Restaurant Style Matar Paneer/ Matar Tofu
Matar Paneer is a Rich Creamy Delicious Curry made with Boiled Peas and Cubed Paneer/Tofu. The curry is a smooth sauce made with an onion-tomato base and will become your favorite right away!
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Ingredients
For the Curry Sauce
- 1 tablespoon Vegetable Oil/ Butter/ Vegan Butter I used butter.
- 2 Dried Kashmiri Dried Red Chillies I suggest to use Kashmiri Dry Red Chillies as they give a beautiful color to the curry and are not spicy.
- 1 Medium Onion Roughly Chopped
- 1+ ½ Small Tomato Roughly Chopped
- 1 Tsp Red Chili Powder
- ½ Tsp Coriander Powder
- ¼ Tsp Turmeric Powder
- ¼ Tsp Garam Masala
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 7-8 Cashews
For Matar Paneer Curry
- 2 tablespoon Vegetable Oil/ Butter/ Vegan Butter I used Butter.
- 1 Dry Bay leaf
- 1 Small Cinnamon Stick
- 1 teaspoon Cumin Seeds
- 2 tablespoon Garlic-Ginger-Green Chili Paste 7-8 Garlic Cloves + ½ inch Ginger + 1 or 2 Green Chilies (Add green Chilies depending on the level of spicy taste you like)
- ½ Cup Water
- ½ teaspoon Garam Masala
- 2 Tsp's Kasuri Methi
- ⅓ Cup Boiled Green Peas I used Frozen Green Peas. I wash the green peas and boil them quickly in the microwave for about 2-3 minutes.
- 250 grams Paneer/ Extra Firm Tofu
Instructions
For the Curry Base
- In a heavy bottom sauté pan, on a medium flame , add 1 tablespoon oil/butter. Let it heat. Add Dried Kashmiri Red Chillies and Roughly Chopped Onions. Sauté them until light brown.
- To this add roughly chopped Tomatoes. Cook them until mushy. To this add salt, red chili powder, turmeric powder, coriander powder and ¼th teaspoon garam masala. Cook all the spices for about 30 secs. If the Spices stick to the bottom of the pan and add about a tablespoon of water.
- Once the spices are cooked, add cashews and cook them for about 30-45 secs. I like to add cashews for smooth texture and good consistency. Let this mix cool completely.
- Add the mix to the blender jar once cooled. Pulse it until it turns into a smooth curry sauce. Keep it aside.
For the Final Matar Paneer/ Matar Tofu Curry
- In the same Sauté pan, add 2 tbsp's of oil/butter. Once hot, add a bay leaf and a small cinnamon stick. Add cumin seeds and let them splutter.
- Once the cumin seeds splutter, add garlic-ginger- green chili paste. Sauté it until cooked, but we don't want to brown it.
- Now add the curry sauce we prepared and ½ cup water. Mix it well.
- To this add ½ teaspoon garam masala and kasuri methi. Let it start to bubble. Add boiled peas and cubed paneer/tofu and give it a good mix. Cook until paneer/tofu is soft.
- Serve hot with Phulka/rotis (Indian Flatbread), Naan, Parathas, Jeera Rice or Plain Steamed Rice. I served it along with Ghee smeared Phulkas and side of Mint Spiced Indian Buttermilk.