Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Paneer Makhmali

All I need to do is enjoy the rain beating an irregular tattoo on my windowsill, revel in my fever for which I took the day off from work and curl up with a mystery under a reading lamp, but here I am at my computer, under the glare of tubelights, trying to post something. It’s not even as if I badly want to post this or that I’m meeting some deadline I set for myself, but sleeplessness and a regularity with which I now gravitate towards the blogs that’s making me do this. Posting doesn’t feel like a chore, though – it’s quite a mixed-up feeling.

From the confusing to the simple: what I have for you today is a paneer/cottage cheese recipe. It’s taken from Nita Mehta’s book Still More Paneer, and the only change I made was to use mango ginger instead of the regular ginger.
That's mango ginger in the photo.


This gravy is a velvety affair (hence the name Makhmal, from the Persian), given that the ingredients are pressure cooked and ground, the base being coconut milk. It’s something of a shocker, essentially being paneer in tomato chaaru (rasam/soup South Indian style, with a dash of tempering), but it’s not as odd a match as it sounds. On to the recipe, then:

Paneer/cottage cheese – 200 gm, cubed

Pressure cook (2 whistles) with ½ a cup of water:
Tomatoes – 4, chopped roughly
Coconut milk – ½ cup
Mango ginger or ginger – 1-inch piece, chopped
Garlic – 8-10 cloves, skinned, chopped
Green chillies – 2, chopped roughly
Salt – to taste

Cool and puree in the mixer.

For the tempering:
Mustard seed – 1 tsp
Red chillies – 2, broken
Curry leaves – a sprig
Oil – 1 tsp

Transfer the puree back into the pressure cooker, bring to a boil.

Add the paneer and simmer for 4-5 minutes. Check for the consistency of your liking. Switch off the heat.

In a separate pan, heat the oil, pop the mustard, add the red chillies. Remove from fire, add the curry leaves, and add to the pressure cooker.

You can find a somewhat similar recipe here.

46 comments:

  1. Looks delicious!

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  2. Very different paneer recipe! and it really deserves the name "makhmali paneer"! Looks so gorgeous, Sra. Next time i make paneer, i making it this way!

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  3. The combination of paneer with coconut milk and South Indian spices is really unusual! I imagine the mango ginger makes it even more fragrant and delicious.

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  4. Lovely recipe.. Looks great.. Mango ginger is something new to me though.. Will chk if I can find it here..
    Thx for sharing!

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  5. LOL...power of blogging;)
    i am kind of shocked to see paneer in coconut gravy. yeah, it does sound little odd but i am all in for new set of challenges:) got big bar of tyre oops, paneer. will surely give it a go soon:)

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  6. coconut milk with paneer... i should try this one out. the pic looks good.. i felt like drinking the gravy ;)

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  7. Sra,

    Hope you are feeling better, blogging is turing into a major addiction. chaaru with paneer funny combination.but might a nice dish to try on a rainy day.

    get well soon girl :)

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  8. Paneer Makhmali...looks very comforting and when its paneer its always good! :) Loved the gravy...and mango ginger is something I had never seen before...must try it out.

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  9. Ooh!! Beautiful dish with equally beautiful dish to hold the Makhmal. Best photo of all so far sra!:)
    See you next week, will miss ya girl!

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  10. that looks so silky....nice photos and good recipe..

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  11. The dish looks simple awesome and has got the right colour....what is the difference between simple ginger and mango ginger

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  12. my MIL makes a tomato chutney with coconut milk SRA ..(will post that sometime).paneer makhmali sounds like that and exactly the same colour.Adding paneer to that would be a good idea.
    mango ginger is sure a good addition.

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  13. looks good, quite makhmali.
    hope u feel better soon.

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  14. The dish sure looks makhmali:) Nice recipe Sra. Never tried adding coconut milk with paneer.
    Even I have got so used to blogging, more than the recipes, it is the pleasure of interacting with you all.I don't think I can stop blogging ever.
    How are you feeling now ? Take care :)

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  15. You take good care of yrself, Sra.

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  16. this is looking good.never had it nice dish.

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  17. Oh My Goodness I can't stop thinking about that. Doesn't look much like tomato soup to me :)

    Thanks for this lovely recipe Sra!

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  18. Just the name itself sounds DEElish! Makhmal is one of those tactile words that you can almost "feel" :) Like the paneer would just whisper down your throat...

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  19. Mango ginger, mmmmmm. What a treat this recipe looks, Sra. I imagine it would be very soothing when you are not feeling well. Hope by this time you are.

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  20. That looks lovely...'makhmali' indeed:)

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  21. hey sra, that name is so tempting :) paneer makhmali ....yum

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  22. I've never tried paneer with coconut milk though I have tried tofu with it. Mango ginger is new to me. Beautiful pic.

