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Punjabi Shahi Paneer Recipe (Restaurant Style)
Shahi Paneer is a royal North Indian dish from Mughlai cuisine consisting of soft paneer in a creamy tomato onion nut-based gravy flavored with aromatic spices. It is rich, creamy, and flavorful! Serve Punjabi Shahi Paneer recipe with some butter naan or rice for a restaurant style meal.
Equipment
Ingredients
- 360 grams paneer fresh or frozen
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 tablespoon ghee
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 yellow onion roughly chopped (1 cup)
- 1-2 green chilies chopped
- 8 garlic cloves chopped
- 1 inch ginger pieces chopped
- 2-3 tomatoes roughly chopped (approximately 2 cups chopped) 390gms
- 20 cashews
- ¼ cup cilantro stems chopped
- ½ cup cream
- 1 tablespoon kasuri methi
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- Pinch Saffron threads
- 2-3 tablespoons cilantro finely chopped
Whole Spices
- 1 bay leaf
- 4 green cardamom
- 1 black cardamom
- 1 inch cinnamon
- 4 cloves
- 4-5 black pepper whole
Spices
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon Punjabi Garam Masala
Instructions
Prep work
- Soak paneer in hot water for 15-20 mins or until soft. Drain the water and cut paneer into cubes or triangles. Keep in warm water until ready to use.
Making Shahi Paneer Masala in Instant Pot
- Start the Instant Pot on saute mode. Add oil and ghee followed by whole spices. Saute whole spices until they turn fragrant.
- Add onion, ginger, garlic, green chili, and cilantro stems. Saute for a minute until the onions start to turn soft.
- Stir in the tomatoes, cashews, salt, and ¾ cup water. Deglaze the bottom. Mix well and ensure nothing is sticking to the bottom of the pan.
- Close the lid, move the vent to the sealing position, press the manual or pressure cook button, and cook on high pressure for 8 minutes.Once the pressure cooking is complete, let the steam release naturally. Then open the lid.
- Note: Alternatively, you can also cook this shahi paneer masala in a pan on the stovetop, until the onion, and tomatoes are soft and the raw smell is gone.
- Allow the mixture to cool. Remove bay leaf and transfer the cooked mixture to a blender to make a smooth puree, strain it (optional I didn’t).
Making Shahi Paneer
- Heat a pan on the stovetop on medium heat. Add butter, followed by bay leaf (picked out earlier).
- Once the butter is melted, add in the spices (turmeric, red chili powder, and coriander powder). Saute for a few seconds. Ensure the spices dont burn.
- Add the onion-tomato puree and mix until well combined.
- Stir in the cream, garam masala, and kasuri methi (crushed between your palms). Mix well till combined and bring the gravy to a simmer.
- Add sugar and pinch of saffron strands. Mix well and simmer for 2-3 minutes.
- Taste test for salt and adjust if needed. Add ½ to ¾ cup of water (or as needed) to adjust the gravy consistency.
- Drain water off and add soft paneer. Simmer for 5 mins. For fried paneer, cook for 1-2 minutes only. Turn off the heat.
- Finally add cilantro and Shahi Paneer is ready to serve! Garnish with more cream, a sprinkle of saffron, pinch of cardamom powder and cilantro. Enjoy shahi paneer with butter naan or rice.
Video
Notes
For store-bought paneer, soak it in hot water for 10-15 minutes to soften it. For homemade paneer, ensure it is well-drained and pressed to avoid excess moisture.
Before adding it to gravy, you can saute the paneer in butter for a restaurant-style shahi paneer recipe. I skipped this step and directly cooked paneer in the gravy.
Don't cook paneer for too long or else it will get chewy. Just simmer in the curry for a few minutes to keep it soft.
Adjust the quantity of spices according to your taste preferences but dont skimp on the garam masala or whole spices.
Tender cilantro steams add a great dept of flavor to the curry so highly recommend you add if you have them.
Instead of pressure cooking the shahi paneer gravy in the Instant Pot, you can also make it on the stovetop. Saute and cook until the onion and tomatoes are cooked and soft before making the puree.
Add boiled green peas along with paneer to make shahi matar paneer.
To make shahi paneer recipe without cream, use milk or half and half instead. It will be less creamy but still deliciuos.
Use cashew cream and tofu to make this vegan
Nutrition
Calories: 366kcal | Carbohydrates: 12g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 32g | Saturated Fat: 17g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 73mg | Sodium: 460mg | Potassium: 250mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 855IU | Vitamin C: 10mg | Calcium: 339mg | Iron: 1mg
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