Mattar Paneer

One of my favorite Indian creations is Mattar Paneer. I never fail to order the dish when dining out at Indian restaurants because I am fascinated by the multitude of variations and can rarely resist pleasurable mouthfuls of melt in your mouth paneer and peas, cooked in an aromatically spiced tomato sauce. The following version of Matar Panir is adapted from Yamuna Devi's "Lord Krishna's Cuisine: The Art of Indian Vegetarian Cooking." The addition of fresh mint makes this an especially unique and appetizing version.


I highly recommend you use fresh herbs and take care to cook the peas just to the point where they will pop in your mouth with every delectable bite. If you are using frozen peas, defrost them and add them during the final stages of cooking.

It goes well with Black Cracked Pepper Rice, any Indian flatbread and a vegetable dish.

Mattar Paneer

3-4 hot green chilies, finely chopped
1 inch piece of fresh ginger, finely sliced
5 tablespoons of water
1 - 2 tablespoons of ground coriander
2 teaspoons of turmeric
1 teaspoon of paprika
1/2 teaspoon of cayenne
12-14 ounces (or 300 - 400 grams) of fresh paneer, cut into cubes, or a package of pre-fried paneer cubes
2 teaspoons of cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon of black mustard seeds
1/2 teaspoon of fennel seeds
2 cups of finely diced tomatoes (approximately 1 1/2 pounds or 685 grams)
2 cups of yogurt or whey
2 cups of fresh or frozen peas
1 teaspoon of sea salt
1/2 tablespoon of garam masala
2 tablespoon each of freshly chopped mint and parsley

In a blender or food processor, mince the green chilies and ginger. Add the water, coriander, turmeric, paprika, cayenne and process until smooth. Transfer to a small bowl and set aside.

Heat a few tablespoons of ghee, or a mixture of butter and oil in a large pot. If you are using fresh paneer, fry the cubes into browned on all sides. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside. If you are using pre-fried cubes, when the oil is hot, add the cumin seeds, mustard seeds, and fennel seeds and stir and fry until the mustard seeds being to pop. Immediately add a few more tablespoons of ghee, or butter and oil, and the spice paste. Fry, stirring, until most of the water evaporates. Add the tomatoes and cook, stirring often, until the tomatoes turn into a thick sauce - approximately 10 - 20 minutes.

Add the whey or yogurt, the fresh peas if you are using them and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to moderately low, cover and simmer for 15 minutes or so, or until the peas are nearly tender. Add the fried paneer cubes, and defrosted frozen peas if you are using them, and simmer over low heat for 5 minutes.

Remove from the heat, and stir in the salt, garam masala and fresh herbs.