Restaurant-style Paneer Butter Masala, also known as Paneer Makhani, is one of the most popular paneer recipes in Indian cuisine where paneer cubes (Indian cottage cheese) cooked in a rich, mildly spiced gravy made from onions, tomatoes, and cashew nuts, enhanced with butter and cream. This dish can be prepared either on the stovetop or in an Instant Pot pressure cooker. It's a great choice for those following a keto, gluten-free, or low-carb diet.
Paneer Butter Masala is one of the popular North Indian à la carte curry that my family never thinks twice about before ordering at a restaurant. Chana masala, navratan korma, and vegetable biryani are also our staple choices. It tastes great with naan, paratha, roti, and also goes well with basmati rice or jeera rice.
This curry is an absolute favorite in our family! Recreating this authentic restaurant taste at home was something I was always passionate about and here it is. Follow this easy one-pot recipe, and I’m sure you’ll impress your family and friends. Below, I’ve shared how to make Paneer Butter Masala using both stovetop and Instant Pot methods.
It is known by various names, such as Butter Paneer Masala, Butter Paneer, or Paneer Makhani, and is one of the most popular paneer dishes on restaurant menus.
This butter paneer dish is also low-carb and keto-friendly. Simply replace cashew nuts with almonds or skip them altogether and add extra heavy cream at the end. If you're following a Keto or Low Carb diet, check out my 70+ Keto Indian food recipes collection.
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Ingredients
- Paneer: homemade or store-bought paneer cubed into 1-inch pieces (about 200 grams).
- Onion, garlic, and ginger: I used roughly diced onions, along with garlic and ginger.
- Tomato: I used 3 medium tomatoes. You can also use canned crushed or diced tomatoes.
- Cashew nuts: This is one of the most important ingredients to add creaminess to the dish. So do not skip it. You can also use almonds instead. In restaurants, they use a combination of white melon seeds (magaj) and cashew nuts.
- Herbs & Spices: I used fresh-cut coriander leaves, kasuri methi for herbs, red chili powder, and garam masala (or kitchen king masala) for dry spices.
- Whole Spices: Used cinnamon stick, cloves, and cardamom. You can also skip whole spices and just add extra garam masala at the end.
- Cream: I used heavy cream. You can also use cashew or coconut cream.
How to Make Paneer Butter Masala
Stovetop Pot Method
Put 1 large onion (chopped), 3 medium tomatoes (chopped), ¼ cup cashew nuts, 1-inch ginger, 3 garlic cloves, whole spices like 1-inch cinnamon stick, 3 cloves, 2 green cardamom, and 1 cup of water into a pan and bring to a boil.
Cook on a medium flame for at least 15-20 minutes. Remove from the heat and cool. Blend to a smooth puree/paste using a high-speed blender.
In a pan, heat 2-3 tablespoons butter (or oil), add ½ teaspoon cumin (jeera seeds), and saute for 30 seconds.
Add 2 teaspoons Kashmiri red chili powder, 1 bay leaf, give a quick stir.
Then add onion-tomato cashew puree. Close the lid and cook on medium heat for 2-3 minutes.
Add paneer cubes (200 grams), 1 tablespoon kasoori methi, 1 teaspoon garam masala (or kitchen king masala), ½ teaspoon of sugar (optional), and salt. Mix well and bring the mixture to a boil. You can air fry paneer and add it to the gravy.
Finally, gently stir in the 2-3 tablespoons fresh cream (or heavy cream), garnish with coriander leaves.
Serve Restaurant Style Paneer Butter Masala hot with chapati, naan, rice, and onion slices.
Instant Pot Method
Firstly, add 1 cup of water to the Instant pot insert. Place the trivet.
Put the onions, tomatoes, cashew nuts, ginger, garlic, whole spices, and 1 cup of water into a deep pan. Place the pan over the trivet.
Close the Instant Pot with pressure valve to Sealing. Cook on High Pressure for 8 minutes.
