Make Paneer Pasanda, The World's Most Searched Recipe

The star of this dish is the delicious chunks of stuffed paneer that rest on a bed of rich gravy.

Are you nuts about paneer?

Then you would absolutely love Paneer Pasanda, a stuffed cottage cheese dish that is on everyone's lips these days. It is, after all, the world's most searched recipe for 2022 according to Google Trends.

The star of this dish is the delicious chunks of stuffed paneer that rest on a bed of rich gravy.

The making of Paneer Pasanda demands your time and effort, but the end result is something that will sate your eyes, your palate and your belly besides winning you mouthwatering wah-wahs if you present it at your party.

We searched through our archives and found this lovely recipe for you.

In 2011, Maahi Gupta shared her recipe for Paneer Pasanda with all of you.

You can watch how to make it here. If you prefer the written recipe, it's right there below the video.

Paneer Pasanda
Serves: 3

Ingredients

• 250 gm paneer
• ½ cup cornflour
• 5 tsp cashews, soaked and roughly crushed
• ¼ tsp white pepper powder
• 2 tsp raisins
• 2 onions, sliced
• 8 garlic pods
• 3-inch piece ginger
• 2 green chillies, chopped
• 3 tomatoes
• ½ cup fresh cream
• 1½ tsp coriander powder
• 1½-inch piece dalchini or cinnamon
• 5 laung or cloves
• ¼ tsp kali miri or whole black peppercorns
• 2 bada elaichi or large black cardamom
• 2 green elaichi or cardamom
• 1 tsp red chilly powder
• ¼ tsp turmeric
• 2 tej patta or bay leaves
• ¾ tsp salt
• 1 cup water
• 2 tsp chopped coriander leaves for garnishing

Method

• Separate ¼ of the paneer and keep aside.
• From the rest of the paneer, cut out equal-sized triangular pieces.
  Keep aside.
• Mash the ¼th paneer that was kept aside.
  To it add the raisins, ¼ tsp salt and ½ of the grated ginger.
  Add ½ of the white pepper powder.
  Add 2 tsp of the crushed cashews.
  Mix well.
  Now layer this mixture between the triangular cottage cheese slices made earlier.
• Add the cornflour to a bowl along with ¼ tsp salt.
  Add some warm water and make a thick paste, thick enough to cover the cottage cheese slices completely.
  Dip the cottage cheese sandwiches, made earlier, into the cornflour paste and deep fry in hot oil till light golden brown.
  Drain onto a tissue or paper towel-lined plate.
  Keep aside.

For the gravy

• Add 2 tsp water to the remaining 3 tsp crushed cashews.
  Keep aside.
• In a frying pan, heat 2 tbsp oil and shallow fry the onion slices until light pink.
  Drain onto a tissue or paper towel-lined plate.
  Keep aside and cool.
• Cut the tomatoes into four quarters and shallow fry them until soft.
  Keep aside to cool.
  (Shallow frying the onions and tomato gives the dish a unique flavour.)
• Grind the fried onions, the remaining ginger and the garlic into a fine paste.
• Separately, grind the tomatoes to a fine paste.
• Heat 1 tbsp oil in a saucepan.
  Add the bay leaves, black cardamom, green cardamom, cloves, black peppercorns and cinnamon.
  Roast for 30 seconds.
  Add the onion-ginger-garlic paste and fry over medium heat until it turns golden brown.
  Then add the tomato paste.
  Add the chopped green chillies and cook for one minute.
  Add the coriander powder, turmeric, red chilly powder, white pepper powder, salt.
  Bring it to a boil.
  Add the remaining cashew paste and the cream.
  Mix well.
  Add 1 cup water and cook for 5 more minutes over medium heat.
  Add the fried cottage cheese slices and make sure they are well covered with the gravy.
  Garnish with chopped coriander leaves.
  Serve hot.

Editor's Note: Vegans can replace the paneer with tofu.
You can enjoy this dish with rice, chapati, roti, naan, kulcha, dosa, pav and even pita bread.

Do you have a recipe for the World's Favourite Dish? Do share your Paneer Pasanda recipe with us at getahead@rediff.co.in (Subject line: Paneer Pasanda recipe).