Matar Paneer (Mutter Paneer) is a popular & delicious, creamy & flavorful vegetarian North Indian Punjabi dish where paneer and green peas are cooked in an onion-tomato gravy. Serve this restaurant-style paneer matar masala with any Indian bread like tawa naan, homemade roti, soft chapati, or rice items such as steamed rice, jeera rice, or ghee rice.
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Matar Paneer Recipe | Mutter Paneer
Equipment
- 1 Pan
Ingredients
For Onion Tomato Masala
- 1 tablespoon Oil
- 1 tablespoon Butter
- ½ teaspoon Cumin seeds
- 1 Bay leaf
- 1 inch Cinnamon stick
- 3 Cloves
- 2 Cardamom pods
- 4 to 6 Dry red chillies (You can use red chile powder instead to taste)
- 8 to 10 Cashews
- 3 Onion, medium sliced
- 6 to 8 Garlic cloves chopped
- 3 Green chilies, slit
- 1 inch Ginger, chopped
- ¼ cup Cilantro or Corainder leaves
- 3 Tomatoes
- Water, as needed (maybe total of 1 to 1 ½ cups for dish)
Other Ingredients
- ¾ teaspoon Salt, adjust to taste
- 200 grams Paneer cubes
- 1 ½ cups Green peas (fresh or frozen)
- 1 tablespoon Dried fenugrek or Kasuri methi
- 1 tablespoon Heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon Coriander leaves or Cilantor chopped
Instructions
How to make onion-tomato gravy or sauce?
- Heat oil and butter in a pan on medium flame. To this, add cumin seeds, bay leaves, cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, dry red chilies, and cashews. Saute on a medium flame for 2 minutes.1 tablespoon Oil, 1 tablespoon Butter, ½ teaspoon Cumin seeds, 1 Bay leaf, 1 inch Cinnamon stick, 3 Cloves, 2 Cardamom pods, 4 to 6 Dry red chillies, 8 to 10 Cashews
- Add onion, garlic, ginger, green chilies and continue to saute till onions become light golden. Sauteeing onions is a very important step and may take 6 to 8 minutes.3 Onion, medium sliced, 6 to 8 Garlic cloves chopped, 3 Green chilies, slit, 1 inch Ginger, chopped
- Once the mixture cools down, transfer this to a blender along with tomato, cilantro, ½ cup of water, and blend it to a smooth paste.¼ cup Cilantro or Corainder leaves, 3 Tomatoes, Water, as needed (maybe total of 1 to 1 ½ cups for dish)
Making of matar paneer masala
- In the same pan, add the ground tomato-onion masala with an additional ½ to ¾ cup water for the desired consistency, salt to taste, and cook for a minute or two.¾ teaspoon Salt, adjust to taste
- Add paneer, green peas, and simmer for 5 to 8 minutes. Finally, add heavy cream, dry fenugreek leaves, coriander leaves, and mix. Switch off the flame.200 grams Paneer cubes, 1 ½ cups Green peas (fresh or frozen), 1 tablespoon Dried fenugrek or Kasuri methi, 1 tablespoon Heavy cream, 1 tablespoon Coriander leaves or Cilantor chopped
Instant Pot Matar Paneer
- Press the saute button on your instant pot. To this, add butter and oil. Next, add cumin seeds, bay leaf, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, cashews, and saute for 1 minute.
- Add onion, garlic, green chilies, and ginger, and saute for 3 to 4 minutes or until lightly golden. Turn off your IP. Let this cool down completely.
- Add this to the blender along with tomatoes and coriander leaves and blend it to a smooth paste.
- Turn on the saute mode of your IP. Add the paste and cook for 1 minute. To this, add paneer, green peas, 1 cup water, salt to taste, and mix. Deglaze the bottom if needed.
- Press cancel and close the lid with a vent in the sealing position. Pressure cook on HIGH for 2-3 minutes. Quickly release the pressure manually.
- Add heavy cream, dry fenugreek leaves, and coriander leaves, and mix everything together.
Video
Notes
- If you do not have whole garam masala, you can skip it. Saute other ingredients along with onions. Substitute whole garam masala by adding 1 teaspoon of garam masala powder when adding paneer. Make sure the garam masala is of good quality.
- Adding kasuri methi is optional, but it gives your dish a unique taste.
- You can add the tomatoes & cilantro directly to the blender, as I have done today, or you can saute it along with tomatoes and blend. Both taste great.
- How well you saute the onion-garlic mixture decides how your gravy tastes. So do this correctly.
- Adding more cashews will make your dish creamier. This gravy thickens as it cools down. So, adjust the consistency accordingly.
- To make vegan matar paneer, use tofu instead of paneer, soy or cashew milk for cream, and coconut oil for butter.
- If using red chile powder instead of whole red chilies, add it along with the ground onion tomato masala and salt.
Some Variation to matar masala:
You can substitute paneer with mushroom or baby corn or, gobi(cauliflower) or potatoes (aloo), or you can even combine all of these. It tastes better when many veggies are added together, as the flavors from each enhance the taste of this dish.Nutrition
What is matar paneer?
Matar Paneer is a popular Punjabi curry that is rich, spicy, and creamy. Matar means green peas, paneer means Indian cottage cheese, and masala is an aromatic blend of spices with roasted onions and tomatoes. So, in short, it is paneer and peas cooked in a flavorful onion-tomato sauce.
