Hindus consider cows and all their milky produce – cream, butter and cheese – sacred. I can’t argue with that. Traditionally, this dish would be made with a few large slabs of golden butter, but for the sake of decency I’ve toned things down a bit. It’s still an extravagant dish, but channel India and enjoy yourself.
Ingredients
- rapeseed oil
- 500 g hard paneer, cut into 2 cm cubes
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 large brown onion, finely chopped
- 4 cm ginger, peeled and grated
- 6 cloves of garlic, crushed
- 800 g tomato passata
- 1 tablespoon kasoori methi (dried fenugreek leaves)
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon chilli powder
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1½ teaspoons salt
- 250 g peas (fresh or defrosted)
- 100 ml double cream (plus extra to serve)
- a handful of toasted flaked almonds
How to Make It
- Put a tablespoon of oil into a large lidded frying pan over a medium heat and, when hot, add the cubes of paneer. Fry for a couple of minutes until golden on all sides, turning regularly, then remove to a plate.
- Put the butter into the same pan over a medium heat. When hot, add the onion and fry for around 10 minutes, until translucent and turning golden. Add the ginger and garlic, stir-fry for 2 to 3 minutes, then add the passata. Cover with the lid and cook for 12 to 15 minutes, until reduced to a lovely thick sauce.
- Add the fenugreek leaves, cinnamon, cloves, chilli powder, honey and salt to the pan. Stir, then add the fried paneer, cover with a lid and cook for 5 minutes, or until cooked through. Add the peas and cream and cook for a further 5 minutes.
- To serve, scatter with the almonds and drizzle with a little extra cream. This curry is perfect with steamed basmati rice.