Collection of 88 Indian paneer recipes  Paneer or cottage cheese is an ingredient which is popular in the Indian vegetarian cuisine.

Paneer Recipes can be made in various ways, either as a dry curry, snack or with gravy. It can be combined with veggies like peas, potatoes, capsicum, spinach or even with mushroom.

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paneer recipes, indian paneer recipes, cottage cheese recipespaneer recipes, indian paneer recipes, cottage cheese recipes

To make the paneer recipes, you can either buy ready made cottage cheese from market or you can also Make paneer at home. I always prefer to make paneer at home since its cheaper and also more hygienic. Homemade paneer is softer and better than the store brought one.

Paneer is often made on festive or celebratory occasions. Also when there are guests at home. Some of the paneer recipes mentioned below can be made, when guests arriving or you want to make a special dish for an occasion.

All paneer recipes in this below collection are tried and tested. For ease of reading I have divided this Cottage cheese recipes collection into 6 categories in the following order:

  • Top 10 Paneer Recipes
  • 26 Paneer Gravy Recipes
  • 11 Paneer dry recipes
  • 30 Paneer snacks recipes
  • 4 Paneer recipes with rice
  • 8 Paneer sweets recipes

Top 10 Paneer Recipes

1. Paneer butter masala – an easy, quick and delicious recipe of paneer butter masala. Within minutes you can prepare this restaurant style paneer butter masala at home. This is a tried and tested foolproof recipe and is one of most popular cottage cheese recipe on the blog.

paneer butter masalapaneer butter masala

2. Palak paneer – this delicious palak paneer recipe is my mom’s version of making this dish. She has been making this recipe for years now. It has become a favorite with all of us.

palak paneerpalak paneer

3. Kadai paneer recipe – Restaurant style delicious semi dry curry made with paneer, capsicum and Indian spices. The flavors of this restaurant style kadai paneer recipe comes from freshly pounded coriander seeds and Kashmiri red chilies and yes adding freshly pounded spices do make a lot of difference to the food that we cook. I have shared 2 recipes in this post. The second recipe is of kadai paneer with gravy.

restaurant style kadai paneer reciperestaurant style kadai paneer recipe

4. Matar paneer – spiced and creamy curry made with green peas and cottage cheese. Its a simple and easy recipe for matar paneer.

matar paneer recipematar paneer recipe

5. Shahi paneer recipe – Shahi means royal and as the name suggest this is a royal paneer dish. Literally translated to royal cottage cheese. Dry fruits, yogurt, saffron, whole spices and sometimes cream is added to make this dish royal and rich.

shahi paneer recipeshahi paneer recipe

6. Malai kofta recipe – delicious melt in the mouth koftas in a creamy, rich, mild and lightly sweet gravy. Malai kofta is a popular as well as most sought after vegetarian Indian dish in restaurants.

malai kofta recipemalai kofta recipe

7. Chilli paneer recipe – One of the favorite dishes from Indo Chinese cuisine is chilli paneer. This chilli paneer recipe gives restaurant style taste and flavor. You can serve chilli paneer with Veg fried rice or Schezwan fried rice. In this post I have shared one more recipe of making street style chilli paneer dry.

chilli paneer restaurant style recipechilli paneer restaurant style recipe

8. Paneer tikka masala – This is a popular dish of marinated grilled cottage cheese cubes in onion-tomato yogurt based gravy. This recipe is pretty rich and heavy and tastes too good.

paneer tikka masala recipepaneer tikka masala recipe

9. Paneer tikka – spiced marinated grilled cottage cheese cubes. This popular and delicious tandoori snack can be easily made at home. paneer tikka is served with mint chutney.

Paneer tikkaPaneer tikka

10. Paneer bhurji – a popular North Indian breakfast recipe made from crumbled paneer. Bhurji means scrambled. so in this dish, the cottage cheese is scrambled. Best to have paneer bhurji hot with some bread or rolls or pav, rotis or parathas and a cup of hot tea. It can also be served as a side dish.

paneer bhurji recipepaneer bhurji recipe

27 Paneer gravy recipes

1. Paneer lababdar – easy to prepare restaurant style delicious paneer lababdar recipe. It is a popular paneer gravy dish and can be found on the menu of many restaurants. This recipe is more Punjabi style than Mughlai style with the use of onions, tomatoes, cashews and spices.

paneer lababdar recipepaneer lababdar recipe

2. Paneer pasanda – a rich and delicious restaurant-style recipe of shallow fried stuffed paneer sandwiches in a smooth, creamy onion-tomato based gravy.

