This matar paneer is filled with three different types of peas (green beans, sweet peas, and snow peas) and is cooked with a fresh and lightly spiced tomato sauce. A perfect spring meal!
Guuuuuuuuuuurrrrrrrrrrlll (and boy) frand.
So excited to share this completely fresh and GREEN matar paneer with you.
It’s exactly what I’m craving (and I imagine you too!!) at this point in quarantine living.
A lot of green. A lot of fried cheese. The perfect amount of spice.
Yaaaaasssssssss.
Okay that’s what I crave year-round, whether I’m under house arrest or not, but it feels especially critical to be eating delicious, enticing meals like this when we have so little else to get excited about.
And before you get up in arms about the fact that this must require the entire kitchen sink of spices and will definitely necessitate an extra trip to the supermarket. Uhhhhh. NOPE.
Nothing too crazy or weird here. If you’ve ever made Indian food before, then you probably already have everything you need to make this. The only “maybe” is the kashmiri chili powder, but seriously just use whatever chili powder you have at home. Preferably not the spice blend kind, but one that’s an actual ground up chili. Chipotle, ancho, whatever!! It’s all good.
For the amount of flavor packed in here, this meal requires so minimal effort, it’s unreal.
First, you need to fry your paneer. If you have a really good nonstick skillet (not gonna lie, this is a Rachel Ray pan that my mom’s BF got me for Christmas and it is excellent), this is NBD.
Next, you use the SAME SKILLET to make your tomato sauce, which takes about ten minutes.
Lastly, lightly boil your veggies, drain them, and mix everything together.
Serve with rice, your favorite whole grain, naan or another flatbread, or just eat this on its own if you’re low-carbing it!
- canola oil, for frying
- 1 lb hard paneer, cut into ½-inch cubes
- 6 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 lb ripe plum tomatoes, chopped
- 1¼ tsp salt
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp kashmiri chili powder
- ½ tsp ground turmeric
- ½ lb green beans, trimmed
- ½ lb snow peas
- 1½ cups peas (fresh or frozen)
- Heat a few tbsp of the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add the paneer and fry until crisp, about 4 minutes, turning frequently. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate and set aside.
- Place another tbsp of olive oil into the pan and return to medium heat. Once warm, add the garlic and fry for a minute, or until fragrant. Add in the tomatoes and cook until jammy, about 6 minutes. Stir in the salt, black pepper, cumin, chili powder, and turmeric. Cook for another minute, then remove from the heat.
- Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Once boiling, add in the green beans and cook for 2 minutes. Add in the snow peas and cook for another 2 minutes. Finally, add in the peas for a final minute. Drain and toss, allowing to dry completely.
- Reheat the sauce and add the paneer and vegetables to the pan. Stir to mix until heated through. Serve immediately with rice, naan, or chapatis.
You had me at Paneer
Good LORD that looks good!!!! Seriously drooling here.
Made this tonight. Spectacular!