Paneer Lababdar

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Paneer Lababdar

Paneer Lababdar is a traditional Indian recipe (from the Punjab) for a classic vegetarian curry of paneer cheese in a spiced tomato and cream-based curry gravy flavoured and thickened with cashew nuts. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Indian version of: Paneer Lababdar.

prep time

15 minutes

cook time

20 minutes

Total Time:

35 minutes

Makes:

Rating:

Tags : Curry Vegetarian Recipes Cheese Recipes Indian Recipes

This is a classic Punjabi curry of paneer (Indian curd cheese) in a spicy tomato and fresh cream gravy base that makes for a protein-packed vegetarian curry. This is a restaurant curry adapted to be cooked easily at home.

Ingredients:

500g (1 lb) Paneer (cottage cheese), cut into 3cm (1 in) cubes
6 medium Tomatoes, finely chopped
20 Cashew Nuts, soaked in water for 15-20 minutes, ground to a paste
2 Green Cardamom pods (elaichi), crushed
1/2 Cinnamon Stick
5 Green Chillies, chopped
2 medium Onions, finely chopped
2 tsp fresh ginger, finely chopped
10 Garlic Cloves, finely chopped
1 Bay Leaf
1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder
1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
1/2 tsp garam masala
2 tsp Coriander Powder
2 tbsp Kasuri Methi (dried fenugreek leaves)
6 tbsp Cooking Oil or Butter
4 tbsp water
180ml (3/4 cup) Water
Salt to taste
2 tbsp Coriander Leaves, finely chopped, to garnishing

Method:

Take the cinnamon and cardamom pods, place in a spice grinder or coffee grinder and render to a fine powder.

Heat the oil or butter in a pan, kadai or wok over medium heat. Add the onion and bayleaf and stir-fry until the onion softens and becomes lightly coloured (about 5 minutes). Add the ginger, garlic and green chillies and continue stir-frying for 1 minute.

Add the chopped tomatoes and continue cooking over medium heat until the oil begins to separate and the tomatoes start to break down (abut 3-4 minutes).

Take the pan off the heat, remove the bay leaf and discard. Set the gravy aside to cool for 5 minutes then turn the contents into a food processor and render to a smooth puree before returning to the pan. Stir in the cashew nut paste, red chilli powder, garam masala, coriander, turmeric and salt.

Return to the heat, bring to a simmer and cook for 3 minutes. Thin with 180ml (3/4 cup) water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and continue cooking for 3 minutes. Now add the paneer and dry fenugreek leaves, stirring to coat in the gravy.

Cook for 3 minutes more until the curry thickens, stirring occasionally to prevent the paneer from sticking.

Turn into a warmed serving bowl, garnish with coriander leaves and serve.