Chilli Paneer
Learn how to make a restaurant style chilli paneer. A favourite Indo-Chinese dish that’s crispy, spicy, sweet and sour.
Ingredients
Ingredients:
Paneer:
- 500 g paneer cut into cubes
- 1 tbsp cornflour this is corn starch for US readers
- 0.5 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp chaat masala
- 1 tbsp oil of choice if air frying
Veg:
- 1 tbsp oil of choice
- 2 medium peppers sliced, I used one red and one green
- 4 spring onions whites for cooking, greens for garnishing
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 inch piece of ginger minced
- 1-2 green chillies slit lengthways, omit if you prefer this to be more mild
Sauce:
- 1 tsp dark soy
- 2 tbsp light soy
- 2 tbsp ketchup
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar/lemon juice
- 1 tbsp chilli sauce of choice I use my homemade Szechuan Sauce
- 1/2 tbsp honey
- 1 tsp cornflour
- 3 tbsp water
Instructions
Method:
- Start by soaking the paneer in boiling water, covered. Let it sit for at least 20 minutes, then drain. If the paneer still feels dry or hard, repeat once more
- After draining the paneer, toss with the chaat masala, salt, cornflour (corn starch for US readers) and oil until evenly coated
- Air fry the paneer for around 4-5 minutes at 200'C until golden all over but still soft when squeezed, tossing mid way. Alternatively deep fry or shallow fry if desired
- In a large frying pan or wok, sauté your spring onion whites, garlic, ginger and chillies (if using) in oil under a medium-high heat for roughly 1 minute, keep stirring to prevent any burning
- Add in the peppers and the paneer, sauté for a further minute
- Mix together the cornflour and water in a separate bowl until dissolved and keep aside
- Now to your paneer mixture, add in your soy sauces, vinegar, ketchup, chilli sauce, honey, and cornflour slurry. Mix together for 30 seconds - 1 minute until the paneer is lightly saucy and evenly glazed
- Garnish with the spring onion greens. Best served immediately
Notes
Your vegetables should retain a little crunch, so it's important not to overcook them. Hence it's helpful to have everything chopped and ready from the start, as everything is added in quick succession.