Tawa paneer (paneer tawa masala)

Tawa paneer masala is a simple, easy and quick dish made with paneer, onions, tomatoes, bell peppers, spices & herbs. Paneer tawa masala is mostly served in restaurants & is eaten with tandoori roti, naan or even with jeera rice. It also goes well with phulkas or plain parathas. This dish does not have that usual creamy texture like paneer butter masala or paneer makhani. But it tastes delicious.

Tawa is the Indian/ hindi name for a griddle or a flat pan. The name tawa paneer is because the entire dish is prepared on a tawa.

Frying the masala on a high flame on a large tawa makes the dish aromatic and taste special. This is how it is different from the regular paneer sabji. For a home preparation this can be made in a kadai or regular pan as well.

This recipe of tawa paneer is kept very simple and is made with basic ingredients. I have roughly adapted it from Chef Sanjeev kapoor’s recipe of baby corn, capsicum and paneer masala.

So you can play around using your favorite veggies like baby corn or mushrooms.

This recipe needs tomato puree and it is used to speed up the process of cooking tomatoes which would take a little longer otherwise.

So if you do not want to puree the tomatoes you can add them chopped finely or use a ready made tomato puree. Adjust the quantity to match the sourness to your taste.

Step-by-step photos

Preparation

1. Add oil to the hot tawa, sprinkle cumin. When it splutters then add grated ginger and fry till it begins to smell good. Do not burn it.

2. Add chopped onions and salt. Keep stirring and fry evenly on a moderately high flame till they turn golden.

3. While the onions are frying, you can add the chopped tomatoes to a blender jar and puree it. If you wish to add few cashews to make the gravy rich, you can add it now.

4. When the onions turn golden, pour the tomato puree. Cook till the raw smell of the tomatoes vanishes. Keep stirring to prevent burning.

5. Add garam masala, red chili powder and capsicums.

How to make tawa paneer masala

6. Mix well and fry on a medium high flame till the mixture smells good of the masala. This usually takes 2 minutes.

7. Pour very little water to bring the gravy to your desired consistency. Mix well and cook till gravy thickens. Then add paneer and kasuri methi.

8. Mix every thing well. Cook till the gravy turns thick. If you like to use cream, skip water. Pour the cream to a bowl and add little tomato onion mixture from the tawa and stir. Then add back to the pan. This helps preventing the cream to curdle. Switch off the stove.

Garnish tawa paneer masala with coriander leaves. Serve with rice or roti.

More Paneer recipes
Paneer do pyaza
Achari paneer
Paneer bhurji
Methi paneer
Paneer jalfrezi

Recipe

Tawa paneer masala recipe

Tawa paneer (paneer tawa masala)

Easy tawa paneer masala – Simple and quick to make delicious paneer dish in a onion tomato base. Tawa paneer can be served with roti, chapati or rice. It also goes well in tiffin box.

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1x2x3x

Prep Time5 minutes

Cook Time20 minutes

Total Time25 minutes

Servings4

AuthorSwasthi

Ingredients (1 cup = 240ml )

• 2 cups paneer cubed
• 2 tbsp oil
• 1 cup onions fine chopped
• ½ tsp cumin or jeera
• ¾ tsp ginger grated or crushed
• ¾ cup tomato puree or 1 cup chopped
• ¼ cup capsicum
• ¾ tsp garam masala powder (adjust to suit your taste)
• ½ tsp kasuri methi or dried fenugreek leaves
• Salt as needed
• 2 tbsp coriander leaves chopped

Optional ingredients

• 2 to 3 tbsp Cream or 5 to 6 cashews (refer notes)

How to make the recipe

• Heat a tawa with oil. Add cumin and allow to splutter. Then add grated ginger and fry till you smell it good.
• Add finely chopped onions, sprinkle salt and fry evenly till they turn golden.
• While the onions fry, puree the tomatoes.
• When the onions turn golden, add tomato puree and mix well. Fry until the tomato puree thickens and the raw smell disappears.
• Add capsicum, red chilli powder and garam masala. Mix and fry till the masala smells good for about 2 minutes.
• Pour very little water and mix well to make a gravy. Cook until the gravy turns thick.
• Next add paneer and kasuri methi. Stir well.
• Allow it to cook for 2 minutes . Sprinkle coriander leaves. Transfer to a serving bowl and keep covered.
• Garnish tawa paneer masala with coriander leaves. Serve with rice or roti.

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NUTRITION (estimation only)

Calories: 429kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 35g | Saturated Fat: 17g | Cholesterol: 74mg | Sodium: 336mg | Potassium: 333mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 595IU | Vitamin C: 25.2mg | Calcium: 569mg | Iron: 1.5mg

Notes

If using cream add it at the last step instead of water. Add the cream to a bowl first and then add little tomato gravy to the bowl mix. Then add back to the tawa to prevent curdling.
If using cashews. Add them to tomatoes and puree.
Adjust the quantity of tomatoes to suit your taste and do not use very sour tomatoes.

Alternative quantities provided in the recipe card are for 1x only, original recipe.

For best results follow my detailed step-by-step photo instructions and tips.