Creamy Indian cheese and peas from Indian cook Mallika Basu

This recipe, also known as Malai Matar Paneer, is a great mid-week fix
Mallika Basu
Mallika Basu2 March 2016

Soft cubes of paneer, Indian cheese, nestling in a tomato cream with peas, may look like it’s the result of hours of labour. But this recipe is a quick fix that will hit a spot mid-week, as well as impress guests at the weekend.

Malai is usually used to describe a dish with cream in Indian food. I’ve used cashews, yoghurt and milk instead to give the dish the necessary creamy texture without the heavy feeling you get after cream. Serve this with a stash of rotis, or a dal and some steaming hot Basmati rice.

Ingredients (feeds 4)

• Kasoori methi or garam masala

• 1 tbsp tomato puree

• 8 cashewnuts

• 3 tbsp Greek-style natural yoghurt

• 2 tbsp whole milk

• 225-250gm paneer

• 2 fat cloves garlic

• 1 tbsp oil

• 1 tsp mild chilli/Kashmiri chilli powder

• Half tsp turmeric powder

• Handful of peas (frozen is just fine)

• Salt to taste

Method

If using Kasoori methi, soak a pinch in a tablespoon of warm water. This is fenugreek and it balances the tomato beautifully.

Next, blitz the tomato puree, cashewnuts, milk and yoghurt together in a hand blender or small smoothie maker until you get a silky paste.

Chop the paneer into even bite-sized pieces. Now bring the oil to heat on medium in a sauté pan or large frying pan. Gently fry the paneer pieces on two opposite sides to seal it. It will hiss and spit, so loosely cover the pan with the lid and be careful. When done, remove them with a slotted spoon.

Now, peel and finely grate or chop the garlic and stir it through the same oil the paneer was fried in. As it turns golden, mix through the chilli powder and turmeric. Then pour in the tomato cream.

The tomato cream will split and this is perfectly normal, it will reconstitute and give the dish its lovely texture and look. As oil oozes through the pores in a couple of minutes, stir through the paneer and the peas. Cover and simmer for a minute. You can add half a cup of water if you want more curry.

Now stir through the kasoori methi with the water its been soaking in, if using. If not, half a teaspoon of garam masala will do the job too.

Add salt to you taste to finish.

Mallika Basu is a London-based food writer, cookbook author and cookery personality; quickindiancooking.com. Follow her on Twitter@MallikaBasu_ and find more of her recipes for the Evening Standard here.

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