Paneer Tikka Masala | For Blog Hop Wednesdays

I’m so glad I finally gave shape to my long time vision in the form of “Blog Hop wednesdays” after many hesitations and procrastination. I am so over joyed and ecstatic with my blogger friends willingness and enthusiasm for their participation. Thank you so much Gals. You are the best. So, this gave me a chance to go through my partner for this week, Prathima’s  blog completely. Our very own Prats as she is known in the blogging world. I zeroed in on making Grape Crostini which I had bookmarked when she had sent it for my Fun N Sun event. 

But since exams are nearing for my children, I did not want them to catch cold and fall sick and also the weather is so unreliable these days. So finally decided on this as paneer happens to my children's favorite. What a delectable collection of recipes she has got?. I’m so sure that her mother is very very proud of her daughter’s culinary skills. Also her space is not just about food alone. Check out her post on how to have a face massage at home. You will find it very informative.

Last Sunday was Arjun’s Birthday and he was down with stomach upset and as my husband was also not in town, he was really not in the mood to celebrate. So I made Naan and this masala to boost his mood as I know he loves it very much.

When I went through Prathima’s post I was so touched by how she had made this side dish for her little sister's lunch when they were alone. That reminded me of the snacks that I used to fix for my younger brother in the evenings before Amma returned home from work. He would sit on the kitchen counter narrating the day’s happenings at school to me and cracking silly jokes while I go about the kitchen. I miss those good old days.

Paneer Tikka Masala
You’ll need:

For the Tikkas:

Paneer, cubed	200 gms
Fresh thick curd	3 – 4 tbsp
Oil	3 – 4 tsp
Red chilli powder	2 tsp
Coriander powder	2 tsp
Cumin powder	1 tsp
Garam masala powder	1 tsp
Amchur powder	1/2 tsp
Chaat masala (optional)	1/2 tsp
Ginger garlic paste	1 tsp
Salt	1/2 tsp
Corn flour	4 – 5 tbsp
Red food color (optional)	2 pinch

For the Gravy:

Onion	2
Tomato	3
Ginger	1 inch piece
Garlic	4 pods
Milk	1/2 cup
Cream	1/2 cup
Cloves	2
Cinnamon	2
Cumin seeds	1 tsp
Cashew nuts	8 – 10
Coriander powder	2 tsp
Red chilli powder	2 tsp
Garam masala powder	1 tsp
Kasuri methi	1/2 tsp
Salt	To taste
Butter	1 tbsp
Oil	2 tbsp

Method:

For the Tikkas: In a bowl take the oil. Add the dry powders like red chilli, coriander, cumin, amchur, chaat and garam masala powder, red food color and salt. Whisk well to a smooth paste.

Now add the ginger garlic paste, fresh curd and the paneer cubes and mix well so that the paneer cubes are well coated. Refrigerate for at least an hour. Take out and sprinkle the corn flour all over the marinated cubes and toss lightly. Again shove it in the fridge for 15 – 20 mins.

You can shallow fry these tikka pieces in a pan. I grilled them in the oven for 15 mins turning sides in between while drizzling with little oil for them get browned over evenly. Keep aside.

For the gravy:

Heat a pan with 1 tbsp oil. Add the cumin seeds, cloves, cinnamon and sauté till the aroma arises. Now add the sliced onions, ginger and garlic, a pinch of salt and cook till the onion turns pink. Add the tomatoes and cashew nuts and cook till the tomato turns mushy. Switch off the stove and immediately add the red chilli powder and coriander powder and mix well to let them cook in the heat itself. Let it cool.

Grind to a fine paste in the mixie using little water if needed. Heat the same pan with the remaining oil and butter. Once the butter melts transfer the ground paste to the pan and salt and little water. Cook with a lid closed for about 5 – 10 mins. Check that the gravy does not stick to the bottom.

Add the crushed kasuri methi, milk, cream and the tikkas to the gravy and cook over medium heat for a boil or till all of them merge together.

Serve hot with dollops of cream as an accompaniment with Naan, rotis or phulkas.

Do watch out for my next post on Naan.

Notes:

The marinating ingredients for the tikkas can vary. Just feel free to play around with the spices.

While marinating you can leave out the amchur powder and replace it with lemon juice.

Any method can be used to cook the tikkas. The choice is of course your own.

Adjust the spice powders to suit your taste buds.

This is off to Let’s Cook ~ Subzis for Rotis.

Interested? Wanna know more about “Blog Hop Wednesdays” ? Check out the link and if you also want to join in the fun to drop in a mail to me.

Finally want to know who the “Blog Hoppers” are and what they had cooked up, drop in here.