paneer pasanda recipepaneer pasanda recipe

3. Paneer curry recipe – a rich and delicious cottage cheese curry made in an onion-tomato-cashew base. Along with paneer, you can also add some steamed green peas and potatoes in the recipe. This paneer masala gravy is best served with chapatis, rotis or naan or roomali roti.

paneer masala recipepaneer masala recipe
4. Paneer makhani – This is simple and easy to make delicious paneer makhani recipe. Succulently cooked cottage cheese cubes in a smooth sauce of tomatoes and cream, which is lightly spiced with a hint of tang and sweetness.

paneer makhani recipepaneer makhani recipe

5. Paneer Kolhapuri – Kolhapuri style delicious and spicy paneer gravy recipe. Kolhapuri cuisine is best known for its spicy, hot and robust flavors.

paneer Kolhapuri recipepaneer Kolhapuri recipe

6. Achari paneer – creamy as well as robust flavored paneer gravy with achari masala or pickling spices. This is a really good achari paneer recipe. The robustness of the pickling spices or achari masala makes its presence felt without getting overpowered.

achari paneer recipeachari paneer recipe

8. Instant Pot Chilli paneer gravy – This is a Chinese style recipe of cottage cheese cubes in a spicy, sour, sweet, umami chilli sauce. This is a fusion recipe having the best of both Indian and Chinese cuisine.

instant pot chilli paneer gravyinstant pot chilli paneer gravy

9. Paneer makhanwala – paneer in a buttery, creamy, tangy and mildly sweet sauce. This recipe has restaurant like flavors and taste. Paneer makhanwala and Veg makhanwala is often seen in the restaurant menus and liked by many people.

paneer makhanwala recipepaneer makhanwala recipe

10. Methi malai paneer – Creamy, mildly sweet gravy with hints of bitterness from methi leaves. The recipe uses fresh fenugreek leaves and I do suggest to add them. But if you are not able to get them, then substitute with dry fenugreek leaves or kasuri methi

methi malai paneer recipemethi malai paneer recipe

11. Paneer handi – It is a delicious and creamy gravy cooked in a handi. If you do not have a handi, then you can still make paneer handi in a pan or a kadai (wok). The gravy in this paneer recipe is made with a base of cashews, onions and tomatoes.

handi paneer recipehandi paneer recipe

12. Dhaba style matar paneer – delicious and spicy dhaba style matar paneer gravy recipe made with green peas and paneer. This matar paneer has the flavors and taste of dhaba like food in it. The recipe is also easy. I have made the entire recipe in a pan. But you can even use a pressure cooker to save time.

dhaba style matar paneer recipedhaba style matar paneer recipe

13. Paneer korma – Creamy, royal and delicately flavored delicious paneer korma with white gravy. This Mughlai white korma has a faintly sweet taste with a touch of sourness.

paneer korma recipepaneer korma recipe

14. Methi paneer – easy and delicious paneer gravy recipe with bitter hints of fresh fenugreek leaves in a tangy tomato based gravy. Apart from tomatoes even onions, curd and cream are added in the gravy. So the final Taste is like a restaurant style gravy.

methi paneer masala recipemethi paneer masala recipe

15. Aloo paneer – tasty and easy to prepare is this potato paneer curry that goes well with chapatis or rotis. The recipe shared here is Punjabi aloo paneer masala with a creamy and tangy onion-tomato based gravy.

aloo paneer recipealoo paneer recipe

16. Paneer kali mirch – one of the lesser known but equally tasty gravy based dish made with paneer is paneer kali mirch. Kalimirch or black pepper is the highlight of this restaurant style paneer recipe.

paneer kalimirch recipepaneer kalimirch recipe

17. Methi chaman – a delicious gravy based dish from the Kashmiri cuisine. Methi is fenugreek leaves and chaman is paneer in Kashmiri language. No onion no garlic recipe.

methi chaman recipemethi chaman recipe

18. Aloo matar paneer – a tasty curry made with paneer, potatoes and green peas in an onion-tomato base. This is a simple and easy paneer recipe with a home style taste.

aloo matar paneer gravyaloo matar paneer gravy

19. Paneer gassi recipe – A delicious paneer curry from the Mangalorean bunt cuisine. The gravy has complex and bold flavors. Lots of spices and coconut is used to make this aromatic paneer curry.