As matar paneer is a popular dish, every region has its own variation. The best part is that the ingredients are almost the same but in different amounts. So you see, every hotel, restaurant, or dhaba has a different signature taste, and when you make it at home, it tastes different.
This curry is vegetarian and gluten-free. Also, one of the popular vegetarian dishes is served for lunch or dinner, at home, at large events, and in restaurants. Mutter Paneer is available at almost all Indian restaurants, along with Paneer butter masala, Paneer Kadai, Palak Paneer, etc.
My secret to make the best matar paneer at home
- The flavors in the dish or any butter masala come by sauteeing onion, garlic, ginger, green chilies, red chilies, cashews, and whole garam masala spices until the onions develop a golden brown color. The sauteed ingredients are then blended to a smooth and creamy paste along with tomato and coriander leaves.
- The blended masala is then transferred to a pan along with water for the desired consistency. Then, green peas and paneer are added and simmered until cooked.
- Even bachelors and beginners can make this simple matar paneer masala at home.
Ingredients
Paneer: Non-melting Indian cheese is available in any grocery store. You can easily make paneer at home, too. For the vegan version, use extra firm tofu.
Green peas: During the winter season, when fresh green peas are available, use them in the recipe. Otherwise, feel free to use the frozen ones or soak and boil the dried ones.
Whole spices: Use any Indian spices available in your pantry. This enhances the flavor of green peas curry.
Kasuri methi: Dry fenugreek leaves that are used in most North Indian curries give the dish its signature taste. There is no substitute. Skip if it is unavailable.
Cashews: I add cashews as it makes your dish rich and creamy, and by using them, you can reduce the amount of cream in the recipe.
Step-by-step instructions
Step 1: Heat oil and butter in a pan on medium flame. To this, add cumin seeds, bay leaves, cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, dry red chilies, and cashews. Saute on a medium flame for 2 minutes.
Step 2: Add onion, garlic, ginger, green chilies and continue to saute till onions become light golden.
Step 3: Sauteeing onions is a very important step and may take 6 to 8 minutes. Once the mixture cools down, transfer this to a blender along with tomato, cilantro, and ½ cup of water, and blend it to a smooth paste.
Step 4: Add the ground tomato-onion masala in the same pan with an additional ½ to ¾ cup water for the desired consistency, salt to taste, and cook for a minute or two.
Step 5: Add paneer, green peas, and simmer for 5 to 8 minutes.
Step 6: Finally, mix with heavy cream, dry fenugreek leaves, and coriander leaves. Switch off the flame.
Tips
- If you do not have whole garam masala, you can skip it. Saute other ingredients along with onions. Substitute whole garam masala by adding 1 teaspoon of garam masala powder when adding paneer. Make sure the garam masala is of good quality.
- Adding kasuri methi is optional, but it gives your dish a unique taste.
- You can add the tomatoes & cilantro directly to the blender, as I have done today, or you can saute it along with tomatoes and blend. Both taste great.
- How well you saute the onion-garlic mixture decides how your gravy tastes. So do this correctly.
- Adding more cashews will make your dish creamier. This gravy thickens as it cools down. So, adjust the consistency accordingly.
- To make vegan matar paneer, use tofu instead of paneer, soy or cashew milk for cream, and coconut oil for butter.
- If using red chile powder instead of whole red chilies, add it along with the ground onion tomato masala and salt.
Variations
You can substitute paneer with mushroom or baby corn or, gobi(cauliflower) or potatoes (aloo), or you can even combine all of these. It tastes better when many veggies are added together, as the flavors from each enhance the taste of this dish.
Instant pot matar paneer
- Press the saute button on your instant pot. To this, add butter and oil. Next, add cumin seeds, bay leaf, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, cashews, and saute for 1 minute.
- Add onion, garlic, green chilies, and ginger, and saute for 3 to 4 minutes or until lightly golden. Turn off your IP. Let this cool down completely.
- Add this to the blender along with tomatoes and coriander leaves and blend it to a smooth paste.
- Turn on the saute mode of your IP. Add the paste and cook for 1 minute. To this, add paneer, green peas, 1 cup water, salt to taste, and mix. Deglaze the bottom if needed.
- Press cancel and close the lid with a vent in the sealing position. Pressure cook on HIGH for 2-3 minutes. Quickly release the pressure manually.
- Add heavy cream, dry fenugreek leaves, and coriander leaves, and mix everything together.
Recipe FAQs
Matar paneer is one of the best accompaniments for Indian flatbreads like tawa naan, homemade roti, soft chapati, or rice items such as steamed rice, jeera rice, or ghee rice. . You can also serve this with South Indian neer dosa.
Any leftover curry can be stored in an airtight container for three days. Reheat on the stovetop or microwave until heated through by adding a splash of water.
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Note: We originally posted this green peas and paneer curry recipe in Dec 2021. It has now been modified in Dec 2023 with Expert Chef Tips, FAQs, Storage Instructions, etc.
Tara
Such a wonderful use for paneer. The flavors sound absolutely incredible. I love how you included instructions for both the stovetop and instant pot.
Katherine
This is such a great paneer curry!
TAYLER ROSS
This was such a comforting meal. Perfect for the cold night me had last night!
Colleen
We loved this recipe. It's easy, delicious and restaurant quality. I will make this again!