Paneer Do Pyaza

Paneer do pyaza yet another dish that I picked up in Bangalore. Really dont remember how I landed up with this dish. Must have been bored with the typical paneer butter masala or paneer mutter masala in the restaurants and picked this weird Italian sounding dish. If you knew me well in those days I didn't understand what "pyaaz" meant. So here it is from our Persian cousins where Do Pyaza literally mean a curry with 2 types of onions. It's one of those versatile curry bases that you can prepare a multitude of do pyazas - chicken, okra (bhindi)... pretty much with any chunky piece of food. 

Ingredients

1. Paneer - 250 - 300 gms
2. Red Onions - 3 large ones
3. Green chillies - 4-5
4. Tomatoes - 2-3
5. Ginger garlic paste - 2 table spoons
6. Lemon juice - 1 table spoon
7. Cumin seeds - 2 table spoons
8. Green cardamom - 4-5
9. Cinnamon sticks - 3-4 small ones
10. Cloves - 5-6
11. Bay leaves - 2
12. Cumin powder - 1 tablespoon
13. Coriander powder - 1 table spoon
14. Garam masala - 1 table spoon
15. Kasoori Methi - 1 table spoon (crushed)
16. Turmeric powder - Half teaspoon
17. Kashmiri chilli powder - 1 table spoon
18. Vegetable oil - 4-5 table spoons
19. Ghee - 2 table spoons
20. Salt to taste
21. Coriander leaves for garnish

Method

1. Chop 2 onions into fine mince and 1 onion in cubes and set aside in different containers.
2. Heat a large kadai and pour 1 tablespoon of ghee and 2 table spoons of vegetable oil.
3. Sautee the cumin seeds (1 table spoon), green cardamon pods, cinnamon sticks, cloves and bay leaves until the fragrance comes out.
4. Add the finely minced onions and saute with a pinch of salt until they turn brownish.
5. While the onions are sauteed finely dice the tomatoes and set aside.
6. When the onions are brown add the ginger garlic paste and saute for 2-3 minutes until the raw paste smell clears off.
7. Add the diced tomatoes and saute for about 10 to 15 minutes along with turmeric powder, cumin powder, garam masala, kasoori methi and the kashmiri chilli powder. 
8. While the masala gets sauteed dice up the paneer into bite sized cubes - but not too thin or small.
9. Add about half a cup of water and simmer the masala adding salt to taste. By now it should result in a mushy masala gravy.
10. Once the masala has reduced to your preferred consistency remove the cinnamon sticks, cloves and bay leaves and transfer the content to another bowl.
11. In the same kadai pour the remaining ghee and vegetable oil and wait until it heats up.
12. Once the oil is hot add the green chillies, 1 table spoon of cumin seeds and the diced onions and sautee for about a minute or so.
13. Add the diced paneer and sautee for about 2 minutes until the ingredients mix well with the paneer.
14. Pour the masala (done in step #10) over the paneer and sautee for a minute or so with but more water as per the consistency preferred.
15. Switch off the heat and add the 2 table spoons of lemon juice and stir well. Be careful not to stir it too much else the paneer will break.
16. Garnish with chopped coriander and voila restaurant style Paneer Dopyaza is done. Serve with warm roti/chappati.

Enjoy!!

C

Paneer Makhani aka Paneer Butter Masala

Paneer Makhani or Paneer Butter Masala is one of those dishes that would feature in every Indian restaurant that serves North Indian food. A paneer masala that could usually be used to trial an Indian restaurant's food quality. It is again one of those dishes that got twisted quite drastically to suit local palates. I must warn you - this version of the recipe is definitely not the westernized version. While researching for a recipe I found so many different variations each one trying to create a subtle difference to establish their style. Here is my version which is a blend of a few of them but a simpler version to prepare.

Ingredients

Wet Masala

1. Red onions - 2 
2. Tomatoes - 2 
3. Ginger - 2 inch
4. Garlic - 6 cloves
5. Raw Cashews - 6-8
6. Green chilies - 3

Dry Masala

1. Bay leaf - 1
2. Black pepper corn - 1 tablespoon
3. Kashmiri red chillies - 5-6
4. Kalonji seeds - 1 teaspoon
5. Kasuri methi (Dried fenugreek leaves) - 1 tablespoon
6. Cumin seeds - 1 teaspoon
7. Cloves - 1 teaspoon
8. Cinnamon sticks - 2-3
9. Khus khus (poppy seeds) - 2 teaspoons

Other Ingredients

1. Paneer - 250 gms
2. Butter - 150 gms
3. Vegetable oil - 3-4 table spoons
4. Whole milk - half a cup
5. Honey - 2 table spoons
6. Amchur powder (dried mango powder) - 1 tea spoon
7. Cream - 2-3 table spoons (optional - I did not use it actually)

Method

1. Melt about 50 gms of butter in a wok and saute the wet masala ingredients until the onions and tomatoes become soft. Add the cashews towards the end - just about a minute or so before the tomatoes turn mushy. Set this aside and let it cool down to room temperature.
2. Dry roast all the ingredients under the dry masala (except the kasuri methi). Set it aside to cool down to room temperature.
3. Blend the ingredients of the wet masala with a few tablespoons of water to a smooth paste. 
4. Filter this paste using a metal sieve to remove any chunky pieces.
5. Blend the ingredients of the dry masala along with the kasuri methi leaves.
6. Cut the paneer into small pieces (about 1 inch cubes). This time I tried a triangular shape - thanks to Sanjeev Kapoor's idea.
7. In a large kadai (wok) heat the vegetable oil and 75 gms of butter.
8. Saute the wet masala for about 10 minutes until the oil separates.
9. Mix about 2-3 table spoons of the dry masala along with amchur powder for about 5 minutes until the masala is blended well.
10. Add salt to taste.
11. Add the milk and bring it to a boil.
12. Add about half a cup of water to this mixture and bring it to a boil.
13. Add the honey and mix it well.
14. Add the paneer pieces and cook it for about 5 minutes. (Add more water if needed if the curry is too thick).
15. Garnish with a dollop of the remaining butter and coriander leaves.
16. Serve hot with your preferred choice of bread - roti/naan/chapati.

Enjoy Cooking!!
C