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  23. I was expecting a Mughlai feast here :) Wow, I'm curious what this north meets south recipe tastes like. I can imagine the tomato, mango ginger, paneer and coconut milk tastes separately, but together? Will have to try it :)

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  24. hey what happened...how are you now ?
    Looks ekdum "makhmali" lovely colour

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  25. Sra, a postscript: I made this at breakfast right after I read your post, with my mother's garden-fresh tomatoes. It's amazing, and if my husband doesn't come in soon from work, he's not getting any of it. Thanks for introducing me to Nita Mehta's cookbooks. One of her paneer volumes is in my Amazon shopping cart already. : )

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  26. hey Sra, how about calling it paneer sambar;) just kidding! It looked more like sambar to me heheheh.. you sure are doing a lot of experiment there.

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  27. wow this lloks like a mouthwatering fusion dish...paneer with a southie gravy, a must must try for me....its bookmarked

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  28. yummy :-) I must try this.

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  29. I never even knew that there was something called mango ginger. Thanks for that info, Sra.

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  30. Arkansas, thanks.
    Musical, thanks. Try it!
    Nupur, the M G's sourness got combined with that of the tomatoes, I think.
    Arts, I'm not sure but I think it's called Aam Haldi in Hindi, does it sound familiar now?
    Sia, so that's the state of paneer in the UK?
    Rajitha, the gravy thickened a bit after resting.
    Sreelu, it's not too bad, try it!
    Tee, I hear it's quite easily available in the US, not sure which part of US you live, though!
    Asha, thanks. How are you doing?
    Padma, yes, it's a silky gravy, you got the right word.
    Bhags, this is a paler version of ginger, when you snap it or scratch it, there's the aroma of raw mango.
    Manasi, thanks.

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  31. Prema, do post that chutney recipe.
    Richa, thanks, am getting better slowly.
    Archana, yes, I love the interactivity too!
    Suganya, I am, thank you.
    Ramya, this is just my second time!
    Linda, no, it thickens, so it's a gravy all right, but with taste of tomato soup.
    Viji, thanks.
    Shyam, you put it so well!
    Susan, funnily enough, I'm not able to eat the leftovers, no appetite on account of my fever. I'm happy you enjoyed making it and it turned out well for you. Did your husband get any?
    Sunita, thanks.
    Rahin, thanks.
    TBC, thanks.
    Jyothsna, it's a mildly tangy gravy.
    Sandeepa, getting better, thanks.
    Sharmi, aargh! Not in my worst dreams!
    Rachna, let me know if it worked for you!
    Raaga, hope you like it.
    Cynthia, I've even pickled it - look out for the recipe!

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  32. Alas, my husband did not get any, but I'm do for another tomato harvest from my mom, so it will be in the pot again very soon. I was quite taken with not only the flavor and ease, but the startling orange color of the final dish.

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  33. I hope you're feeling better soon. Your paneer makhmali must have made you feel better though. I just had something similar at an Indian restaurant the other night and loved it, and now you've given me a recipe to try myself. Thanks!

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  34. How funny - I have the same cookbook. Paneer looks delicious...

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  35. Very different recipe on paneer.
    Never heard of this.
    Should give it a try

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  36. Oh yes.. now that sounds easy! :)

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  37. looks nice...This is a new recipe of Paneer...Haven't seen this before dear :-)

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  38. the combination of paneer and coconut milk sounds unusual and looks delicious. Mango ginger sounds interesting too, makes the curry even more fragrant. Will certainly try it Sra!

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  39. Sra,

    chala rojulu ayyindi emi post'a levu,busy ga unnara.I see you on my blog though.

    Hope all is well take care

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  40. Wow paneer in coconut milk sounds delicious... Hope you are feeling all better sra, I wish I could say I'm shocked to see someone blogging from their sick bed... but thats something I'd do too :)

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  41. Hay this looks delish.....nice recipe.....

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  42. Sra,
    Jvaram tagginga, hope you are feeling better

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  43. Susan, funnily enough, I couldn't eat it after I fell sick. Hope it works well for you!
    Mallika, thanks!
    SeeC, it is unusual, yes.
    Arts, yes, it is easy
    Sirisha, it's nice enough, try it!
    Mandira, let me know if it turned out well!
    Sreelu, thanks for asking. Ippudu bagunnanu, but computer tikkaga behave chestondi.
    Sig, I don't mind being sick as much as I minded the computer being sick! That made me depressed!
    Sukanya, thanks

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  44. Paneer Makhmali looks delicious and nice taste of mango ginger you added.

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