Best chilli paneer | homemade paneer chilli recipe

Chilli paneer

Chilli Paneer is one of the most popular and sought after dish in Indian cuisine. It is basically a fusion recipe of Indo-Chinese Cuisines.

 Coated cubes of paneer ( Cottage Cheese) is deep fried till crisp and then sauteed with some sauces, pepper and vegetables.

It is called as Indo-Chinese fusion recipe as the paneer is a Indian product and the sauces like Chilli sauce, soya sauce and schezwan sauce used is from China origin. That is why it is known as Indo-Chinese fusion dish.

For more Indo-Chinese fusion recipe you can check the links below :-

Ginger Honey Paneer Recipe

Yummy Chinese bhel Recipe

Chilli paneer can be prepared as a  dry preparation or as a gravy (sauce) preparation.

Dry chilli paneer can be served as an appetizer or snacks whereas chilli paneer gravy is served as a main dish with fried rice, noodles or with Naan bread.

As it is one of the most popular dish in Indian subcontinent, it is  widely used in almost every social ceremony or events.

You can get it almost in every restaurants and hotels in their Menu card.

In general chilli Paneer is soft in texture and light dark  in colour due to the use of dark soya sauce, it get the said colour. Try this amazingly delicious snacks recipe at home and impress your family and friends with you skills. You can make this easy vegetarian recipe like restaurant style also.

Paneer chilli can be divided depending on the uses of  different sauces .

1. Using dark soya sauce you can make the regular chilli paneer.

2. Using Schezwan sauce you can make chili paneer schezwan pepper.

And you can also make different types of chilli paneer gravy using different sauces.

1. Chilli paneer gravy in Oyster sauce.

2. Chilli paneer gravy in Hot garlic sauce.

3. Chilli paneer gravy in schezwan sauce.

4. Chilli paneer gravy (regular).

Today we are going to prepare the chilli paneer, the dry and the gravy version .

You can add the Sauces according to your taste and choice to make different types of chilli paneer.

How to make chili paneer dry :-

Preparation time :- 10 minutes

Cooking time :- 10 minutes

Difficulty :- Easy

Serve :- 2 serving

Ingredients :-

* 200 gm Paneer (cottage cheese).

* 1 teaspoon of dark Soya sauce.

* 1/2 teaspoon of Tomato ketchup.

* 1/2 teaspoon red Chilly sauce.

* 1/3 teaspoon vinegar ( optional ).

* 1 teaspoon chopped Garlic.

* 1/2 teaspoon chopped Ginger.

* 2 teaspoon chopped onion.( Optional)

* 3 teaspoon Corn starch (flour)

* 1/3 of Red, yellow and green bell peppers each.

* 2 teaspoon Green spring onions.

* 4-5 diced shaped Onion.

* 2 green chili ( cut into lengthwise)

* 1/4 teaspoon Sugar.

* 1 pinch of salt (as per taste).

* 1/4 teaspoon White pepper powder.

* 1 teaspoon Cilantro leaves ( Corriander)

* Oil for deep frying and cooking.

Diamond shaped paneer pieces

Diced vegetables

Chopped Garlic, Ginger, spring onions and slit green chili

Dark Soya sauce, tomato ketchup, red chilly Sauce

Salt, sugar and white pepper powder

Step by step instructions to make chili paneer :-

Method of preparation :-

* Wash the paneer ( cottage cheese) and let it dry . Cut the paneer into diamond shaped. One inch length and half in breath .

* Cut the red, yellow bell peppers and capsicum into diced shaped.

* Take the paneer pieces into a bowl and dust with corn starch till all side covers. You can increase the amount of corn starch if the paneer is not fully covered with corn starch (flour).

Corn starch dust paneer

* Use of corn starch makes the paneer crisp and crunch.

* Keep it aside to dry .

* If you don't want to deep fry the paneer then grill or roast them using a non stick pan.

* But for a perfect chilli paneer, deep fried paneer is best. You can feel the crispiness in your every bite.

