By Anadi Misra ·
About this recipe
Make restaurant-style Kadai Paneer at home with bold spices, tender paneer, and a rich, aromatic gravy. An easy homemade recipe that delivers authentic Indian flavors every time.
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Watch the recipe
This Kadai Paneer recipe will totally steal your heart! As I write this, I’m literally having leftovers from dinner last night and wow is it amazing! If you follow me on Instagram, then you saw that story of me enjoying leftovers for lunch! By the way, if you’re not following me on Instagram, then you definitely should so you can see sneak peeks for upcoming recipes and all of my kitchen experiments!
By Anadi Misra ·
By Anadi Misra ·
I can officially declare that Kadai Paneer is one of my favourite vegetarian dishes for sure! I’ve had it quite a few times at Indian restaurants and this version definitely reminds me of my wonderful experiences at the restaurants! This dish highlights a luscious creamy tomato gravy, soft chunks of paneer, and sautéed veggies, all paired with a wonderful spice blend that’s so aromatic and shines throughout!
Make sure to watch the video so you get a visual representation of how to make the dish from start to finish! I’ll show exactly how to cook the veggies, make the gravy, and how to prepare the spice mixture. If you’re not already, be sure to subscribe to me on YouTube so you’re updated when the corresponding recipe video is live! I love filming the recipes since I find watching the demonstration is a nice complement to the written recipe and you’re set up for success! Let’s get cooking!
Kadai Paneer is a popular Indian vegetarian dish that features paneer as the protein source. In English, paneer is commonly translated to “Indian cottage cheese,” but please don’t substitute paneer for cottage cheese! You’ll regret it instantly, as I have done when I first arrived to Canada!
You can either make your own paneer, as shown in my recipe here, or buy it from a store. I like to buy my paneer for the simple reason that it’s more economical and saves time, but if you can’t find paneer, then making your own is easy - it just requires some patience, but it’s well worth it!
Why is this recipe called “kadai paneer"?" The dish is aptly named after the cooking vessel this dish originated from, a kadai (Indian wok). Kadai works well for a dish such as this since it is great for simmering stews or curries to really bring the flavours together. This dish has a drier curry, the gravy is not as runny as Paneer Makhani, and instead is thick. No worries if you don’t have an actual kadai though! Any wok or deep-set pan will work perfectly fine to make this recipe! As you’ll see in the video and the pictures, I certainly did not make this in a kadai!
If you’ve seen my Paneer Tikka Masala recipe, you may see that the two recipes are very similar. Both dishes have peppers and onions in the gravy, both gravies are hearty and thick, and they really look identical! Are they interchangeable? Nope, there are subtle differences making them two separate dishes! The distinguishing factors between Kadai Paneer and Paneer Tikka Masala are:
No it’s not! Whenever I get asked this question, I answer that the dish is flavourful! Our kadai masala is loaded with aromatic spices that will totally transform your gravy, and all those amazing flavours will seep into the paneer and the vegetables. If you are sensitive to spice, you can reduce the amount of dried red chilies in the kadai masala.
Let’s go over what we’ll need for our freshly ground kadai masala and for the curry itself. For all measurements with the full ingredient list, make sure to scroll to the bottom of this post for the FULL PRINTABLE RECIPE CARD, so you can save this recipe for later! The recipe card will also let you choose the number of servings you want to make, so you can easily scale all of the ingredients for the curry and the amount of masala to make the appropriate amount! I definitely recommend making more rather than less, since I think you’ll want leftovers to relive this wonderful paneer dish!
Add all of the whole spices to a pan on medium to medium high heat. Roast for 5-10 minutes or until the spices are aromatic and have browned slightly.
Let the spices cool for a few minutes and then transfer to a mortar and pestle or a spice grinder.
Grind to a coarse consistency and store in an air tight container.
Heat a wok on medium-high heat and add oil, sauté peppers and onion for 3-4 minutes. The veggies should get some colour but should still remain crisp. Transfer veggies to a plate and reserve for garnish.
In the same wok, add butter and rest of the oil, add cumin seeds and roast until they begin to change colour and become aromatic.
Add the diced onions, pinch of salt and sauté until soft. Stir often to ensure the onions don’t get too brown. Add julienned ginger and minced garlic, cook until the rawness of the ginger and garlic has cooked out.
Add tomatoes, the juices released will help deglaze the pan. Cook for 1-2 minutes and add the kadai masala and deggi mirch. Mix well and cook until tomatoes are on the verge of breaking down.
Add passata and bring to a simmer on medium heat. Then, add in a pinch of salt and cook for 7 - 8 minutes, or until the sauce has reduced and is released from the pan easily. Stir occasionally to ensure sauce does not burn.
