Paneer ek-pyaza

This is a very simple paneer dish that requires minimal ingredients and tastes quite nice. In fact, this humble dish is always on top of my wife’s wishlist. So here it is, my very own paneer ek-pyaza (paneer with one onion).

Ingredients

Vegetables

1. Paneer(cottage cheese) – 250 gms.
2. Onion – 1 medium sized
3. Green chillies – 1 to 2
4. Coriander leaves to garnish

Spices

1. Cumin seeds – 1 tbsp
2. Coriander(dhania) powder – 1-2tsp
3. Turmeric powder – 1 tsp
4. Red chilli powder – 1/4 to 1/2 tsp
5. Salt – to taste

Prep

1. Cut the paneer & onions into long, thin slices(julienne)
2. Soak the paneer in warm water.
3. Finely chop green chillies

Cooking

1. Heat 2 tbsp vegetable(or sunflower) oil in a pan over medium heat.
2. When the oil is hot, add cumin seeds.
3. When cumin seeds crackle up, add the green chillies and let them fry for a minute or two.
4. Now add the julienned onions to this mix, stir around and let them fry till they turn golden brown.
5. At this stage, add the paneer to this mix after draining out all the water.
6. Add turmeric, red chilli powder, coriander powder and salt to the pan and mix well.
7. Cook over medium heat for ~8-10 minutes. Stir occasionally.
8. Once the paneer has lost its milky taste, the dish is done. At this point, add some of the coriander leaves and mix it in. Cook for another minute, then take it off the heat.
9. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve.

The trick to this recipe right is not to have the heat set too high. If the pan is too hot, you will end up frying the outside of the paneer faster than the inside and the spices won’t go in. Also be careful not to overcook the paneer. Keep tasting during the process and you will not make a mistake.

This is a dry dish, so it works very well with flat breads. Surprisingly, this dish also goes well with steamed rice. Try it, and let me know how this recipe worked out for you.