Shahi Matar Paneer – extremely popular, Mughlai, restaurant-style shahi paneer recipe using paneer, matar (peas), yogurt, cashews/cream, and masala. Perfect for an Indian party menu, a must in weddings or festive gatherings. Serve with steamed rice, roti, bread
WHAT IS SHAHI MATAR PANEER
Anytime we host an Indian party at home or for any festive occasions (Holi, Diwali, etc), there is one recipe that TOPS our menu and that is Shahi Matar Paneer or Restaurant Style Shahi Paneer
A luscious and flavorful dish made using paneer, matar, Indian masala, spices, and a mix of yogurt+cashews.
It’s this paste of ‘Yogurt + Cashews’ along with the Sweet Scented Spices that give it a royal/shahi taste.
Infact you’d be surprised how easy it is to make this dish and literally if I donot protest 😉 we would be having this almost every week as everyone loves it so much.
Because of its rich flavors, color and texture this recipe is a MUST in Weddings (you might see it with some milk solids/khoya to enhance the richness hence called Khoya Matar Paneer).
SHAHI MATAR PANEER INGREDIENTS
4 Tbsp Vegetable Oil
1 Cup Paneer (cottage cheese cubes) – bite-size pieces
1 Cup Matar (peas) – fresh or frozen
2 Medium Onion – roughly chopped
2 Medium Tomato – roughly chopped
1 Inch Fresh Ginger – roughly chopped
5 Small Garlic Cloves – roughly chopped
1/2 Cup Plain Yogurt
6 Raw Cashews
2 Tbsp Kasuri Methi (fenugreek leaves) – optional
1/2 Cup Water
WHOLE SPICES:
2 Tej Patta (dry bay leaf)
1 Tsp Jeera (cumin seeds)
3 Laung (whole cloves)
2 Choti Elaichi (green cardamom)
1/2 Cinnamon Stick
POWDERED SPICES:
1 Tsp HALDI (Turmeric Powder)
1 Tsp Kashmiri Red Chili Powder
1.5 Tsp Salt – as per taste
1 Tbsp Coriander Powder
1 Tsp Garam Masala
Shahi Matar Paneer Masala
HOW TO MAKE SHAHI MATAR PANEER
Prep Work:
Take 1 cup water and soak the cashews in it for 5 minutes or microwave the soaked cashews in the microwave for 2 minutes.
In a blender jar, add onion, tomato, ginger, garlic, soaked cashews, and 2 tbsp water.
Pulse to form a thick smooth onion-tomato paste and keep this paste aside.
How to Make Shahi Matar Paneer
MAKE SHAHI MATAR PANEER :
Add all the WHOLE SPICES in a mortar pestle and crush for 30 seconds. keep aside.
Heat 4 tbsp oil in a large wok/pan.
Add 1 tsp jeera, tejpatta crushed WHOLE SPICES, and saute for 30 seconds (over low heat).
Now add 1 tsp Kashmiri Red Chili Powder and saute 2-3 times.
Add the onion-tomato paste and saute everything together.
Saute this mix for another minute, then cover it using a large plate/lid.
Let this cook on low heat for 2-3 minutes (keep stirring every minute).
After 3 minutes, remove the cover and you’ll see a cooked onion-tomato mix (which leaves oil on the sides of the wok).
Now add fresh/frozen peas, coriander powder, garam masala, and saute everything.
Cover and cook this mix for another 2 minutes (on lowest heat – this helps cook the peas).
Remove the cover and add the paneer, whisked yogurt, Kasuri methi, water and lightly mix everything (combining yogurt to the cooked masala).
Cover and cook for another 2 minutes (stirring every 30 seconds).
Remove the cover and you’d see a bright red color saucy dish.
Turn off the heat and transfer the shahi matar paneer to a serving bowl.
Add chopped dhaniya (cilantro) on top and serve hot.
I like to serve this recipe with steamed rice, jeera pulao, roti, paratha or even dinner rolls.
Here are a few suggestions when cooking this recipe:
Can I Use Frozen Paneer?
Yes, you can use frozen paneer for this recipe in 2 methods:
Method 1:
Simply remove the paneer from the freezer, place it in a microwavable bowl, and defrost as per instructions on the microwave. Once microwaves, slice into bite-size pieces and use.
Method 2:
You can simply add the cubed/sliced paneer in the cooked onion-tomato paste and then follow the recipe instructions further.
Do I Need To Fry The Paneer?
