Paneer (Panir)

"Easy to make paneer, and much better than store-bought."
 
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photo by JacquelineS photo by JacquelineS
photo by JacquelineS
photo by eatrealfood photo by eatrealfood
Ready In:
1hr
Ingredients:
3
Serves:
12
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ingredients

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directions

  • Boil water in a large pot, then add milk.
  • Bring to a full foaming boil, stirring to prevent sticking.
  • Lower heat, the add lemon juice stirring constantly.
  • Soft curds should appear in 10-15 seconds, separating from the light yellow, clear whey.
  • Remove from heat and allow to stand 5-6 minutes.
  • Line a colander with finely woven tea towels (not cheesecloth!).
  • Use a slotted spoon to remove the curds from the pot and into the towel-lined colander. Use fine strainer to get the smallest remainders.
  • Gather the corners of the towels and twist into a tight ball.
  • Put a weight (heavy pan?) on top of the ball and let it rest 10 minutes.
  • Unwrap and use in recipe or wrap in plastic and refrigerate.

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Reviews

  1. I made this with 1 quart of milk, 1/4 cup of water and a couple squirts of lemon juice. This Panir was wonderful!! It came to a perfect, creamy, pretty little ball. Now searching for a good Palek Panir recipe to go with it (the one i tried failed... the only good thing about it was the perfect Panir). Thank you!
     
  2. I hate to give this such a low rating but I am completely mystified. An entire gallon of milk and this yielded a mere couple tablespoons of paneer. Is this correct? Other recipes I've found have said to stir in the lemon juice for 15 minutes not 15 seconds. After the time allotted, there was barely any curdling to speak of. Am I missing something here?? EDIT: Okay, I couldn't give up on this so I tried it again. I stirred in the lemon juice for a couple minutes but, since I was afraid of burning the milk, I didn't leave it much longer. After sitting for 10 minutes, it still had barely separated. I added another 1/4c lemon juice and stirred. Sure enough, in another 10 minutes, it was just right. Strained and let sit for awhile and I had a good couple cups of paneer! A little lemony but the consistancy was perfect!
     
  3. I have never made cheese before so I was worried about this recipe but it worked out perfectly. My biggest fear was that the paneer would fall apart when I fried it but it didn't at all. Thanks so much for posting this! We used the paneer to make Mutter Paneer -- Indian Cheese Curry Recipe #173381
     
  4. It might be helpful to mention that when making cheese, you shouldn't use ULTRA-pasturized milk (which is typically what organic milk usually is.) Thanks for posting your Paneer recipe.
     
  5. Having lost my own paneer recipe some time ago I was delighted to find this one. I found the longer you let it rest wrapped in the colander the firmer the paneer. A friend of mine twists it tightly in the towel and hangs it up from her tap. Mind you, she has a deep sink. Thank-you so much, JacquilineS--this is a great recipe.
     
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RECIPE SUBMITTED BY

I'm a high school art teacher and I love cooking for my husband and family. We are all very adventurous eaters and are always willing to try new things.
 
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