Punjabi Masala

Most of the punjabi dishes require various spices, and it's quite time consuming to start from scratch. So I usually have this masala ready to add to the recipes. The name came from the one & only cooking class I took long back. They used only 4 ingredients; I have added many more over the time, and here is my version of it.

Ingredients

• Cloves - 5
• Green Cardamom - 3
• Cinnamon Stick - 3/4"
• Black Pepper seeds - 4

(Optional)

• Bay leaf - 1
• Coriander seeds - 1 tsp
• Caraway seeds - 1/4 tsp
• Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Nutmeg (coarsely crushed) - 1/4 tsp
• Carom seeds - 1/4 tsp
• Black Cardamom - 1

Method

• In a kadhai (wok), take all the spices.
• Add more spices if you want, and adjust the quantity according to your taste.
• Roast them on a medium flame for 5-7 minutes or until it starts giving nice aroma.
• Take off the flame.
• Grind it in a mixie to make a powder. The masala is ready to use.

Note
Many pulav recipes require adding these spices, and some people may not like those big pieces of cinnamon sticks or whole cardamoms. In that case you can add this masala instead.

Shahi Paneer

Ideally Shahi Paneer recipe should have been my first post. I make it quite often. My nephew, who doesn't like to eat roti otherwise, loves this. It is a recipe I can rely on for potlucks!




Ingredients

• 250 gms. paneer (cottage cheese)
• 3 tsp. oil or butter
• 1 onion chopped into strips
• 3 tomatoes chopped
• 1/4" piece ginger chopped
  
• 2 green chillies chopped (optional)
• 1/2 tsp. punjabi masala
  
• 1/4 cup beaten yogurt
• 1 tsp. red chilly powder
• 1 tsp. coriander powder
• 1/2 tsp. cumin powder
  
• 1/2 tsp. garam masala
• 1/2 tsp. sugar (optional)
  
• salt to taste
• 1/4 cup milk
• 2 tbsp. tomato sauce

For Garnishing

• 2 tbsp. grated paneer
• 1 tbsp. chopped coriander

Method

• Chop the paneer into 1" fingers.
• Heat half the oil. Add onion, ginger, green chillies and punjabi masala. Fry for 3-4 minutes.
• Add tomatoes. Cook for 8-10 minutes, covered.
• Add 1/4 cup water and cool.
• Blend in a mixie till smooth.
• Heat remaining oil, add gravy and other ingredients except yogurt, milk and paneer.
• Add yogurt and cook for 5 minutes.
• Boil to get a nice thick gravy.
• Just before serving, heat gravy, add milk and paneer and boil for 2-3 minutes.
• Garnish with chopped coriander and grated paneer.

Notes

• If you want more brown/red color for the gravy, you can add more red chilly powder/ garam masala and skip green chillies.
• On the other hand, if you want a lighter color, you can add more yogurt and milk.
  
• The gravy prepared 2-3 hours in advance tastes yummier.