Paneer pulao recipe (Paneer rice)

Paneer pulao recipe – Easy and healthy Paneer pulao that goes good in lunch box or as a quick dinner on busy nights. I have tried paneer pulao in so many ways in the past few years, finally loved this way of making. Paneer smells very aromatic and almost is like paneer tikka.

This is often prepared at home as it is easy to make and tastes delicious. It can be accompanied with a simple vegetable salad or a Raita like cucumber raita or onion raita.

I have made this almost the same way i make veg pulao recipe, except a different way of preparing paneer to make it flavorful. Paneer tastes bland when used in some recipes especially in pulao unless enough spices and coriander / mint leaves are used.

Paneer when cooked with a good amount of spices acquires a great aroma and taste. To make this pulao, paneer is not cooked along with the rice, hence remains soft and is flavorful too.

To make a balanced meal, i like to add some veggies. Carrots, beans, peas, mushrooms go well.

Step-by-step photos

Preparation for paneer pulao

1. Rinse 1½ cups cubed paneer to make it moist or sprinkle 1 tbsp of water. Drain off water completely. Add 

• ¼ teaspoon red chili powder (adjust to taste)
• ½ teaspoon garam masala
• ¼ teaspoon salt (adjust to taste)
• pinch of turmeric
• 1 tablespoon besan (gram flour)
• ¾ teaspoon ginger garlic paste
• ¼ tsp kasuri methi (for a good aroma)

2. Add 1½ tablespoon oil and mix everything well. Set this aside as we are not cooking it with rice.

How to make paneer pulao recipe

3. Heat a pan with 2 tablespoons ghee or oil. Add

• 6 cloves
• 1 inch cinnamon
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 to 4 cardamoms
• ½ teaspoon jeera or shahi jeera
• 1 star anise. I also add a bit of mace.

4. When they begin to splutter, add 1 medium sliced onions and 1 slit green chili. Fry until golden or transparent. If you like to make your pulao look dark color, fry onions till they turn deep golden.

5. Add 1 tablespoon ginger garlic paste and fry until the raw smell goes off.

6. Add half cup peas and half cup carrots. Saute for a minute.

7. Add 4 tablespoons chopped coriander leaves and 12 to 15 chopped pudina/mint leaves. Fry until the leaves smell good.

8. Pour 2½ cups water if pressure cooking or 3 cups if cooking in a pot. Then add ½ teaspoon salt. Stir and check if there is enough salt. Water must taste slightly salty.

9. When the water comes to a rolling boil, add drained rice.

10. If making in a pot, cook covered on a low flame. If making in a pressure cooker, cook on a medium flame until the cooker whistles once.

Frying paneer for pulao

11. While the pulao cooks, heat a non-stick pan. Fry paneer in the pan till golden and crisp. Paneer begins to smell very good. Do not over cook as they tend to turn hard. Once done transfer to a plate immediately. We don’t need to add oil as we added to the marinade. But if you see it becoming too dry then add a bit.

12. When the pressure releases naturally, open the lid and fluff up with a fork. Let the rice cool down a bit and transfer to serving plates.

Top paneer pulao with crisp fried paneer. In the lunch box, I pack the pulao and paneer separately.

For more Pulao recipes, you can check
Tawa pulao
Jeera rice or pulao
Matar pulao
Carrot pulao

You may also like to check these Paneer recipes

Recipe