Name: Paneer Do Pyaza
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Indian
Ingredients: 300 g paneer, cut into 3 cm cubes; 1 tsp salt, for soaking; 3 tbsp vegetable oil; 1 onion, about 150 g, finely chopped; 1 tbsp ginger and garlic paste; 3 tomatoes, about 300 g, pureed; 1 tsp ground cumin; 1 tsp ground coriander; ½ tsp ground turmeric; 1 tsp chilli powder; ½ tsp salt; 1 onion, about 150 g, cut into petals; 1 green pepper, about 150 g, cut into 3 cm pieces; 1 tsp garam masala; 2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander

Paneer Do Pyaza

Cubes of paneer cooked with onion two ways, in a tomato masala, with peppers and a finish of garam masala.

35 min total Serves 4 servings Easy

Salt the paneer and leave it for ten minutes in hot water first; it sounds fussy, and it is the difference between rubbery cubes and soft ones. Soaking paneer in hot salted water softens it, so it does not toughen further in the sauce.

Do pyaza means two onions. Here one onion is cooked down into the masala and a second is cut into thick petals that go in late, so they stay a little crisp. The contrast between the soft base and the crunchy onion is the point of the dish.

Fry the paneer cubes briefly until golden on two sides. That gives them a light crust that holds up in the gravy and adds a nutty flavour.

Build the masala from onion, ginger, garlic and tomato, with cumin, coriander and a pinch of turmeric. Cook until the oil separates. The peppers and onion petals go in for the last 4 minutes, with the paneer, and a spoonful of garam masala finishes the dish.

Paneer Do Pyaza: Step by Step

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Soak the paneer in hot water with the 1 tsp salt for 10 minutes. Drain and pat dry.
Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a frying pan and cook the paneer for 4 minutes until golden on two sides. Set aside.
Heat the remaining oil in a wide pan and cook the chopped onion for 6 minutes. Add the ginger and garlic paste for 1 minute.
Add the tomato puree, cumin, coriander, turmeric, chilli powder and salt. Cook for 6 minutes until thick and the oil shows.
Add the onion petals, pepper and paneer and cook for 4 minutes. Stir in the garam masala and coriander.

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Tips That Matter

Do not stir the paneer too hard once it is in the sauce.
Cut the onion petals thick so they keep some bite.
Add a splash of water if the masala becomes too dry.

Changing the Recipe

If you only have ground ginger, a quarter-teaspoon for each tablespoon of fresh is the ratio usually given; it tastes warmer and less bright than the fresh root.
An eighth of a teaspoon of garlic powder per clove is the stand-in usually given when you are out of fresh garlic; it will not brown the same way, and it burns easily, so add it with the liquid.

Serve It With

Roti or naan · Jeera rice · Cucumber raita · Lemon wedges

Sides from the same cuisine on this site: Gluten-Free Naan, Idiyappam, Kerala Appam.

Leftovers and Storage

Keeps in the fridge for 2 days. The paneer firms up when cold; reheat gently with a splash of water.

Nutrition per Serving

No nutrition figures are given for this recipe: they cannot be worked out reliably from its ingredient list (most of the energy comes from foods with no recorded source). Why some recipes have none.

Vegetarian Gluten-Free No Added Sugar