Dubbu's Paneer

I'm back! And I seem to have forgotten the b of blogging so I will be glad when am through with this post! This rich gravy with paneer pieces floating (also tomatoe pieces because we don't have mixer-grinder) is one of few things which I can still make coz it doesn't need a Kitchenaid, oven, beaters, etc etc, none of which I have in my new place :(. Anyway I 'm learning to live. 

People have often asked what this paneer is 'Butter Paneer?, Shahi PAneer?, etc' and our answer is Dubbu's Paneer, coz we got this recipe from a close family friend (more family than friend) Dubbu, which is what my now three-year-old nephew calls her! 

Its a foolproof damn easy recipe. And what set its apart from the usual indian dishes is that it doesn't have the usual tumeric and red chilli powder and still when you eat it you don't miss anything.

Dubbu's Paneer (enough to feed ten tummies)

400gms Paneer (Indian Cheese)

8-9 Juicy Tomatoes

1 medium Onion (finely chopped)

1tsp Zeera (Cumin seeds)

0.5tsp Kalaunji(Black Caraway/Nigella)

1tsp Oil

2tsp Ground Kali Mirch (Black Pepper)

1tsp Adrak-Lehsan (Ginger-Garlic) paste

1 Tez Patta (Bay leaf)

1tbsp Kasuri Methi (a kind of dried fenugreek leaves)

4tbsp Butter

1.5 cup Cream

Salt

1. Skin the tomotoes (I do it by dipping them for a few seconds in boiling water) and make puree, or chop them up fine.

2. Heat the oil in a saucepan and add the Zeera and the Kalauji, immediately add the onion. Fry the onions the best you can in that little oil.

3. Add the tomatoes and cook for 5-10 minutes till the tomatoes look cooked and are simmering gently.

4. Add the Paneer, and all the remaining spices. Keep an eye on the salt if you intend to use salted butter.

5. Add the butter and the cream. Cook till the whole thing starts simmering.

6. Its done!

Note: I mentioned juicy tomatoes. I usually use the ones my mother calls the desi ones. These are usually round rather than oblong, and have more juice than flesh. These have a more tangy taste.

You can easily increase decrease the ingredients according to your taste without affecting the recipe much. Specially the tomatoes depending how much gravy you want.

I like it best with rice.

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Palak Paneer Pie... once again..

Am sure most of you reading this won't know that Palak Paneer Pie was my first ever post to this blog. Since then I have often thought of the changes I would like to make to that particular post. And today I decided to make a new post with all the things which I feel should have been in that first post.

The first thing would be I think a picture of the stuffing. So here we go...

You can see the Palak (spinach), the white stuff is the paneer (indian cheese), the pomegranates, the onion and the peas.

Another thing I would like to suggest here for people who would prefer a-not-so-soft lower crust is that you may blind bake your lower crust, and use cooked spinach. Just chop the spinach, put it in a saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Within a few minutes it will have separated into a green mass and quite a lot of water, cook till all the water evaporates and then use this spinach. This is something I have done, so I know its just fine.

Another thing I have taken to is cutting out shapes from the upper crust instead of making steam vents with a tooth pick.

And here is what you can do with the left over dough, specially if you like your crust crisp. Oh I know you would think anyone likes it that way, but with Palak Paneer Pie it all tastes good. Nonetheless these cut outs are nice to eat alongwith the pie.

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Palak Paneer Pie

Okay... let's kick off my blog with my all time favourite dinner dish! This pie is a rich, slightly gooey and absolutely yummy combination of spinach and paneer (indian cheese). My family owes the recipe to my eldest sister's best friend.

Usually I would cover the entire pie with a flat rolled top crust, but this time I tried to get a bit crafty and after rolling out the dough,  cut out star shapes using a regular biscuit cutter. I like the effect. For the second one I tried a lattice top I had seen at many places, not very neat though, but hey this was the first time, and I was already running behind schedule, with everyone banging their plates!

The Recipe

Dough
2.5 Cups Flour
1 tsp Salt
4 tbsp Butter
8 tbsp grated Cheese

Make dough with ice cold water and put it in the fridge in a poly bag. If you like your crust crisp, refrigerate all the ingredients beforehand. Even the bowl, if you like. If its not too pliable, you may add a bit of water or butter, a little at a time.

Filling
2 Onions, chopped
2 Cups Spinach
1 Cup Peas, cooked
2.5 Cup grated Paneer
4 Green Chillies
Coriander, optional
Salt, Amchoor and Garam Masala according to your taste
0.5 Cup Pomegranate (Optional)

Just mix all these ingredients, and set aside. Divide the dough into two unequal portions. Use the larger one for the base and roll out according to your pie dish size and fit it in. Evenly spread the filling, and top with the rest of the dough. If you're making a flat topped pie, make steam vents with a fork. Bake at 180C until the crust turns light brown.

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