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Restaurant Style Paneer Butter Masala

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Here’s an easy recipe for the perfect restaurant style paneer butter masala for all you paneer (cottage cheese) lovers! I love serving this with parathas and jeera rice. It’s always a hit with family and guests!

An easy recipe for the perfect restaurant style paneer butter masala for all you paneer (cottage cheese) lovers! I love serving this with parathas and jeera rice. It's always a hit with family and guests!

This restaurant style paneer butter masala is definitely one of my favourite recipes forever, and it is one of my most viewed recipes on the blog. I decided to give the pictures and the post a facelift so that we can have the most amazing paneer butter masala for as long as we want!

So here’s the thing with paneer butter masala. If you are a paneer lover, it is the king of all paneer recipes.

More Paneer Recipes that you’ll love: Saag Paneer, Tandoori Paneer, Easy Palak Paneer, Paneer Bhurji, Creamy Matar Paneer and Spicy Achari Paneer

Creamy, slightly tart and makes me mop up the gravy with anything I can get my hands on. Just the thing you need when you are craving comfort food but want something that hits all the right notes.

Here's an easy recipe for the perfect restaurant style paneer butter masala for all you paneer (cottage cheese) lovers! I love serving this with parathas and jeera rice. It's always a hit with family and guests!

This is completely against the healthy binge I’ve been on. But paneer butter masala has it’s own place. With some naan of course. Or tandoori roti. Or lachha paratha. Or bread. Whatever works. Or whatever’s on hand.

Because this is what I want after too many salads, or too much chicken or too much ghar ka khana and there’s nothing like it. You get that right?

This one’s a no brainer. It’s not a super long process and if you have some of my makhani gravy on hand, all you need to do is heat up some butter, let the gravy bubble up and add paneer. Done.

BTW this Makhani Gravy is mega awesome and super handy

Just in case you are wondering, paneer butter masala is also known as paneer makhani. They are made in a tomato based gravy and use oodles of butter and cream which gives the gravy a smooth, creamy texture.

If you are a paneer lover, here are some questions you will have. I know. And thats why I am here to answer them 🙂

How do you make paneer (cottage cheese) at home?

Making paneer at home is simple and needs only two ingredients – milk and acid (lemon juice or vinegar work well). You will need to heat milk and add the acid and simmer the milk till it curdles and separates into whey and paneer or cottage cheese. I have a super handy, step by step tutorial on how to make paneer here.

Here's step by step instructions to make homemade Indian paneer (cottage cheese) in just 15 minutes. The next time you want to make saag paneer, palak paneer, makhani, tikka or matar paneer, don't buy store bought and just make this at home with 2 ingredients.

Coming back to my extra favourite paneer butter masala. You can always go to the whole hog and make your own paneer at home (which only takes 15 minutes BTW and is the most satisfying experience) or you can buy store bought paneer. This recipe is so versatile that if you would rather have chicken butter masala instead, you can always substitute the paneer for chicken. Works both ways!

Here's an easy recipe for the perfect restaurant style paneer butter masala for all you paneer (cottage cheese) lovers! I love serving this with parathas and jeera rice. It's always a hit with family and guests!

Doesn’t that melting butter just take your heart away? And say gimme gimme.

Watch Paneer Butter Masala Recipe Video (Step by Step)

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An easy recipe for the perfect restaurant style paneer butter masala for all you paneer (cottage cheese) lovers! I love serving this with parathas and jeera rice. It's always a hit with family and guests!

Restaurant Style Paneer Butter Masala

★★★★★ 4.8 from 58 reviews
  • Author: Richa
  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Cook Time: 50 minutes
  • Total Time: 1 hour
  • Yield: 6 portion 1x
  • Category: main course
  • Cuisine: indian, north indian
Print Recipe

Description

Here’s an easy recipe for the perfect restaurant style paneer butter masala for all you paneer (cottage cheese) lovers! I love serving this with parathas and jeera rice. It’s always a hit with family and guests!

Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons butter
  • 250 grams Paneer cubes (or Cottage Cheese)
  • 3 Kashmiri Red Chilies
  • 1 teaspoon Ginger Paste
  • 1 teaspoon Garlic Paste
  • 1 Bay leaves
  • 1 inch Cinnamon Stick
  • 3 Cloves
  • 2 Cardamoms
  • 1/2 teaspoon Peppercorns
  • 2 tablespoons Cashewnuts (Chopped)
  • 1 teaspoon White Poppy Seeds (Khus Khus (Optional))
  • 1 Onion, roughly chopped
  • 6 Tomatoes, roughly chopped
  • 1/2 teaspoon Chili powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon Garam masala (Powder)
  • 1/2 teaspoon Turmeric (Powder)
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons Ketchup
  • 1 tablespoons Kasuri Methi (Dry)
  • 2 tablespoons Fresh Cream
  • to taste Salt

Instructions

  1. In a large pan or kadhai, heat a tablespoon of butter and a tablespoon of oil.
  2. Add red chillies, ginger, garlic paste and all the whole spices (bay leaves, cinnamon, cloves, cardamom and peppercorns). Saute for a minute or two and add cashew nuts, poppy seeds (if using) and onions. Once the onions turn translucent, add the tomatoes. Mix well.
  3. Cover and cook till the tomatoes start breaking down and the mixture starts leaving oil at the edges. Switch off the flame and set aside to cool.
  4. Once cool enough to handle, fish out as many whole spices as possible, and blend the mixture to a smooth paste.
  5. In the same pan or kadhai, heat the remaining butter and add the blended paste prepared in step #4. Add garam masala powder, chili powder, turmeric, ketchup, salt along with 1/2 cup water. Bring this to a boil.
  6. Once the curry comes to a boil, simmer and cook for 30 minutes, till the oil separates slightly. Cut the paneer into bite sized pieces, add it to the gravy and mix gently.
  7. In another pan, dry roast the kasuri methi and grind it to a fine powder. Mix kasuri methi and fresh cream in the curry and switch off the flame.
Easy recipe for Indian restaurant style paneer butter masala (paneer makhani curry), made with homemade cottage cheese! This is easy Indian food that can be made in your kitchen. I love serving this with parathas and jeera rice.
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Reader Interactions

Comments

  2. Wow, this is going to be my go to Paneer Butter Masala from now on. In fact, I am going to serve it as part of my Dad’s 60th Birthday Party Menu. Thank you for this fantastic recipe.

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  4. This recipe works! One addition, fry the paneer a little in butter before adding it to the gravy.. Takes it up a notch!

    Reply

  6. it was amazing i cooked it today, everyone praised, taste was really like restaurant… i hv taken photograph too.

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  7. Absolutely delicious ! I love the fact that it doesn’t feel heavy after eating, especially in our summers !

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  11. My whole family love the recipe . They are happy and so I am . Thanks for sharing such good recipe with all. A heartfelt thanks dear.

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  12. Awesome recipe… perhaps one of the best and made with simple ingredients that u are bound to find in most Indian kitchens!!!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  13. The recipe is simple and tasty. Loved it. I added the whole spices, then the paste. Did not pick them out. Still worked fine. Thank you

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  14. May I know how many person does it serve for? ..and would it affect the taste if we omit onions and garlic?.. cuz I’d seen some other recipes without ’em.

    Reply

      • Mine still tastes sour, after following the recipe, it shouldnt taste sour so I dont know how to omit that out

        ★★★

        Reply

        • Hey Rucha! The sourness can be a result of the tomatoes you use. Sometimes a batch can be extra sour and that can affect the taste. You’ll have to use ripe Roma tomatoes and also adjust a little sugar to take care of the sourness.

          Reply

  15. Great recipe!! Thank you for sharing. As my husband can’t have chilies, i put a little MDH Karahi paneer masala to enhance the flavours.

