Paneer khurchan is a delicious dry paneer curry from north Indian cuisine. It is one of the easy to make, ready in 20 minutes paneer curry. Vegetarian and gluten free.
It is a north Indian style curry with onion tomato capsicum base to which cubed paneer or Indian cottage cheese is quickly tossed. Tastes best as quick snack or side dish with roti, naan, rice.
For more easy paneer recipes please check paneer chatpata, quick paneer stir fry, 10 minutes paneer curry recipes.
Paneer khurchan is a paneer curry you will find in the menus of some north Indian restaurants and dhabas. It is not as popular as palak paneer, paneer butter masala or paneer tikka masala but very flavorful, tasty and gets ready in minutes.
A restaurant near our home used to have this in their menu not as side dish but as evening snack which I used to love.
This recipe of paneer khurchan similar to the ones you get in dhabas, fuss free, quick and bursting with flavors. Seriously one of the best paneer recipes with out much prep work.
If you have onions, tomatoes, capsicum and paneer or cottage cheese along with few basic regular Indian spices you make paneer khurchan in flat minutes now. Ready? Read on to get this paneer khurchan recipe with step by step photos, tips and serving suggestions.
About This Recipe.
This paneer curry is one of the lesser known paneer curries. It is mostly served in dhabas or those small eateries found in highways.
Khurchan means a dish made with scant or very little gravy. You can make this dish semi dry or dry as I did here.
The word khurchan is from the word khurchana, to scrape of in Hindi. Here as we are making this dish by scarping off the masala and paneer together in a heavy pan.
In dhabas this dish is made in a super hot cast iron tawa or a flat griddle. At home we can use regular tawa we use for dosa, roti or any heavy skillet. I used my tawa here.
This paneer dish tastes so good when made a bit spicy and served with a dash of lemon juice. The heat from the spice powders, tang from the lemon juice pairs so well with soft paneer cubes.
Next to get that typical dhaba flavor, toss the paneer strips in high flame after adding to the masala.
A dash of kasuri methi or dried methi leaves add a wonderful flavor to this paneer recipe. Here I have added fresh methi leaves.
This paneer curry tastes wonderful with tandoori roti, ajwain roti, plain paratha, jeera rice etc. If you make it a bit dry is also serves as an excellent snack. This paneer khurchan is
super quick and easy to make
ready in 20 minutes
perfect snack or side dish
vegetarian and gluten free
super hit with kids
wholesome and filling.
How To Make Paneer Khurchan Recipe
Preparation
First of all cut paneer into bite sized cubes. If you are using store bought paneer, keep them soaked in warm water until use. I have used 250 grams paneer here
Next chop 1 large onion, 1 medium bell pepper (you can use any color) and 2 large tomatoes finely. You will need 3/4 cup chopped onions, 3/4 cup bell peppers and 1.5 cups chopped tomatoes. I used a mix of green capsicum and red capsicum
Next slit 2 green chilies. Mince 1/2 inch peeled ginger and 3 peeled garlic cloves. You can also use 2 teaspoons ginger garlic paste.
Paneer Khurchan Recipe With Step by Step Photos
To make paneer khurchan heat 1 tablespoon oil in a pan. You can also use butter. Add cumin seeds and let splutter. Next add finely chopped onion, minced ginger garlic and slit green chilies.
Saute well until the onions turn a bit soft. Add methi leaves if using and mix well.
Now add the finely chopped tomatoes and bell peppers together. Mix well and saute in high flame for 2 minutes.
Next we will add the spice powders. Add 1/2 tsp garam masala powder, 1/2 teaspoon red chilli powder 1 teaspoon cumin powder, 1/2 teaspoon coriander powder 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder. You can add 1 teaspoon red chili powder for spicier khurchan paneer. Also add salt to taste.
Mix well and saute everything in high flame, scrapping off the masala from the bottom of the pan as required.
Add the paneer cubes and toss well. Scrape any masala at the bottom of the pan and coat well.
After adding paneer cubes, make sure they touch the bottom of the tawa and saute in high flame to infuse some smoky flavor. This also makes the paneer crispy with golden brown exterior.
Now add kasuri methi if you have not added fenugreek leaves in the beginning. Also add chopped coriander leaves and lemon juice. Mix well
Serve paneer khurchan hot immediately.
Tips & Variations
If you are using store bought paneer, keep the cubes soaked in warm water for 20-30 minutes to make them softer.
If cast iron tawa is unavailable you can use heavy steel pan or aluminum pan.
Along with paneer you can add chopped mushrooms to make this dish more hearty.
How to make this dish vegan?
To make this dish vegan you can just replace paneer with tofu or mushrooms.
What is the difference between paneer jalfrezi and paneer khurchan?
Both these paneer recipes are made with similar ingredients but paneer jalfrezi is more elaborate recipe with a thick sauce.
Paneer khurchan on the other hand is a quick fix recipe prepared easily.
Paneer Khurchan Serving Suggestions
Serve paneer khurchan hot or warm with tandoori rotis, kulcha, butter naan, poori etc. It also tastes good with rice.
This is a dry paneer dish which you can also use as filling for sandwich, wraps and kathi rolls.
You can also mix some cooked rice with this and serve as yummy main course.
We love this as snack at our home with masala chai 🙂
More Paneer Recipes
I hope you will try this recipe and enjoy as much as we did. Please give a star rating ★ in the recipe card below if you have tried this recipe. Follow us on Pinterest , Instagram, Facebook for more recipes and ideas.
Recipe Card
Paneer Khurchan
Equipment
- Cast iron skillet or tawa
Ingredients
- 250 grams paneer cubed
- 1 tablespoon oil or butter
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 2 green chilies
- 3/4 cup onions finely chopped
- 3/4 cup bell peppers chopped
- 1 cup tomatoes chopped
- 1 teaspoon cumin powder
- 1/2 teaspoon red chilli powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garam masala powder
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
- salt to taste
- 2 teaspoon kasuri methi or 1/4 cup fresh methi leaves
- 2 tablespoons coriander leaves chopped
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
Instructions
- To make paneer khurchan heat 1 tablespoon oil in a pan. You can also use butter. Add cumin seeds and let splutter. Next add finely chopped onion, minced ginger garlic and slit green chilies.
- Saute well until the onions turn a bit soft. Add methi leaves if using and mix well.
- Now add the finely chopped tomatoes and bell peppers together. Mix well and saute in high flame for 2 minutes.
- Next we will add the spice powders. Add 1/2 tsp garam masala powder, 1/2 teaspoon red chilli powder 1 teaspoon cumin powder, 1/2 teaspoon coriander powder 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder. You can add 1 teaspoon red chili powder for spicier khurchan paneer. Also add salt to taste.
- Mix well and saute everything in high flame, scrapping off the masala from the bottom of the pan as required.
- Add the paneer cubes and toss well. Scrape any masala at the bottom of the pan and coat well.
- After adding paneer cubes, make sure they touch the bottom of the tawa and saute in high flame to infuse some smoky flavor. This also makes the paneer crispy with golden brown exterior.
- Now add kasuri methi if you have not added fenugreek leaves in the beginning. Also add chopped coriander leaves and lemon juice. Mix well Serve paneer khurchan hot immediately.
Leave a Reply