paneer gassi recipepaneer gassi recipe

20. Paneer schezwan – easy and quick recipe of spicy chilly paneer schezwan gravy. This is a spicy recipe as along with schezwan sauce, even green chillies are added. You can control the amount of schezwan sauce or green chilies you want to add and make a less spicy version.

paneer schezwan recipepaneer schezwan recipe

21. Mushroom Paneer – this paneer mushroom curry is a restaurant style recipe with a super delicious taste. The gravy is creamy, slightly tangy and mildly sweet with tender mushrooms and soft paneer in it.

mushroom paneer masala recipemushroom paneer masala recipe

22. Paneer bhurji gravy with curd – This is a spiced and easy to prepare scrambled cottage cheese in a gravy or curry base.. Fairly simple and easy and you don’t need to grind or puree anything. This recipe is my mom’s recipe of making the bhurji with a Tari or Rassa or gravy.

paneer bhurji recipepaneer bhurji recipe

23. No onion no garlic – paneer butter masala – Creamy, tangy and a spiced tomato and paneer based dish made without onion and garlic. You can make this recipe during Navratri fasting by skipping the asafoetida, garam masala powder, kasuri methi and adding rock salt instead of regular salt.

paneer butter masala recipepaneer butter masala recipe

24. No onion no garlic palak paneer – Tasty variation of palak paneer made without onion and garlic. Even without onion and garlic, this palak paneer tastes good.

palak paneer recipepalak paneer recipe

25. Palak kofta – this palak kofta curry has crispy soft paneer stuffed koftas dunked in a creamy onion-tomato gravy. This palak paneer kofta recipe has many textures and flavors. The umami flavor of spinach, the softness of paneer in the koftas blend very well with the lightly sweet and tangy tomato onion gravy.

palak kofta recipepalak kofta recipe

26. Chanar dalna recipe – a delicious curry made with fresh paneer and potatoes from the Bengali cuisine. This is also a no onion no garlic recipe and also called as niramish chanar dalna.

chanar dalna recipechanar dalna recipe

11 semi dry or dry paneer recipes

1. Paneer fry – a simple stir fry recipe made with paneer, onion, tomatoes and herbs-spices. Its easy and quick enough to prepare for those busy or hectic days. All the ingredients for this paneer fry recipe is easily available in an Indian kitchen.

paneer fry recipepaneer fry recipe

2. Malai paneer – soft, melt in the mouth creamy paneer recipe made easy and quick and also restaurant style. one of the best and quickest paneer recipes. the paneer cubes have a similar taste like that of malai paneer tikka.

malai paneer recipemalai paneer recipe

3. Tawa paneer masala – this delicious tawa paneer recipe is one of the easiest and quick paneer recipe you can prepare. A delicious semi dry paneer curry which can be cooked in less than 30 minutes. So easy that you can make these when you have unexpected guests at home or you want to cook something easy for dinner after a day’s hard work.

tawa paneer masala recipetawa paneer masala recipe

4. Paneer khurchan – easy, quick and delicious North Indian semi dry curry made with paneer in a onion-tomato-capsicum base. This is a North Indian Punjabi paneer recipe which at times you will find in dhabas and restaurants.

paneer khurchan recipepaneer khurchan recipe

5. Chole paneer – spicy and delicious Punjabi curry made with paneer and white chickpeas. This chole paneer recipe does not use any chole masala and nor do you need to grind any masala. Just the regular Indian spices are added to the gravy.

chole paneer masala recipechole paneer masala recipe

6. Paneer jalfrezi recipe – tangy, mild and semi dry dish of paneer cooked with vegetables. This is one more easy paneer recipe. The preparation work is just slicing the veggies and making the tomato puree. If you use ready made tomato puree, then the prep work is halved.

veg paneer jalfrezi recipeveg paneer jalfrezi recipe

7. Paneer do pyaza – a rich and tasty Mughlai dish of soft succulent cottage cheese and plenty of onions in a creamy gravy. Do pyaza means double the amount of onions or the onions are added twice. So if you like onions, then this dish is for you.

paneer do pyaza recipepaneer do pyaza recipe

8. Fried Mix Veg Sabzi with Paneer – The mixed vegetable sabzi made in punjabi style is creamy, mildly sweet and less spiced with a hint of sourness from the tomatoes and yogurt.

mix vegetable recipemix vegetable recipe

9. Dhingri dolma – mildly spiced, delicious mushroom paneer curry recipe from the Awadhi cuisine. its a really good dish of mushroom and paneer in a lightly spiced onion-tomato base.