Add 1 Tbsp of honey. Mix well and taste, add more honey if you prefer the sauce to be sweeter. Cook for about 30 seconds
Add cream, mix well and toss in the paneer pieces and the sautéed veggies from step 1 and simmer for 1-2 minutes to achieve the desired consistency.
Serve hot and enjoy!
The thick and chunky gravy of Kadai Paneer makes Rumali Roti an ideal bread to pair with the dish, since the paper-thin bread can be smothered with the spicy tomato masala and paneer. I would also recommend serving with Homemade Tandoori Naan or Punjabi Lachha Paratha!
If you want rice in addition to or in place of bread, here are my recommendations!
For true restaurant flavour, start with homemade paneer — fresh paneer makes all the difference.
Let me know what you think of this recipe in the comments! If you’ve tried this recipe, be sure to post it on social media and tag it with #cookingwithanadi and mention me @cooking.with.anadi. Thank you!
Recipe by Anadi Misra
Make restaurant-style Kadai Paneer at home with bold spices, tender paneer, and a rich, aromatic gravy. An easy homemade recipe that delivers authentic Indian flavors every time.
5.0 · 1 rating
20 min
Prep
30 min
Cook
50 min
Total
4
servings
hard
Level
Tap any quantity to scale
Add all of the whole spices to a pan on medium to medium high heat. Roast for 5-10 minutes or until the spices are aromatic and have browned slightly.
Add all of the whole spices to a pan on medium to medium high heat. Roast for 5-10 minutes or until the spices are aromatic and have browned slightly.
Let the spices cool for a few minutes and then transfer to a mortar and pestle or a spice grinder.
Let the spices cool for a few minutes and then transfer to a mortar and pestle or a spice grinder.
Grind to a coarse consistency and store in an air tight container.
Grind to a coarse consistency and store in an air tight container.
Heat a wok on medium-high heat and add oil, sauté peppers and onion for 3-4 minutes. The veggies should get some colour but should still remain crisp. Transfer veggies to a plate and reserve for garnish.
Heat a wok on medium-high heat and add oil, sauté peppers and onion for 3-4 minutes. The veggies should get some colour but should still remain crisp. Transfer veggies to a plate and reserve for garnish.
Heat 1 tbsp olive oil and 1 tbsp butter in same wok as garnish on medium heat. Add cumin seeds and cook for 1-2 minutes or until aromatic.
Heat 1 tbsp olive oil and 1 tbsp butter in same wok as garnish on medium heat. Add cumin seeds and cook for 1-2 minutes or until aromatic.
Add onions, pinch of salt and sauté until translucent, about 3-4 minutes. Add ginger and garlic and cook for 3-4 more minutes.
Add onions, pinch of salt and sauté until translucent, about 3-4 minutes. Add ginger and garlic and cook for 3-4 more minutes.
Add tomatoes, the juices released will help deglaze the pan. Cook for 1-2 minutes and the kadai masala and deggi mirch. Mix well and cook until tomatoes are on the verge of breaking down.
Add tomatoes, the juices released will help deglaze the pan. Cook for 1-2 minutes and the kadai masala and deggi mirch. Mix well and cook until tomatoes are on the verge of breaking down.
Add passata and bring to a simmer on medium heat. Then, add in a pinch of salt cook for 7 - 8 minutes, or until the sauce has reduced and is released from the pan easily. Stir occasionally to ensure sauce does not burn.
Add passata and bring to a simmer on medium heat. Then, add in a pinch of salt cook for 7 - 8 minutes, or until the sauce has reduced and is released from the pan easily. Stir occasionally to ensure sauce does not burn.
Add 1 tbsp of honey. Mix well and taste, add more honey if you prefer the sauce to be sweeter. Cook for about 30 seconds
Add 1 tbsp of honey. Mix well and taste, add more honey if you prefer the sauce to be sweeter. Cook for about 30 seconds
Crush the kasoori methi/dried fenugreek leaves between the palm of your hands and add to the sauce and garam masala, mix well. Cook for 30 seconds.
Crush the kasoori methi/dried fenugreek leaves between the palm of your hands and add to the sauce and garam masala, mix well. Cook for 30 seconds.
Pour in cream and mix well. Add the sauteed paneer and veggies, and season to taste. Simmer for 1-2 minutes and serve hot.
Pour in cream and mix well. Add the sauteed paneer and veggies, and season to taste. Simmer for 1-2 minutes and serve hot.
412
Calories
18g
Protein
27g
Carbs
27g
Fat
7g
Fiber
12g
Sugar
665mg
Sodium
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