    Reply

  19. OMG!!! Tried it….it tasted awesome just as restaurant style…..loved itt……thank u so much dear

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  24. Excellent recipe that tasted as good as I’d hoped. I substituted paneer for tofu. And it was simple enough for an amateur cook (and a Caucasian male engineer) and my wife loved it!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  25. Hi, I would like to try this for my very fussy kids. I was just wondering if I could omit the red chilies and chili powder? Thanks.

    Reply

    • Yes absolutely. Omitting the chillies will affect the colour and the gravy will be paler looking, but shouldn’t affect the taste. You can also substitute the chillies and the powder for something milder like paprika.

      Reply

    • Hey there, omitting the chillies completely would definitely affect the taste and colour. How about if you omit the dried red chillies, but use some paprika while simmering the sauce (gravy)?

      Reply

  26. In the point 5. you say “… heat the remaining butter and add the curry paste.” but in the ingredients part you don’t mention the curry paste. Do you mean by that all the spices you add, which is “garam masala powder, chili powder, turmeric, ketchup, salt”?

    Reply

  27. Hi Richa
    Your recipe is really a worth try! Everyone in my house really liked it a lot. Thankyou so much
    Keep posting such nice recipes

    ★★★★

    Reply

  29. Hey Richa😊
    Thank you so much for this delicious recipe! I tried it today and I also used your recipe on how to make paneer. I was so shocked at how simple it was! Thank you so much! My husband loved it!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  31. “Alright! Finally got all of the ingredients and am ready to make this”

    Step 5: …add the curry paste.

    “Wait…what?”

    Should have read the recipe and not relied on the ingredient list…

    ★★★★

    Reply

  32. I made a few quirks considering many ingredients were missing in my kitchen…yet it turned out to be simply superb😀… Just wondering, as I put the mixture to simmer at the lowest possible flame, there was a lot of spurting of the curry, any way to reduce that?

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  36. Hey Richa! Thank you for sharing such a great recipe. I am gonna try this out today and I believe it’s gonna be a hit!😊

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  37. Hi Richa,

    Thanks for the recipe.
    I have one question though; why we have to discard whole spices from curry paste mixture and later add garam masala separately? Can’t we keep those whole spices and skip garam masala?

    Reply

  39. This was a really awesome recipe. I have tried to make swedish indian recipes before, but most of them miss that little extra. Shall I use yellow or red onion? And can I use grounded kasuri methi without roasting it? (Is fenugreek the same thing) Thanks again for this!

    Reply

    • Thanks Susanne! I recommend red onions but yellow will work too. Ground kasuri methi without roasting it is fine too. Kasuri methi is just dried fenugreek leaves so yes, they are essentially the same thing.

      Reply

  40. Hi Richa, thanks for sharing such a wonderful recipe. I’m a big Paneer lover just like you and paneer butter masala holds a special place in my heart and stomach😄. You added tomato ketchup in the recipe, I really liked that. I haven’t tried it but I’m going to try it out. It’s definitely going to add a tangy punch in the recipe. Again thanks for sharing.

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  46. Best PBM recipe & I have tried countless others. Teenage sons LOVE PBM – have to make frequently. I have bookmarked this forever! Thank you so much.

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  51. This recipe looks perfect to me. I will give it a try. But before that, I have a query. Can I use Kashmiri Red Chili powder instead of whole Kashmiri Red Chilies? If yes, what quantity should be used?

    Reply

  54. Would you please clarify Step 4? “Once cool enough to handle, fish out as many whole spices as possible, and blend the mixture to a smooth paste.” Do you mean blend the whole spices to a paste, or discard the whole spices and blend the remaining mixture to a paste?

    Reply

    • Hey Donna, I’m sorry thats not clear in the recipe. I mean that you should discard the whole spices and then blend it to a paste. Alternatively, you can also tie up the spices in a muslin cloth (like I’ve shown in the video) and discard them and then blend everything together.

