Achari Paneer Recipe | Indian Paneer Curry in Pickling Spices

April 25, 2015

Achari Paneer is a very flavorful curry. This is the second recipe that I am posting with achari or pickling spices and I just can’t get enough of it! I made this curry with homemade paneer which took deliciousness ten notches up.

The curry recipe is exactly the same as achari gobhi. The same recipe can also be used for making achari bhindi(okra) or achari baingan (eggplant). When you are in kitchen, possibilities are endless. I am planning to build a cheat sheet for achari curries as the recipes are so similar. Believe me, this is the secret of chefs that no one else will tell you. Change just one simple ingredient and the dish looks brand new and exotic in every variation. If you have the basics in your hand, then nobody can stop you from making delicious food. So click ‘follow’ blog button on your right and stay tuned for the cheatsheet 😉

I always make paneer at home. Trust me, once you start making paneer at home, you won’t buy it from store ever. Anything you make turns out so soft, melt-in-mouth and creamy and of course without any added preservatives. We both are not very fond of paneer, but once I started making curries with home-made paneer, none of us complain. And being vegetarians, paneer serves as an excellent source of protein to us. And it just takes 15 minutes to make it from milk, so why not 🙂

Recipe

Ingredients

Paneer cubed – 2 cups
Pickled mustard oil – 3 tablespoon
Fennel Seeds – 1 teaspoon
Cumin Seeds – 1 teaspoon
Mustard seeds – 1 teaspoon
Asafetida – 1/4 teaspoon
Fenugreek seeds powder – 1 teaspoon
Onion seeds – 1 teaspoon
Giner paste – 1 tablespoon
Garlic paste – 1 tablespoon
Onions – 1 cup
Yogurt – 1 cup
Turmeric – 1/2 teaspoon
Red whole chillies – 2
Salt – to taste
Green chillies – 2
Cumin Powder – 1 teaspoon
Fresh coriander leaves – few sprigs for garnishing

Method

Chop onions and thinly slice green chillies.
In a bowl, take yogurt and mix paneer cubes, turmeric powder and salt. This is the paneer marination step and can be done a couple of hours in advance.This is an optional step and can be skipped if yo uare running short on time.
Heat up a wok and add pickled mustard oil. I used leftover oil in my aam-ka-achar jar. You can also use the regular mustard oil.
When the oil comes to smoking point, switch off the gas and add red whole chillies, cumin seeds, fennel seeds, onion seeds, asafetida and fenugreek powder. Turn on heat on low and saute for a few seconds until you see all the seeds sizzling.
Next add chopped onions and green chillies. Saute on medium flame for a couple of minutes.
Add ginger and garlic paste. Keep stirring until onions are translucent.
Next up, add turmeric powder and red chili powder. Saute for 5-10 seconds.
Now add cubed or marinated paneer.
Add salt, mix up everything well so that the masala is coating each paneer cube. Take care not to break the paneer cubes. Gently mix all the ingredients.
Add yogurt now and roasted cumin powder. Mix up, cover and let cook for another 5 minutes.
If the curry looks runny, remove the lid and cook on high until all water evaporates.
Add chopped coriander leaves and a dash of lemon juice.
Serve with any kind of bread you like. Enjoy!