Once the pot beeps, let the pressure release naturally.
Puree the cooked onion-tomato mixture using a hand blender until smooth. If you don't have a hand blender, puree in a blender in batches once slightly cooled.
Then, I usually sieve the onion-tomato puree for a silky texture and discard the residue, but it's optional.
Press SAUTE on Instant Pot. Add butter/oil to the pot. Once hot, add cumin seeds and saute for 30 seconds.
Add Kashmiri red chili powder, bay leaf, and give a quick stir.
Then, add the onion-tomato-cashew pureed mixture. Mix well and cook for 2-3 minutes.
Add the cubed paneer, kasoori methi, garam masala, and salt. Mix well and bring the mixture to a boil.
Lastly, gently stir in the cream, and paneer butter masala is ready to serve.
Serve Instant pot paneer butter masala (paneer makhani) hot with chapati, naan, rice, and onion slices.
What to Serve with Paneer Butter Masala?
This paneer butter masala is a delicious side dish that perfectly complements various delicacies like naan, paratha, poori, and roti. I like serving it with Restaurant style dal makhani with jeera rice, basmati rice, or ghee rice and laccha pyaaz.
Storage Suggestions
- Refrigerate: Store the leftover paneer makhani in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2-3 days.
- Freeze: You can freeze this gravy in a freezer-safe container for two months. Just thaw over the countertop for 3-4 hours and then heat again in a pan or microwave and add cream before serving.
- Reheat: Reheat the paneer curry on the stovetop or microwave oven until heated through.
Expert Tips
- If using a store-bought paneer, soak it in hot water for 15-20 minutes before using it in the recipe.
- Grind the cooked tomato-onion mixture to a smooth paste. You can also strain the masala through a soup strainer to get a really creamy curry.
- Always add the cream at the end of cooking else, it will curdle.
- Use nuts in the gravy, it makes the gravy thick and creamy. I used cashews in this recipe, but almonds, melon seeds also work.
- Adding sugar balances the flavors, so you can add ½ teaspoon of sugar or 1 teaspoon of honey at the end.
- I usually add kitchen king masala (also available in the Indian grocery store) in place of garam masala powder to get the restaurant-style flavor to the paneer recipe.
- I have added Kashmiri red chili powder to give nice red color to this dish. However, if you want to make it spicier, add extra red chili powder.
- If you don't have whole spices, then add an extra 1 teaspoon of garam masala instead at the end.
Recipe FAQs
I have used Amul cream (heavy cream) to make paneer butter masala. You can use any whipping cream available in your nearest grocery store. You can also use homemade cream (malai).
To make Vegan paneer butter masala, you can replace paneer with extra-firm tofu—butter with any vegan butter, and fresh cream with cashew or coconut cream.
Yes. Replace cashews with almonds.
Yes, you can use canned tomatoes.
Yes, you can. Before adding it to the gravy, you can either air fry, shallow fry, or deep fry paneer cubes to a light golden brown.
If you don't have cream available at home, you can replace it with cashew cream or coconut cream. Sometimes, I also replace it with ½ cup of full-fat milk, but it doesn't turn out as rich.
More Indian Curry Recipes
Restaurant Style Paneer Butter Masala | Paneer Makhani
Equipment
Ingredients
For Onion Tomato Puree:
- 1 large onion chopped
- 3 medium tomatoes chopped
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 inch ginger
- ¼ cup cashews (about 12-15) (or almonds)
- 1 inch cinnamon stick
- 3 cloves
- 2 green cardamoms
- 1 cup water
For Paneer Butter Masala:
- 2-3 tablespoons butter (or oil)
- ½ teaspoon cumin (jeera) seeds
- 1-2 bayleaf
- 2 teaspoons kashmiri red chili powder (i used everest kashmiri lal brand)
- 200 grams paneer (Indian cottage cheese) (cut into 1-inch cubes)
- 1 tablespoon dried fenugreek leaves (kasoori methi)
- 1 teaspoon garam masala powder (or kitchen king masala)
- 2-3 tablespoons fresh cream
- ½-1 teaspoon sugar (or honey), optional
- salt as per taste
- 2 tablespoons coriander leaves for garnish
Instructions
Stovetop Method:
- Put the onions, tomatoes, cashew nuts, ginger, garlic, whole spices, and 1 cup of water into a pan and bring to a boil.
