Chilli Paneer (Restaurant Style)
Serves: 4–6 people
Ingredients
For Marinating Paneer
- Paneer – 500 gm (medium cubes)
- Maida – 2 tsp
- Chilli sauce – ½ tsp
- Soya sauce – 1 tsp
- Vinegar – ½ tsp
- Ginger – 1 inch (paste)
- Garlic – 8 cloves (paste)
- Salt – to taste
- Ajinomoto – ¼ tsp (optional)
- Oil – for deep frying
For Tadka / Stir Fry
- Onions – 3 (cut into big cubes)
- Capsicum – 3 (cut into big cubes)
- Garlic – 6 cloves (finely chopped)
- Tomato sauce – 2 tbsp
- Soya sauce – ½ tsp
- Black pepper powder – ¼ tsp
- Vinegar – 1 tsp
- Honey – 2 tsp
- Salt – ½ tsp
- Cornflour – ½ tsp
- Water – ½ cup
- Oil – 2 tbsp
Preparation
- Mix chilli sauce, soya sauce, vinegar, ginger-garlic paste, salt, maida, and ajinomoto (optional) with paneer cubes.
- Marinate for 2–3 hours in the refrigerator.
- Deep fry the paneer until light golden brown and set aside.
- In a bowl, mix tomato sauce, soya sauce, black pepper, vinegar, honey, salt, cornflour, and water. Keep aside.
Method
- Heat oil in a wok on high flame.
- Fry onion cubes for 2 minutes and remove.
- Fry capsicum for 1 minute and remove.
- In the same wok, sauté chopped garlic for a few seconds until fragrant.
- Add prepared sauce mixture and cook while stirring continuously until slightly thickened.
- Add fried paneer and toss to coat well in the sauce.
- Add fried onions and capsicum. Mix on high flame for a few seconds.
- Turn off the heat and serve hot.
Serving Suggestions
- Serve hot as a snack or starter.
- Garnish with spring onions or sesame seeds before serving.
- Serve with chilli sauce or schezwan sauce on the side.
Tips
- Do not over-fry paneer or it may become hard.
- Cook vegetables on high flame to keep them crunchy.
- Adjust honey and chilli sauce according to your taste preference.
- Stir continuously after adding the cornflour mixture to avoid lumps.
- For restaurant-style flavour, use a wok on high heat.