Methi Paneer

Methi paneer is an easy delicious paneer recipe with bitterness of fenugreek leaves in tomato based gravy.

Apart from tomato and onions, curd is added to the gravy .This really end up in giving a restaurant style taste.

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp oil
• 1 large onion finely chopped
• 2 large tomatoes pureed
• 250 g paneer cubed
• 1 cup tightly packed methi/ fenugreek leaves finely chopped
• 1 inch ginger finely chopped
• 1 garlic clove finely chopped
• 2 green chillies slit
• 0.25 cup fresh curd
• 0.25 cup water
• Salt to taste

Spice powders

• 0.25 tsp turmeric powder
• 0.5 tsp red chilli powder
• 1 tsp coriander powder
• 0.25 tsp garam masala

Seasoning Ingredients

• 2 cloves
• 2 green cardomoms
• 1 inch cinnamon
• 1 small tej patta (Indian bay leaf)

Garnishing Ingredients

• 2 tbsp coriander leaves finely chopped

Preparation

1.  Rinse and roughly chop the tomatoes.(no need to blanch them). Blend them to a smooth paste without adding any water.
2.  Whisk 0.25 cup fresh curd till smooth and keep aside.

Method

1.  Heat oil in a pan and add all the seasoning ingredients. Saute for 1 minute till all the spices become fragrant.
2.  Add finely chopped onions and saute till the onions become translucent.
3.  Add finely chopped ginger and garlic and slit green chillies. Saute till the raw smell of ginger and garlic goes away.
4.  Add tomato puree and mix well.
5.  Add all the spice powders except garam masala. Saute till oil starts leaving the onion-tomato masala mixture.
6.  Add finely chopped methi leaves and mix well. Saute for 5 minutes.
7.   Now switch off the flame and take the an off the stove.
8.  Add the whisked curd and stir quickly. Make sure that the curd is mixed well with onion-tomato masala mixture.
9.  Add water and mix again. Keep the pan back on the stove top on low flame.
10.  Cover the pan with a lid and simmer the gravy for 10 minutes on low flame.
11.  Add paneer cubes and salt to taste. Mix well.
12.  Add garam masala and mix well. Switch off the flame after 2 minutes.
13.  Serve hot and enjoy with phulkas.

Notes

1.  Use ripe tomatoes. The sour tomatoes will result in sour gravy.
2.  Chop methi leaves , sprinkle some salt on them, mix well and allow it to sit for 15 min. Then squeeze the methi leaves in hand. This helps in removing bitterness to a great extend.