- Cook on a medium flame for at least 15-20 minutes. Remove from the heat and cool. Blend to a smooth puree/paste using a high-speed blender.
- In a pan, heat the butter, add the jeera seeds, and saute for 30 seconds.
- Add Kashmiri red chili powder, bay leaf, give a quick stir.
- Then add onion-tomato cashew puree. Close the lid and cook on medium heat for 2-3 minutes.
- Add the paneer, kasoori methi, garam masala (or kitchen king masala), sugar (optional), and salt. Mix well and bring the mixture to a boil.
- Finally, gently stir in the fresh cream, and garnish with coriander leaves.
- Serve Paneer makhani recipe hot with chapati, naan, rice, and onion slices.
Instant Pot Method:
- Firstly, add 1 cup of water into the Instant pot insert. Place the trivet.
- Put the onions, tomatoes, cashew nuts, ginger, garlic, whole spices, and 1 cup of water into a deep pan. Place the pan over the trivet.
- Close the Instant Pot with pressure valve to Sealing. Cook on High Pressure for 8 minutes.
- Once the pot beeps, let the pressure release naturally.
- Puree cooked onion-tomato mixture using a hand blender until smooth. If you don't have a hand blender, puree in a blender in batches once slightly cooled.
- Then I usually sieve the onion-tomato puree for silky texture and discard the residue, but it's optional.
- Press SAUTE on Instant Pot. Add butter/oil to the pot. Once hot, add cumin seeds and saute for 30 seconds.
- Add Kashmiri red chili powder, bay leaf, give a quick stir.
- Then add onion-tomato-cashew pureed mixture. Mix well and cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Add the paneer, kasoori methi, garam masala, salt. Mix well and bring the mixture to a boil.
- Lastly, gently stir in the cream, and paneer butter masala is ready to serve.
Notes
Tips & Variations
-
- If using a store-bought paneer, soak it in hot water for 15-20 minutes before using it in the recipe.
- Grind the cooked tomato-onion mixture to a smooth paste. You can also strain the masala through a soup strainer to get really creamy curry.
- Always add the cream at the end of cooking else it will curdle.
- Use nuts in the gravy, it makes the gravy thick and creamy. I have used Cashews in this recipe but almonds, melon seeds also work.
- Adding sugar balances the flavors and so you can add ½ teaspoon of sugar or 1 teaspoon of honey in the end.
- I usually add kitchen king masala (also available in the Indian grocery store) in place of garam masala powder to get the restaurant-style flavor to the paneer recipe.
- I have added Kashmiri red chili powder to give nice red color to this dish. However, if you want to make it spicier add extra red chili powder.
- If you don't have whole spices then add an extra 1 teaspoon of garam masala instead at the end.
Nutrition
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Linda
I tried this with the pressure cooker last night and it was amazing. I think it's the first time I've actually succeeded in making a restaurant quality recipe at home. My husband and I both loved it.
Bhavana Patil
Aww, i am so happy to know that the dish turned out well. Thank you for sharing your feedback:)
Linda
I made this for my family and everyone loved it! Absolutely delicious!
Bhavana Patil
Hi Linda... thats so nice to hear.. glad your family members liked it
Jill
Made this dish and it’s now one of my all-time favourite recipes!!! Wow!!! So delicious!!! Thank you!!!❤️🙏🏽
Bhavana Patil
Thank you so much Jill 🙂 I am really glad to hear that, have a great day 🙂