion, 1/2 tomato and a few corriander leaves finely. Chop paneer into small pieces.
In a pan heat oil(or butter if it is for ur child) add onion. Cook till transparent, then add tomatoes, salt , turmeric pow, a pinch garam masala(optional) and fry briefly. Then add paneer and fry for a while tossing frequently. Finally garnish with corrander leaves and a sprinkle of pepper.

[Badri]

Hi

Any tried using Tofu instead of Paneer? We recently "discovered" tofu...it replaces paneer wonderfully! You can cut tofu up into little cubes and fry lightly with required spices/garnishing. You can try the bhurji also, substituting paneer with tofu. It has the same consistency...and much lesser fat than paneer, for those consicous.

So far, I have heard really only good things about Tofu. but are there any negatives associated with it? can we go on a tofu binge with no guilt?

i did vaguely hear about some research in Hawaii about how tofu can affect the brain...

[Thattai]

Hi sbadri!

I don't know about foil, but the best way to store paneer is to keep it immersed in water in the fridge. the water needs to be changed every one or two days. This way it can stay fresh for a week (the longest that I have kept it). This works well for storing left over tofu as well and prevents them from going sour or discolouring.

[Thattai]

Hi!

The following is a recipe from the NDTV Cooks website. It is a microwave recipe, but can easily be made on the gas top as well.

Paneer Jalfrazie

Ingredients:
300 gm paneer-cubed
1 tsp cumin seeds
½ cup onion-chopped fine
100 gm capsicum-cut into cubes similar to paneer
10 button onions (shallots)-peeled and halved
¼ cup tomato puree
1 tsp ginger paste
1 tsp garlic paste
green chillies-chopped fine
salt to taste
2 tsp kashmiri chilli powder
1 ½ tsp garam masala
3 tomatoes, cut into quarters
coriander leaves to garnish

Method:
Mix the cumin and oil in a dish. Cook covered, for 2 minutes. Mix in the onions and cook, uncovered at HI for 6 minutes, stirring once, to a light brown.

Mix in the capsicums, button onions, tomato puree, ginger-garlic pastes, green chillies, salt and chilli powder. Cook covered, at HI for 5 minutes.

Add paneer and tomato. Cover and cook at 70% for 7 minutes. Stir, sprinkle the garam masala and cook at HI for 3 minutes. Serve garnished with coriander leaves.

PS: This goes very well with rotis and parathas. If you need a 'wetter' consistency then add a bit of water, but not too much, as the paneer will also leave some water, and then the dish will be too watery.

[Thattai]

Hi again!

You can also make paneer stuffed parathas.

1) Crumble the paneer. Add the usual suspects - chilli powder, dhania powder, salt, haldi, a bit of aamchur powder, bit of hing (optional), chopped corriander. Mix well. Stuff into parathas.

2) Crumble the paneer. Add finely chopped onions and green chillies (these can be sauted first, if u don't like too much rawness of onion and chillies). Add chopped dhania and salt. Mix well. Stuff into parathas. This will be milder overall, but the chillies will give the required kick.