Paneer Matar Makhana Curry

5 from 10 votes

Paneer Matar Makhana Curry(Makhana Sabji) is a rich Indian curry recipe made with roasted fox-nuts, cottage cheese, green peas and cashews

Course Main Course

Cuisine Indian

Keyword makhana paneer curry, matar makhana, phool makhana curry, phool makhana recipes

Diet Vegetarian

Method Stovetop

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 20

Total Time 30

Servings

Calories 359kcal

Author Bhavana Patil

Ingredients

Measuring cup used [1 cup = 250ml]

4 tablespoons ghee or oil divided
¼ cup cashews optional
2 cups roasted makhana (phool makhana/lotus seeds)
150 grams paneer (cottage cheese) cut into small cubes
¼ cup green peas frozen
1 medium onion finely chopped
2 large tomato finely chopped
½ inch ginger
3 cloves garlic
1 green chili
1 teaspoon cumin (jeera) seeds
salt to taste
1 ¼ cups water divided
1 tablespoon kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves)
2 tablespoons fresh cream use coconut cream for vegan
1 teaspoon lime juice
2 tablespoons coriander leaves

Dry Spices

½ teaspoon turmeric powder
1 teaspoon kashmiri red chilli powder
1 teaspoon coriander powder
½ teaspoon garam masala

Instructions

In a kadai, heat 1 tablespoon of ghee or oil, add the cashews and roast them till golden brown. Transfer on to a plate and set aside.
In the same pan add makhana and roast them on very low heat for 4-5 minutes until they are crisp, keep stirring them in between so that Makhana doesn't burn. Once done transfer on to a plate and set it aside.
Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in the same pan, add onion and saute till golden brown. Add ginger, garlic, green chili, tomato, and saute till the tomatoes are soft and mushy. Turn off the flame and allow it to cool slightly.
Transfer the mixture into a blender jar with ¼ cup of water and blend to a smooth puree.
Heat remaining 1 tablespoon ghee in the same pan, add cumin seeds let them sizzle.
Add red chili powder, mix well and saute for a few seconds on medium-low flame. Adding Kashmiri red chili powder at this stage gives a nice color to the dish.
Add the prepared onion tomato puree and mix well. Cover and cook for 3-4 minutes until the oil/ghee begins to separate from the mixture.
Add turmeric powder, coriander powder, salt and mix well and saute for another minute.
Add paneer (cottage cheese), roasted makhanas, roasted cashews, green peas, 1 cup of water, stir well and simmer the curry over low heat for 5 – 6 minutes.
Lastly sprinkle garam masala powder, Kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves), and fresh cream and mix well. Turn off the gas.
Garnish with coriander, squeeze some lime juice and serve hot with poori, parathas or jeera rice.

Notes

Tips

Roast the foxnut (makhana) till they are crisp before adding to the makhana sabzi.
Add roasted foxnuts just a few minutes before serving the curry. This prevents the roasted Phool makhanas from turning soggy.
Homemade Paneer works the best. If you have store brought paneer, then soak paneer in hot water for 15 minutes to keep them soft.
Adding Kasuri methi at the end gives a restaurant-style taste to this paneer dish.
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.
Always add the cream at the end of cooking else it will curdle.

Variations

You can also add khoya/mawa along with cream to give a rich texture and taste to make the Khoya Matar Makhana recipe.
You can also skip paneer and replace it with mushrooms or aloo (baby potato) in this makhana ki sabji recipe.
Adding sugar or honey balances the flavors and so you can add ½ teaspoon of sugar or 1 teaspoon of honey in the end.

Note: Nutrition values are my best estimates. If you rely on them for your diet, use your preferred nutrition calculator.

Nutrition