Shahi paneer is soft malai paneer in a mellow cashew-tomato or cashew-yogurt gravy. Made either way, it is creamy, rich and lip-smackingly delicious with warm naan. Both recipes included below!
There is something about Indian cheese or paneer that makes every die-hard foodie drool. And if it is cooked in a thick, creamy cashew sauce, it becomes impossible to resist.
The not-so-secret ingredient in this recipe is, you guessed it, cashews! The fistful of cashewnuts used in the recipe gives the dish a wonderful smoothness and body and the tomato or yogurt (depends on the recipe you choose to make) + fresh red chilli save it from being bland. Yet, the gravy is mellow, rich and very flavorful. Scoop it up with fresh, toasted naan for a satisfying meal.
Oh, and did I say it is a ridiculously easy dish to make with no complicated steps? The gravy takes a little time to cook, (as all self-respecting gravies do) but putting it together is a no brainer.
Make Cashew Paneer when you have company or when you are in the mood for something slightly indulgent. You will be pleasantly surprised!
In this post, I'm sharing two restaurant style shahi paneer recipes - one with tomatoes and the other one with yogurt. Both are very tasty but the one with yogurt in my opinion is more 'shahi'! Shahi means royal and the second recipe ticks all the checkboxes for being a royal dish indeed - the gravy is made with nuts (cashews), yogurt, saffron and cream. Can't get more royal than that!
Why this two-way cashew paneer recipe works
1. It's easy to make.
2. It's quick. On the table in 35 minutes.
3. It's a rich, mellow dish with no sharp flavors or spices (the whole spices are removed before blending the masala).
4. It's fancy enough to be served while entertaining (all those nuts, cream and saffron).
5. It's customizable - switch it up with tomatoes or yogurt to make a different shahi paneer masala each time!
Shahi Paneer Ingredients
- 350 gms paneer, cut into cubes
- 1 medium to large onion, cut into chunks
- 1 medium tomato, cut into chunks OR ¼ cup yogurt
- 4 garlic cloves, peeled
- 1” ginger, peeled and chopped
- 1 fresh red chilli – sub with 1 teaspoon kashmiri chilli powder if red chilli is not available
- 10 cashewnuts
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 whole cardamom
- 3 green cardamom
- 3-4 cloves
- 1" piece cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder (if making shahi paneer with tomatoes)
- 10-12 saffron strands dissolved in 1 tablespoon water (if making shahi paneer with yogurt)
- 2 tablespoon cooking oil
- 2 tablespoon cream
- 1 sprig cilantro leaves (optional)
- salt, to taste
Shahi Paneer with tomatoes
Step 1 – In a frypan or saucepan, add the onion, tomato, garlic, ginger, fresh red chilli, cashewnuts and whole spices. Pour one and a half cups water and set on medium heat. When the water starts boiling, lower the heat and simmer for 10-12 minutes or until the vegetables soften. Take the pan off the hob and let it cool down.
Step 2 – Discard the whole spices and put the rest in a blender. Whiz to get a smooth puree.
Step 3 – Heat the oil in a pan and add the puree prepared above. Add the turmeric, salt and half a cup water. Cook for 8-10 minutes on low heat. Cover with a lid as the masala is going to splatter.
Step 4 – Add the paneer and mix well. Cook for 5 minutes, then swirl the cream on top.
Cashew paneer with tomatoes is ready! Garnish with cilantro if you want.
Want another version of the same dish? Check this out.
Shahi Paneer with Yogurt (Paneer in white gravy)
Step 1 – In a frypan or saucepan, add the onion, garlic, ginger, fresh red chilli, cashewnuts and whole spices. Pour one and a half cups water and set on medium heat. When the water starts boiling, lower the heat and simmer for 10-12 minutes or until vegetables soften. Take the pan off the hob and let it cool down.
Step 2 – Discard the whole spices. Put the rest of the contents of the frypan in a blender and whiz to get a smooth puree.
Step 3 – Heat the oil in a pan and add the puree prepared above. Add the yogurt, salt and half a cup water. Cook for 8-10 minutes on low heat. Cover with a lid as the masala is going to splatter.
Step 4 – Add the paneer, saffron and cream and mix well. Cook for 5 minutes, then switch off the heat.
Cashew paneer with yogurt is ready!
Other paneer recipes you might like
📖 Recipe
cashew paneer
Ingredients
- 350 g approx. 13 oz Indian cheese or paneer, cut into cubes
- 1 medium to large onion cut into thick pieces
- 1 medium tomato cut into chunks OR ¼ cup yogurt
- 4 garlic cloves
- 1 ” ginger peeled and chopped
- 1 fresh red chilli – sub with 1 teaspoon kashmiri chilli powder if red chilli is not available
- 10 cashewnuts
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 whole cardamom
- 3 green cardamom
- 3-4 cloves
- 1 " piece cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder if making shahi paneer with tomatoes
- 10-12 saffron strands dissolved in 1 tablespoon water if making shahi paneer with yogurt
- 2 tablespoon cooking oil
- 2 tablespoon cream
- 1 sprig cilantro leaves optional
- salt to taste
Instructions
Shahi Paneer with Tomatoes
- In a frypan or saucepan, add the onion, tomato, garlic, ginger, fresh red chilli, cashewnuts and whole spices. Pour one and a half cups water and set on medium heat. When the water starts boiling, lower the heat and simmer for 10-12 minutes or until the vegetables soften. Take the frypan off the hob and let it cool down.
- Discard the whole spices. Put the rest of the content of the frypan in a blender and whiz to get a smooth puree.
- Heat the oil in a pan and add the puree prepared above. Add turmeric, salt and half a cup water. Cook for 8-10 minutes on low heat. Cover with a lid as the masala is going to splatter.
- Add paneer and mix well. Cook for 5 minutes, then swirl the cream on top.
Shahi Paneer with Yogurt
- In a frypan or saucepan, add the onion, garlic, ginger, fresh red chilli, cashewnuts and whole spices. Pour one and a half cups water and set on medium heat. When the water starts boiling, lower the heat and simmer for 10-12 minutes or until vegetables soften. Take the frypan off the hob and let it cool down.
- Discard the whole spices. Put the rest of the content of the frypan in a blender and whiz to get a smooth puree.
- Heat the oil in a pan and add the puree prepared above. Add the yogurt, salt and half a cup water. Cook for 8-10 minutes on low heat. Cover with a lid as the masala is going to splatter.
- Add paneer, saffron and cream and mix well. Cook for 5 minutes, then switch off the heat.
Notes
- Paneer is easily available in Indian grocery stores or even big chain supermarkets like Walmart and Superstore in Canada.
- Don't forget to cover the pan as the gravy is cooking, or else the contents are going to splatter all over the cooktop and there will be a huge mess to clean up afterwards!
- The red chilli pepper adds a very mild heat to the dish, so don't be afraid to add it. It's the smaller, Thai chillies that are seriously hot, not the big ones.
- Feel free to adjust the water added to the gravy. One and a half cup is standard, but depending upon how thick you want the gravy to be, add more or less during the cooking process.
- You can substitute the red chilli pepper with 1 teaspoon Kashmiri chilli powder as well. It will add the same red colour and mild flavor to the gravy.
Nutrition
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