Indian Paneer Curry

We recommend serving this vegetarian Indian cheese (paneer) curry with rice, Indian naan or roti bread.

Ingredients:

For the paneer:
2 liters of milk (not more than 3.5% fat)
2-3 tablespoons of lemon juice

For the paneer curry:
250 g of paneer
3 tablespoons of ghee or oil
1 teaspoon of cumin seeds
1 teaspoon of ground black pepper
2-3 green chilies
1 onion, finely chopped
1 large tomato, finely chopped
2 teaspoons of ground ginger
3 large cloves of garlic, minced
20 curry leaves, cut into very thin strips
2 tablespoons of chopped coriander leaves
½ teaspoon of turmeric
3/4 teaspoon of GARAM MASALA spice mix
1/4 teaspoon of asafoetida (flavorful ferula)
Salt (to taste)

Directions:

1. Prepare the paneer in advance: in a heavy-bottomed pot Pour in 2 litres of whole milk. Bring the milk to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. As soon as the milk starts to bubble, stir in the lemon juice. Stir until the curds separate from the whey. If this does not happen within 1 minute, add 1 more tablespoon of lemon juice. Let the milk sit for 1 minute to allow the curds to separate completely. Strain the curds through a sieve, rinse with cold water and hang over a bowl to drain. The texture of the paneer will depend on how long it hangs and how much weight you use to press it down. If you want a very firm texture (so you can cut it into cubes and stew it while keeping its shape), refrigerate the paneer overnight (put some weight on top of it, such as a few plates).
2. Once you have the paneer cheese of the desired texture, continue making the curry: heat the ghee or oil in a large non-stick pan. Add the diced hard paneer and fry it on all sides until light golden brown. Then remove from the pan and place in a colander.
3. Add the cumin seeds, black pepper, asafoetida, ginger, garlic, chili peppers, curry leaves, coriander and onions to the remaining ghee or oil. Fry for 4-5 minutes on low heat until the onions soften and start to caramelize.
4. Add the tomato, turmeric, garam masala and salt. Fry for another 2-3 minutes until the tomatoes soften. Mash the tomatoes with a spoon until it forms a thick tomato paste. If you notice that the mixture is starting to burn, add a little water. Stir until you see the ghee (or oil) starting to separate at the edges of the pan.
5. Return the previously fried paneer to the pan and stir to coat it well with the spice mixture. Heat for another 1-2 minutes. You can sprinkle some coriander on top. 

Yield: 2 servings
Recipe: sanjanafeasts.co.uk