Homemade Paneer Cubes

I was wondering in one of my last posts at how few of my recipes actually make it to my blog.
One of the main reasons is I cook most of the good stuff for dinner ... and absolutely hate to click snaps in bad light. So inspite of cooking up loads of food, my blog lacks most of them.


So when dear Joyeeta lamented that her homemade paneer always breaks down before a dish is complete, I remembered that I do make paneer at home. And also realised that I have never posted it.


So here's the paneer ... made by me. And it doesn't break ... see? Hope this recipe helps Joyeeta and anyone who wants make paneer at home.


I have never liked store bought paneer and guess that's what prompted me to try making it. It is surprisingly easy to make .... and has a firm yet soft texture. Has always worked well for my dishes.



I am giving the measurements and snaps for a detailed description. Since I was making it only for this post, I have used less milk. If you want to, you can increase the measurements accordingly.

The sun chose to play hide and seek today .... wreaking havoc on my snaps. :-(

Need : Half litre milk, juice of half a lemon / 2 teaspoons of white vinegar, 1 teaspoon cornflour, a little cooking oil.

How to :

Bring the milk to a boil and then add the lemon juice / vinegar. After it curdles, keep boiling for 2 to 3 minutes more.


Drain it in a soup strainer. Tie it up in a cheese cloth and hang it to drain out all water.

Or .... just keep a bowl filled with water ( to make it heavy enough) on the paneer in the soup strainer .... for about half an hour.


Remove after half an hour and mash it well with cornflour till smooth.


Pat it on a plate ( preferrably steel ) and give a thick, squarish shape.
Place it in the freezer to set ... for about half an hour.
Make sure it does not start to freeze ... the water in it will go bonkers once you start to fry it ... the whole thing will fall apart. :-)

Bring out the set paneer and cut it into cubes.

Spray a little oil on a very lightly heated pan / griddle. Place the paneer cubes on it for a while ... turn them over once ... and remove.
Don't brown them too much ... this is just for the paneer to hold together.


Done ! Your gloriously golden and creamy paneer is ready! :-)

Add them to any dish you want to. Just remember .... store bought or otherwise .... good paneer is delicate. So don't go about stirring and tossing and bullying it into oblivion.

Always add paneer at the end while making a dish with it. Just add it, give a stir if necessary ... cover and simmer. That's all.


I made this out of the paneer I made ... recipe coming up in the next post. :-)