If you’re new, paneer is described as “Indian cottage cheese” in English. I always warn folks that this is a very loose and poor translation, but I suppose there’s no other way to describe paneer! If you can’t find paneer near you, then please don’t substitute for actual cottage cheese. I did that early on in Canada and I instantly regretted it!
Paneer is a fresh cheese that is widely consumed as a vegetarian protein source in India. It is made from whole milk and either buttermilk, lemon or lime, or vinegar. Paneer comes from boiling the milk and extracting the curds. These curds are actually referred to as chenna, and if you stop at this stage, you can use the chenna to enjoy with some buttery toast and tomato chutney for breakfast, or use it in desserts! You can learn more by checking out my chenna recipe!
Otherwise, to make paneer, a cheesecloth is used to extract the moisture, and we press down on it so it’s a solid block. There you go, paneer! You can check out how to make Fresh Homemade Paneer in my recipe, or you can find paneer in the frozen section grocery stores or your local South Asian grocery store. Lots of people have written to me saying they can’t find paneer anywhere, so you’ll have to make it yourself. I’ve actually used a combination of homemade paneer and store-bought paneer for this recipe - I’m using both because I didn’t have enough of my own paneer for the recipe! I typically use store-bought paneer for the sake of convenience.
This dish translates directly to “paneer for royalty.” That name sure sounds accurate to me, and when you give this a try, I’m sure you’ll agree! This recipe originates from Mughlai cuisine. From around the 1400s to 1800s, the Mughals ruled India, and their cuisine consisted of rich dishes that often incorporated nuts and warm spices. For instance, other Indian staple dishes that were inspired from Mughlai cuisine include the essential Murgh Makhani, commonly known as “Butter Chicken”, and the vegetarian complement, Paneer Makhani. The shahi gravy is made with yogurt, onions, cashews, and saffron.
The recipe I’ll be sharing today is a modern take from the original paneer Mughlai recipe, and this is the type of paneer you’ll see served in restaurants, even in India. The old-style Mughlai shahi gravy recipe has no tomatoes, and is only made with onions, yogurt, saffron and cashews, in addition to more aromatic spices. The more common shahi gravy recipe includes tomatoes and has minimal spices, giving it a more mild taste and the iconic vibrant orange color. You’ll note that this gravy resembles the familiar color of Punjabi curries, however, the Mughlai paneer has a white gravy. The original Mughlai paneer and the Punjabi version look and taste quite different!
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