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Looking for a satisfying fusion meal? You’ll love this fried rice with paneer.
If you’ve been following the blog for a while, then you know recently I had gone back home to India, and I enjoyed a cuisine I’ve never delved much into — Indo-Chinese! I’ve always enjoyed Indo-Chinese, but never ate much of it and only cooked a handful of dishes. I really got hooked and wanted to have more since visiting India!
Funny story about this dish - I was actually going to prepare my Chicken Hakka Noodles but was going to experiment with fried rice a few nights ago. I was getting my chicken out but unfortunately a funky smell came from the chicken. Guys, I hate food waste and I preach preventing it as much as possible on here, but no one’s perfect and sometimes these things are just out of our control. As long as you’re mindful of what you have and do your best, then that’s okay! I do encourage you to be mindful of what you have in your fridge and use your ingredients, and this can get that creative light bulb ding! I explain this more in my 5 Tips To Make Cooking Fun! - my ultimate free guide to expand your creativity in the kitchen and inspire you to reach your potential! That being said, I needed a protein desperately as my veggies were already in the pan and they were about to burn. I thought super quick on my toes, and I had some frozen paneer! I quickly thawed it in the microwave, chopped it up, and threw it in! Not only was dinner saved, but I discovered an INCREDIBLE new recipe! You saw the outcome if you follow me on Instagram as I shared a reel of the preliminary recipe! If this Paneer Fried Rice sounds exciting to you, then read on for the recipe, and perhaps make this as part of my Live to Cook one month challenge! You’ll get this for free along with my 5 top tips in the kitchen if you sign up for my newsletter!
Don’t forget to watch the video to see all the steps of how to make this delicious fried rice with paneer recipe! I’d also appreciate it if you subscribe to my YouTube channel if you haven’t already, and make sure you hit the bell button so you receive the notifications when the recipe videos go live! The video recipes are excellent for you to get a tangible view of how to make this recipe, and you’ve got everything to set you up for success! Let’s get cooking!
What is Paneer?▼
Commonly translated to “Indian cottage cheese,” paneer is an Indian fresh cheese. Paneer is made with either whole milk or 2% milk, and it is brought to a simmer. Then, you curdle it with either buttermilk or lemon juice - something acidic. You then strain the milk curdles and put them under pressure to remove excess moisture. After they’ve been separated, you then shape and form your milk solids, and there it is! Paneer! For more details on how to make your own paneer at home, check out the recipe here.
WARNING! As mentioned, while paneer is translated to “Indian cottage cheese,” you CANNOT substitute it with Western cottage cheese! This is because paneer and cottage cheese have extremely different moisture content - paneer is dry and solid, which is how it can hold its shape in curries and sauces. If you try to use cottage cheese, it will crumble in your curry and turn to mush. I’ve made this mistake when I first came to Canada and I definitely learned my lesson!
You should be able to find paneer at your local grocery store or South Asian store. However, I’ve received many messages from folks who cannot find paneer anywhere near them. Unfortunately, you’re best off making your own. I tend to buy mine to save time and because it requires a lot of milk to make a small amount of paneer, but you gotta do what you gotta do! BUT the fresh paneer will taste incredible, so you won’t regret it!
About This Fried Rice with Paneer Recipe
This is an Indo-Chinese fusion recipe. We have elements from Indian cooking with the veggies, paneer, and heat, and the stir fried cooking method comes from Chinese cuisine. You’ll adore the crunchy veggies and the crispy paneer that’s pan-fried to perfection! There are so many reasons why you need to try this delicious fried rice recipe for a tasty weeknight dinner!
This dish is:
- Vegetarian
- Healthy with loads of veggies
- Protein-packed with the paneer
- Fast to make - the longest part is making the rice!
- Can be veganized if the paneer is substituted with tofu
Tips for Perfect Vegetarian Indo-Chinese Fried Rice
- Leftover rice works best for a rice based stir fry. For fresh rice, let rice completely cool down by spreading it out in a single layer over a plate or baking sheet.
- Prepare all of the ingredients for the dish before you begin cooking.
- Use a splash of vinegar to deglaze the pan if the bottom starts to brown.
- Even though this is an Indo-Chinese dish, we follow the shape rule of Chinese cooking - where all components are cut into a similar shape. For this dish, our ingredients are cut into cubes.
- Sesame oil is so flavorful that I used it for the entire dish. But you can use soybean oil, rapeseed oil or even Indian mustard seed oil to stir fry the veggies and protein and then finish with sesame oil for added sheen and flavor.
Ingredients
It’s time to see what ingredients we’ll need! Don’t forget to scroll to the bottom of this post for the FULL PRINTABLE recipe card, with all ingredients and their quantities. You can save this recipe for later and the recipe card will also allow you to scale the entire recipe based on how many portions you want to make. All the ingredient quantities will be automatically adjusted, so you don’t have to figure this out!
- Rice: For this recipe, you’ll want to use your favourite short grain rice, such as Arborio rice. Something long grain like basmati would be too fragile for a stir fry like this, and you run the risk of the rice turning mushy.
- Vegetable broth: This will be added to our rice when it cooks to add some extra flavour.
- Vegetables: I’ll be using ginger, poblano pepper, red pepper, red onion, green beans, and carrots, which will be chopped.
- Oil: Everything will be sautéed in sesame oil. I love the flavour that comes from sesame oil, and it adds a Chinese flair to the dish. If using an alternative, make sure it has a high smoke point. Good options are peanut oil or vegetable oil.
- Sauces: We’ll be adding teriyaki sauce, rice vinegar and chilli garlic sauce. These sauces work together to add a nice sweetness and flavour with a touch of spice.
- Garlic: Finely chopped. This will be cooked with our paneer and add a wonderful aroma.
- Paneer: Cut into small cubes. You can either buy it from the store or make your own.
- Spices: Salt and pepper is all we need!
How to Make Paneer Fried Rice
Rinse the rice well and then add to a saucepan. Add 2 1/2 - 3 Cups of vegetable broth or water and bring to a boil. Boil the rice until tender, drain any excess liquid.
Prepare baking sheet or large plate with parchment and spread the drained rice over the parchment in a thin layer. Let it cool down for at least 25-30 minutes.
Heat a wok or large pan on medium high heat and add the sesame oil. Once hot, add the garlic and sauté for 30 seconds. Add the paneer and toss well with the oil and garlic. Season with salt and pepper.
Sear the paneer until it is lightly golden brown and the garlic is roasted. To prevent the garlic from burning, make sure to stir the paneer and garlic every minute or so.
Then add the remaining veggies: the onions, peppers, carrots, green beans and ginger. Toss well to coat the veggies with the oil. If you notice any browning on the pan, add a little splash of water or vinegar to prevent it from burning.
Season with a small pinch of salt to help cook the veggies. Cook until the veggies are halfway done. They should have a shine and still have some of their crispness.
Add the teriyaki sauce, chilli garlic sauce and rice vinegar. Mix well.
Add the rice to the wok/pan and toss well to combine. Garnish with green onions, taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
Serve hot and enjoy!
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