* There are some recipes where  a batter of corn starch and all purpose flour (Maida) is used to coat the paneer.

* For the batter, you need 3 teaspoon Corn flour and 1 teaspoon Maida (all purpose flour) . Mix with water slowly to get a thick consistency.  Dip the paneer pieces into the batter mixture and deep fried till crisp.

* I am not suggesting you to make a batter and coat the paneer. If you use batter it only make a thick layer to cover the paneer. It won't make the paneer  crispy. And sometime while sauteed with sauces the batter layer get cracked or breakdown.

* But if you dust it with corn starch, there will be not thick layer of coating and your paneer also become more crispy.

* When your paneer get dry , deep fry it till crisp golden. Keep aside in a tissue paper to absorb excess oil.

Deep fried paneer pieces

* Now take a  pan and add one teaspoon oil and heat it.

* Add the chopped garlic and ginger and sauteed for one minute. You can add chopped onion also to give it additional taste. Otherwise it is fine .

* Add the capsicum, red yellow bell peppers and onion cubes and sauteed for two more minutes in high flame.

Sauteed vegetables

* Add 1/3 cup of water and cook them.

* Add Red Chilly sauce, dark soya sauce, tomato ketchup and sauteed for a while.

Adding Sauces

* Add the fried cubes of paneer and green chillies to the mixture and stir to coat the sauce with paneer completely.

Fried paneer with sauce mixture

* Add salt, sugar and white pepper powder. Check the seasoning and adjust according to your taste.

* Finally add the chopped spring onions over the paneer. When the mixture get dry switch off the flame and remove the chilli paneer mixture in a plate.

* Sprinkle some Cilantro (Coriander) leaves and spring onions over it and serve hot.

Chilli paneer

You can  give it a better garnish with vinegar soaked green chillies, chopped spring onions ( green part) and with some roasted white sesame topping all over it.

Schezwan pepper chilli paneer :-

Schezwan chilli paneer

This is a another version of chilli paneer where schezwan sauce is used to tossed the paneer.

In schezwan chilli paneer, all ingredients mentioned above to make a regular chilli paneer can be used except dark soya sauce.

Instead of dark soya sauce, light soya sauce is used.

Schezwan chilli paneer is light red in colour and paneer pieces are in cube shaped not diamond shaped.

Cube shape paneer pieces

Additional ingredients for schezwan chilli paneer :-

* 1 1/2 teaspoon schezwan sauce.

* 1 teaspoon light soya sauce ( instead of dark soya sauce).

* 1/2 teaspoon red chilli paste.

Schezwan sauce and Red Chilly Paste

Method of preparation :-

* Repeat all steps above to make chilli paneer.

* Instead of dark soya sauce, use light soya sauce.

* Add schezwan sauce to the mixture before adding fried paneer cubes .

* It is better to use chopped onion in schezwan chilli paneer. Because they both have a great combination and taste more flavourful.

* When the mixture become dry, switch off the flame and remove the paneer mixture in a plate .

* Garnish with chopped spring onions and serve hot.

Schezwan chilli paneer

Chilli paneer gravy recipe :-

*  It is generally used as a side dish with vegetable fried rice and noodles. Also goes well with Naan bread, roti and chapatis.

* All ingredients and method of preparation for chilli paneer gravy recipe are same as paneer chilli dry recipe .

* You need to make  thick glossy  gravy while preparing the chilli paneer .

* For that you need to add 1 teaspoon of corn starch in 1 cup of water and make a batter.

* Before adding paneer in chilli paneer dry recipe, add the corn starch water batter and stir for two minutes.

* The mixture slowly start to thick and glossy. Add the fried paneer and check the seasoning.

* If you want more gravy then increase the corn starch water batter more .

* Remove the mixture in a bowl and garnish with chopped spring onions and serve .


For more recipe with paneer, you can check the link below for more details :-

Paneer Kurkure Recipe

Homemade paneer Seekh Kebab