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Paneer bhurji
Scrambled paneer
पनीर भुर्जी: crumbled paneer scrambled with onion, tomato, green chilli and kasuri methi, soft and juicy in fifteen minutes
Dhabas on the Delhi-Chandigarh highway and Punjabi homes everywhere make paneer bhurji when an egg bhurji won't do: for vegetarian guests, for a fast lunchbox, or when there's a block of paneer waiting in the fridge. The paneer is crumbled and folded into an onion-tomato masala with green chilli, a little garam masala and kasuri methi, and a splash of milk keeps it soft and moist. It goes with butter roti, a buttered pav from the Mumbai stalls, or rolled into a paratha for a tiffin. The common mistake is cooking the paneer too long; it toughens and dries out in minutes. Add it last and heat it through for no more than two or three minutes. Chef's tip: homemade or very fresh paneer crumbles best; grate a firm shop block instead of crumbling it.
- Total time
- 20 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 3
Ingredients
For the masala
- 2 tbsp butter or oil
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 onionfinely chopped
- 2 green chilliesfinely chopped
- 1 tsp ginger-garlic paste
- 2 tomatoesfinely chopped
- ¼ tsp ground turmeric
- 1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- ¾ tsp salt
For the bhurji
- 9 oz paneercrumbled
- 3 tbsp milk
- ½ tsp garam masala
- 1 tsp kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves)crushed
- ⅓ oz fresh corianderchopped
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Method
0/5 doneStep 1: Heat 2 tbsp butter or oil in a pan over medium heat. Add 1 tsp cumin seeds and let it crackle.
1 minStep 2: Add 1 onion and 2 green chillies and cook for 4 minutes until the onion is light golden. Stir in 1 tsp ginger-garlic paste for 30 seconds.
5 minStep 3: Add 2 tomatoes, ¼ tsp ground turmeric, 1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder, 1 tsp ground coriander and ¾ tsp salt. Cook for 4 minutes, mashing, until the tomatoes are soft and the oil starts to separate.
4 minStep 5: Sprinkle over ½ tsp garam masala and 1 tsp kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves), stir once, and finish with ⅓ oz fresh coriander. Serve straight away.
1 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 310 kcal
- Protein
- 16 g
- Carbs
- 9 g
- Fat
- 24 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does paneer bhurji take?
- About 20 minutes in total: 8 minutes to prepare and 12 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 3 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of cumin seeds?
- Ground cumin, three quarters of the amount (add it with the other ground spices, not to hot oil first).
- What can I use instead of onion?
- 2 shallots per onion.
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