Since the curry is already slightly rich, I would not recommend frying the paneer (as it unnecessarily makes the recipe more oily)
But if the paneer is old/crumbly and you feel it will break once added to the curry, you can lightly saute the paneer in 1tsp oil.
Restaurant Style Shahi Paneer
COOKING & SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Vegetable Oil– you can use any light oil like canola, olive, sunflower, grapeseed oil, etc
Onion – you can use any kind of onions like red, yellow or white.
Fresh Ginger – if you donot have fresh ginger, you may use ginger powder (sonth) – 1/2 Tsp.
Raw Cashews – you can use cashew powder too (1.5 Tbsp)
Kashmiri Red Chili Powder – this gives a rich red color and is less hot than regular chili powder. You can use regular red chili powder.
Kasuri Methi (fenugreek leaves) – I’ve mentioned this as optional, however, this definitely adds a nice smokey flavor to the recipe which is extremely delicious.
Shahi Matar Paneer - extremely popular and restaurant style paneer recipe using paneer, matar (peas), yogurt, cashews/cream, and masala. Perfect for Indian party menu, a must in weddings or festive gatherings. Serve with steamed rice, roti, bread
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time25 minutes
Total Time30 minutes
Ingredients
4 Tbsp Vegetable Oil
1 Cup Paneer (cottage cheese cubes) - bite-size pieces
1 Cup Matar (peas) - fresh or frozen
2 Medium Onion - roughly chopped
2 Medium Tomato - roughly chopped
1 Inch Fresh Ginger - roughly chopped
5 Small Garlic Cloves - roughly chopped
1/2 Cup Plain Yogurt
6 Raw Cashews
2 Tbsp Kasuri Methi (fenugreek leaves) - optional
1/2 Cup Water
WHOLE SPICES:
2 Tej Patta (dry bay leaf)
1 Tsp Jeera (cumin seeds)
3 Laung (whole cloves)
2 Choti Elaichi (green cardamom)
1/2 Cinnamon Stick
POWDERED SPICES:
1 Tsp HALDI (Turmeric Powder)
1 Tsp Kashmiri Red Chili Powder
1.5 Tsp Salt - as per taste
1 Tbsp Coriander Powder
1 Tsp Garam Masala
Instructions
Prep Work:
Take 1 cup water and soak the cashews in it for 5 minutes or microwave the soaked cashews in the microwave for 2 minutes.
In a blender jar, add onion, tomato, ginger, garlic, soaked cashews, and 2 tbsp water.
Pulse to form a thick smooth onion-tomato paste and keep this paste aside.
MAKE SHAHI MATAR PANEER :
Add all the WHOLE SPICES in a mortar pestle and crush for 30 seconds. keep aside.
Heat 4 tbsp oil in a large wok/pan.
Add 1 tsp jeera, tejpatta,, crushed WHOLE SPICES, and saute for 30 seconds (over low heat).
Now add 1 tsp Kashmiri Red Chili Powder and saute 2-3 times.
Add the onion-tomato paste and saute everything together.
Saute this mix for another minute, then cover it using a large plate/lid.
Let this cook on low heat for 2-3 minutes (keep stirring every minute).
After 3 minutes, remove the cover and you'll see a cooked onion-tomato mix (which leaves oil on the sides of the wok).
Now add fresh/frozen peas, coriander powder, garam masala and saute everything.
Cover and cook this mix for another 2 minutes (on lowest heat - this helps cook the peas).
Remove the cover and add the paneer, whisked yogurt, kasuri methi, water and lightly mix everything (combining yogurt to the cooked masala).
Cover and cook for another 2 minutes (stirring every 30 seconds).
Remove the cover and you'd see a bright red color saucy dish.
Turn off the heat and transfer the shahi matar paneer to a serving bowl.
Add chopped dhaniya (cilantro) on top and serve hot.
Notes
Vegetable Oil- you can use any light oil like canola, olive, sunflower, grapeseed oil, etc
Onion - you can use any kind of onions like red, yellow or white.
Fresh Ginger - if you donot have fresh ginger, you may use ginger powder (sonth) - 1/2 Tsp.
Raw Cashews - you can use cashew powder too (1.5 Tbsp)
Kashmiri Red Chili Powder - this gives a rich red color and is less hot than regular chili powder. You can use regular red chili powder.
Kasuri Methi (fenugreek leaves) - I've mentioned this as optional, however, this definitely adds a nice smokey flavor to the recipe which is extremely delicious.
1 Reply to "Shahi Matar Paneer (Restaurant Style Shahi Paneer) Mughlai"
Anil February 27, 2020 (2:55 pm)
This looks incredible😍 Trying this weekend