      Reply

    • Hey Supriya, you can but I’m not a big fan of adding curd instead of cream. The curd might split because of the tomatoes, and will make this recipe really tart. If you don’t want to add cream, increase the cashews by a tablespoon or two to get the same creaminess.

      Reply

  59. Tried paneer butter masala and it turned out very delicious and creamy the way i wanted. Would like to have more recipies from you.

    ★★★★★

    Reply

    • Hey Sudhir, I have several mushroom recipes on the blog. Just go to the search bar and search for ‘mushroom’ and it should throw up all the relevant results.

      Reply

  62. I wasn’t able to quite reproduce the bland-yet-tasty flavour of panneer butter masala for a long time…this recipe is just perfect…! Everyone loved it so much and I finally got a site to follow for North Indian recipes, yayyy…surfing pasta recipes too..will comment after trying that out 🙂

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  67. Paneer is one of my favorite dishes and Thank you so much Richa for this fabulous recipe…I loved it so much….Such a great ful one…
    I have all my support with u sis..😊
    Keep rocking…..and waiting for your next crackers❤ …

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  69. Hy Richa!!
    I don’t have kashmiri chillies😕
    Can I use byadgi chilli???? If yes then how many byadgi chillies should I use??????

    Reply

    • Yes you can! Byadgi chillies are spicier so I would cut them to 2-3, but it totally depends on your taste. Also, the kashmiri chillies add to the colour which may not happen with byadgi chillies.

      Reply

  71. I wanted to cook Paneer yesterday hence I was searching for a recipe and came across your easy and simple recipe. I tried it and my Dad said that it tasted like it was brought from the restaurant. I brought some today for lunch and my office colleague also got confused and thought that it was brought from the restaurant.

    Thank you so much and I look forward to many more such recipes.

    Warm regards,

    Anindita

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  74. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe.. I am an amateur cook, I made it for my husband and he loved it 🙂

    Reply

  77. I tried this receipe & omg it was bomb! Bursting out with subtle flavours Mr.hubs was all impressed!! Thank you.

    Reply

  81. Absolutely delicious . Made this a few times now and love every bite. All my friends and family enjoy it aswell. Have shared with many people.

    ★★★★

    Reply

  83. Dear Madam,

    In description video, you have put one punch of cloth, what this? what ingredients having cloth? Kindly to be give reply in this regard and also thank you for such a great recipe

    Reply

  85. I tried it today….it was great and perfect panneer butter masala…loved it…thank you so much for the recipe

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  86. Amazing and easy reicpe! The whole family loved it. Only change I made was to add 1 tsp cumin powder.❤️

    ★★★★

    Reply

  89. Hey in this recipe you use onions but your makhani gravy recipe doesn’t mention onions. I’m super confused. Should I or should I not? That is the question 😜

    Reply

    • Hey Vee, I just have two slightly different recipes – one with onions and one without. You can use either of them because they both taste amazing! I hope you try it out!

      Reply

  91. Dear Rciha,
    I tried the Paneer Butter masala yesterday and it was yummy! the recipe was so simple , special focus on how easy you’ve explained it to us.
    Got a thumbs up from family !
    Thanks again Richa.

    Reply

  96. Niveditha, thank you so much! You made my day with your comment. So glad you liked it, and I hope you’ll try out other recipes from the blog 🙂

    Reply

  97. Hi this is the best makhni gravy that I have tried so far.. Thanks for posting it.. I have found my most favourite dish recipe so simple yet delicious.

    Reply

  99. Ooo oh my this looks good! And for so few calories I could enjoy this on my fast days! saving and making asap!

    Reply

  101. i absolutely loved it. Superb taste and texture. This will become my go to recipe. Thank you very much for sharing 🙂

    Reply

  102. This is one of my favorite Indian dishes Laura, and it’s actually one of the most popular ones in India. I hope you try it!

    Reply

  103. I love the sound of this – Indian comfort food. Although I haven’t made much Indian food (at least compared to other types)

    Reply

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