Yet another delicious Paneer recipe for Paneer Lovers. Dum Paneer an authentic dish which is perfect to serve on all occasions. Its another Jewel in Paneer's Crown. A fragrant curry brightened with black pepper also enriched with Cream. Like other Paneer Gravies, this Dum Paneer tastes so so good with any Indian Bread like Roti / Naan / Paratha also with Jeera Pulao.
Dum, means "Breathe In". Dum cooking uses a round, heavy-bottomed pot, preferably a handi (clay pot), in which food is sealed and cooked over a slow fire. Such long, slow, enclosed cooking resulted in the retention and permeation of the flavor of all the ingredients.
In Dum method of Cooking, the handi or pan is sealed with dough or foil to prevent the steam from escaping. The food sealed inside, steams slowly in its own juice absorbing all flavors spices and herbs. The vessel used for Dum Cooking plays a very important role. A heavy bottomed clay pot is said to work the best as it releases heat slowly (maintaining the temperature inside) and prevents the fire from burning the bottom of the dish. Another preferred choice is a copper vessel, which is often seen in fine dining Indian restaurants as well as famous stalls. But if we don't have both, we can use our regular pans too.
Whenever we think of biriyani, the first thing that crosses our mind is "Dum Biriyani". We have quite other dishes which are made using this Dum technique. One such is this Dum Paneer (Paneer Dum Kali Mirch), as the name suggests, Pepper flavored paneer gravy is cooked in sealed pan in low flame. We can use our roti dough to seal the pan or we can use aluminum foil. Both of them holds and locks the steam inside.
We can also Dum Cook in Oven. We just need to pre-heat the oven at 180deg C or 350 deg F and transfer the Paneer Gravy in oven safe dish and then cover with foil and cook in oven for 15 mins.
If you like Paneer, You can also Try:
- Reshmi Paneer Masala
- Paneer Lababdar
- Paneer Tikka Masala
- Dhaniya Paneer
- Kadai Paneer
- Paneer Kolhapuri
Recipe Card:
Dum Paneer | Paneer Dum Kali Mirch
Ingredients
For Grinding
- 3 Onion
For Tempering
- 1" Piece Cinnamon Stick
- 3 Cloves
- 2 Cardamom
- 3 Green Chili Finely Chopped
- 1 tablespoon Ginger-Garlic Paste
- 3 tablespoon Oil
Other Ingredients
- 300 gms Paneer Cubed
- ¼ teaspoon Turmeric Powder
- 1 teaspoon Pepper Powder
- 1 teaspoon Red Chili Powder
- 1 teaspoon Coriander Powder
- Salt As Needed
- ¼ Cup Curd (Plain Yogurt)
- ¼ Cup Fresh Cream Optional
- ½ teaspoon Garam Masala
- 1 tablespoon Dry Kasoori Methi
- 3 tablespoon Ghee
Instructions
- Cube Paneer and immerse it in hot water till we add it to gravy. Soaking in hot water makes the paneer soft.
- First heat a pan with oil. Add sliced onions and sauté the onions till they become golden brown
- Cool the sautéed onions and grind it to paste and set it aside
- Heat ghee in a pan. Add whole masala (cinnamon, Cloves & Cardamom) and sauté for few seconds. Then add green chili and ginger-garlic paste and sauté for a minute
- Then, add the onion paste and mix once. Cook the onion paste for about 2-3 minutes to get rid of raw smell
- After 2 mins, add curd along with turmeric powder, pepper powder, red chili powder, coriander powder and salt and mix well.
- Add ½ Cup of water and cover the pan with lid and let the mixture gets cooked for about 5-6 mins or till the oil starts to ooze out of the gravy
- When the oil starts to ooze out, add paneer to the gravy. Also add fresh cream and mix gently
- Cover the mouth of the pan with foil. There should not be any gaps. Seal the mouth completely. We can also make a dough with wheat flour and then use that dough to seal the mouth of the pan. Put a lid on top of the sealed pan. Keep the flame very low and cook for 15 mins
- After 15 mins, Open the lid, Gently take off the sealed foil. The masala has absorbed all masala and it tastes divine. Finally add garam masala and crush dry kasuri methi and then mix gently.
- Garnish with Coriander Leaves. We can also do the dum cooking in oven. Pre-heat the oven at 180 deg C and transfer the gravy to oven safe dish and then bake for about 15 mins.
- Delicious Dum Paneer is all ready! Serve with Roti/Naan/Paratha of your choice and enjoy the yummy meal!
Video
Notes
- Its recommended to use Clay pot for Dum Process, it will hold the steam inside perfectly and allow the masalas to seep through the Paneer.
- Fresh Cream is optional but surely enhances the flavor and makes the gravy rich
- We can add cashews while frying onions and grind it along with onions
Nutritional Info
Method with step by step Pictures:
- Cube Paneer and immerse it in hot water till we add it to gravy. Soaking in hot water makes the paneer soft. First heat a pan with oil. Add sliced onions and sauté the onions till they become golden brown
- Cool the sautéed onions and grind it to paste and set it aside
- Heat ghee in a pan. Add whole masala (cinnamon, Cloves & Cardamom) and sauté for few seconds. Then add green chili and ginger-garlic paste and sauté for a minute
- Then, add the onion paste and mix once. Cook the onion paste for about 2-3 minutes to get rid of raw smell
- After 2 mins, add curd along with turmeric powder, pepper powder, red chili powder, coriander powder and salt and mix well.
- Add ½ Cup of water and cover the pan with lid and let the mixture gets cooked for about 5-6 mins or till the oil starts to ooze out of the gravy
- When the oil starts to ooze out, add paneer to the gravy. Also add fresh cream and mix gently
- Cover the mouth of the pan with foil. There should not be any gaps. Seal the mouth completely. We can also make a dough with wheat flour and then use that dough to seal the mouth of the pan. Put a lid on top of the sealed pan. Keep the flame very low and cook for 15 mins
- After 15 mins, Open the lid, Gently take off the sealed foil. The masala has absorbed all masala and it tastes divine. Finally add garam masala and crush dry kasuri methi and then mix gently.
- Delicious Dum Paneer is all ready! Serve with Roti/Naan/Paratha of your choice and enjoy the yummy meal!
