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Paneer Butter Masala

Paneer cooked in buttery smooth, rich flavored cream sauce. Perfect with naan bread, rice or roti.
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time40 minutes
Marinate Time:1 hour
Total Time1 hour 55 minutes
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: Indian, North Indian
Keyword: Butter masala, butter paneer, paneer masala, paneer recipes
Servings: 6 people
Author: Winnie Ann Koshy

Equipment

  • 1 Medium Mixing bowl
  • 1 Heavy Bottom Pot
  • 1 Blender/ Mixer Grinder

Ingredients

  • 350 gms Paneer(Indian cottage cheese) or 3 - 4 cups (cubed)

To Marinate :

  • 1 tbsp Kashmiri Red Chili Powder or according to spice level
  • Salt to taste
  • ½ tsp Garam Masala
  • ¼ tsp Turmeric Powder
  • 1 tsp Black Pepper Powder
  • 2 tbsp Lime Juice or juice from ½ lime

For Sauce :

  • 2 small Red Onion (roughly chopped)
  • 2 large Tomato (chopped)
  • 3 cloves Garlic
  • ½ tbsp Kashmiri Red chili powder
  • 1 tbsp Coriander Powder
  • ½ tsp Garam Masala
  • ¼ tsp Turmeric Powder
  • 8 - 9 Cashew nuts
  • 8 - 9 Almonds
  • Lime juice from ½ lime 
  • 2 + 1 tbsp Butter
  • 2 tsp Oil (optional)
  • ¼ cup Heavy cream
  • Cilantro/ Coriander leaves to garnish

Instructions

  • Marinate cubed paneer with ingredients in the marinate list and refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight (this step is totally optional).
  • Soak cashews and almonds in warm water for 15 minutes. Remove the skin from almonds and set aside. (Refer Note : 3)
  • Heat a heavy bottom pan and add butter and oil (optional). (Refer Note: 2) Shallow fry the marinated paneer for a minute on both sides and keep aside.
  • Into the same pan add chopped onions, tomatoes, garlic cloves and socked nuts. Cover and cook for 5 minutes, stirring once.
  • Stir in rest of the spices and lime juice. (Refer Note: 4) You can add ¼ cup water if needed. Then cover and cook for another 10 minutes or until the tomatoes are mushy.
  • Once it is done, blend the onion-tomato mixture in a mixer grinder or a blender to a fine paste.
  • Sieve the onion-tomato paste through a mesh sieve to the same pan we used to cook. Sieving gives the sauce a silky smooth texture. But this step is optional.
  • If the sauce seems too runny, simmer it to the consistency you are looking for. Then add the fried paneer and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. (Refer Note: 5)
  • When it starts to boil add heavy cream, salt (if needed) and butter. Stir and turn off the heat.
  • Garnish with cream, butter, and cilantro leaves.

Video

Notes

  1. If using store bought paneer, soak it in warm water before adding to the sauce. Or shallow fry the cubed paneer in butter or ghee (clarified butter) for 2 minutes on both sides.
  2. Adding a little oil to butter while frying paneer helps the butter from burning.
  3. You can use either cashews or almonds or equal quantities of both.
  4. You can skip adding lime juice by using more tomatoes. Just increase the quantity to 2 or 3.
  5. Remember not to overcook paneer cubes. If you have already fried the paneer then cook only for 3 to 5 minutes in the sauce. Otherwise it will get hard and chewy.
  6. The sauce I made is a bit spicy. Reduce the heat level accordingly. Or add ½ more cup of cream to the sauce.