Tikka Paneer

Ever since I tired the cubes of cheesy goodness that are paneer I've been addicted to the stuff. I have it every time I have an Indian meal (my favourite is saag paneer, but that's for another week). So I thought it was about time I tried making something with it myself. 

If you're veggie and you haven't tried paneer, you don't know what you're missing! I know chunks of cheese in a curry sounds kind of weird, but it's very mildly flavored and has an amazing squishy texture. This was actually pretty easy to make despite the long ingredients list, the only thing that really takes any time is the marinating. To prove this to you, I got home at 7 the other day and it was ready in time for me to watch Hollyoaks on E4+1 (30 minutes for non Hollyoaks watchers (with already marinated panner).

For 2 you'll need:

(for the marinade)
2 tsp grated ginger
1 clove of garlic
2 tsp chopped red chili
a few stalks of coriander
2 tsp tomato paste
1 tsp garam masala (I forgot to buy some so used madras which worked fine)
A pinch of paprika
200g paneer cut into bite sized chunks

(for the sauce)
1 onion sliced
1 red pepper sliced
1 tin tomatoes
A pinch of turmeric
A pinch of dried coriander
A pinch of garam masala
2 tsp natural yoghurt

1. Blitz the ginger, garlic, red chili, coriander, tomato paste, garam masala and paprika together in a food processor to make the marinade and the brush all over the paneer and leave to marinate in the fridge for a couple of hours. 
2. When the paneer is ready, heat some oil in a pan and cook the paneer on a medium heat for around 3 minutes, then chuck in the onion, peppers, turmeric, coriander and garam masala and continue cooking for another 5 minutes. The panner should be nice and golden. 
3. Pour the tinned tomatoes over the paneer and then simmer for 15 minutes. 
4. Take it off the heat and stir in the natural yoghurt, serve with fluffy white rice and enjoy! 

Posted in: vegetarian