Paneer Hariya

When you set out to make a dish that is supposed to look like this

Paneer Kaliya by Sanjeev Kapoor

AND ENDS UP LOOKING LIKE THIS

… YOU REALISE YOU HAVE JUST CREATED AN ACCIDENTAL DISH! 

Last night, I was keen to try Sanjeev Kapoor’s own creation, Paneer Kaliya (Funny name, I know!!). I appointed Mum as my sous chef and proceeded with much excitement and a little trepidation. Mum, being Mum, suggested a few shortcuts to the original recipe. She said I could blow off steps 1 to 5 altogether if I followed what she had in mind. Who am I to challenge a lady with over 25 years of cooking experience? “Okay”, I said. “We’ll do it your way, Ma.”

Many improvisations and panic attacks and squeals of “OMG-this-is-not-working”  (from my end) later, was born Paneer Hariya. Why ‘hariya’ you might ask? Well, the dish turned out green (instead of the intended white) and well, it rhymes with kaliya. BTW, I have an aunt with the last name Haria and she’s going to be reading this. So Beena Fui, I’m sorry it had to be named Hariya but it was so apt. And anyhow, it was Sonali who came up with the name, so chide her! 😀

In the end, I was happy with how Paneer Hariya tasted. It is unlike any other paneer dish I have had (and I’ve had loads). Though I must warn you, it is a very rich dish that leaves you feeling full for a LOT of hours.

Recipe for Paneer Hariya

Serves 2 – 3 persons

Igredients: Fresh Paneer cubes – 200 gm

Garam Masala – 1 tbsp OR make your own garam masala which is a paste of 4 cardamom pods, 4 cloves, 10 peppercorns, 1 inch cinnamon stick, and 1 inch sliced ginger

Cornflour – 1 tsp

Curd – 2 tbsp

Cream – 2 tbsp

Almonds – 1/2 cup – blanched, peeled and ground

Sugar – 1 – 2 tsp – depending on your taste

Ghee – 2 tbsp

Turmeric – 1/2 tsp

Salt –  1 tsp

Water – 1 cup

Method:

1) Mix the ground almonds with water and keep aside. This forms the base of the gravy.

2) Heat the ghee in a heavy bottomed vessel. Add the garam masala. Stir well till the ghee begins to separate. This should talk a minute or two.

3) Add the almond paste from step 1. Sauté the mixture for a minute.

4) Add the curd and cream and sauté it for another minute.

5) Mix the cornflour in 2 tsp water and add it to the gravy.

6) Add the sugar, turmeric and salt.

) Lastly, add the paneer cubes.

7) Let it cook for a couple of minutes.

Serve hot with rotis or parathas. If you have even the slightest of doubt about this, let me know. I’ll be happy to help you out with even dumb-sounding queries 🙂

If you happen to make this dish, let me know and I’ll put up a picture of your cooking on this blog.

Sending this to Kavi’s Healthy Cooking Challenge, which is Smita’s brainchild.