mushroom paneer curry recipemushroom paneer curry recipe

10. Paneer peas bhurji – spicy blend of scrambled cottage cheese and peas with onions, green chilies, tomatoes and Indian spices.

matar paneer recipematar paneer recipe
11. Paneer palak bhurji – a healthy variation to the regular paneer bhurji recipe. the bhurji tasted good and goes well with chapatis.

palak paneer bhurji recipepalak paneer bhurji recipe

30 paneer snacks recipes

1. Aloo paneer ka kofta (no onion no garlic) – melt in the mouth soft texture koftas with a crisp exterior. These kofta can be made for fasting/vrat or during Navratri fasting or Ekadashi fasting. Just substitute the corn flour with fasting flours like water chestnut flour (singhare ka atta), buckwheat flour (kuttu ka atta) or arrow root flour.

aloo paneer kofta recipealoo paneer kofta recipe

2. Paneer cutlet with mix veggies – easy to prepare crisp and tasty cutlets made with paneer and mix vegetables. This paneer cutlet recipe is similar to the veg cutlet. Addition of paneer makes these cutlets have a soft texture and yet they are crisp from outside.

paneer cutlet recipepaneer cutlet recipe

3. Paneer sandwich – Simple, easy and tasty breakfast or snack idea of grilled paneer sandwich. These sandwiches taste best with fresh paneer. In this post, I have shared one more version of paneer sandwich with mix veggies.

paneer sandwich recipepaneer sandwich recipe

4. Paneer kulcha – leavened flatbreads stuffed with a spiced paneer filling. These kulchas remain soft even after cooking. Unlike aloo kulcha, paneer kulcha is bit dry. So its better to serve these paneer kulchas with chana masala. You can also serve with curd.

paneer kulcha recipepaneer kulcha recipe

5. Tawa Paneer tikka (on pan) – easy and fool proof recipe of a delicious paneer tikka on tawa or stove top or griddle. If you don’t have a tava then you can also make this tikka recipe in a frying pan.

paneer tikka recipe on stove toppaneer tikka recipe on stove top

6. Paneer manchurian – popular Indo Chinese snack of pan fried paneer cubes coated with a spicy, sweet and tangy sauce. The recipe post shares both dry and gravy version of Paneer manchurian.

dry paneer manchurian recipedry paneer manchurian recipe

7. Paneer 65 – quick and easy to make spicy paneer 65 recipe from Hyderabadi cuisine. In this recipe, I have kept everything easy and simple for a home cook.

paneer 65 recipepaneer 65 recipe

8. Paneer bread roll – this is a quick, easy and tasty snack recipe of spiced crumbled paneer stuffed in bread slices and then baked. No onion no garlic recipe.

paneer bread rolls recipepaneer bread rolls recipe

9. Achari paneer tikka – yet another variation of the popular paneer tikka flavored with pickling spices. if you enjoy biting into pickle and relishing the sour taste of lemon or mango then you will like this recipe.

achari paneer tikka recipeachari paneer tikka recipe

10. Paneer pakora – These tasty cottage cheese fritters are crisp from outside and soft from inside. You can have them as a snack or serve with rotis or bread.

paneer pakora recipepaneer pakora recipe

11. Instant paneer tikka (without curd) – this is a Quick recipe to make delicious paneer tikka at home. In this recipe, there is no time used up for marination. Just mix everything and then fry the tikka pieces individually or skewered in a tooth pic. The best part is you can shallow fry or pan fry the paneer tikkas. You can even fry the tikka on a tava or griddle.

instant paneer tikka recipeinstant paneer tikka recipe

12. Aloo Paneer tikki – an easy and quick recipe for making paneer tikki. It is very simple, quick and has both paneer and potatoes. If you do not have paneer, it alright. I made the same recipe minus paneer and it was great.

aloo paneer tikki recipealoo paneer tikki recipe

13. Paneer hariyali tikka on tawa – this tasty paneer hariyali tikka recipe is made on a tawa or pan. This recipe is simple and easy and gives a really good paneer tikka. Since the paneer cubes are pan fried, they also become crispy.

hariyali paneer tikka on tawa recipehariyali paneer tikka on tawa recipe

14. Paneer tikka pizza – looks daunting but trust me this desi pizza is very easy to prepare and taste yum. This delicious paneer tikka pizza is a must try for folks who like paneer, pizza and desi Indian flavors.

paneer tikka pizza recipepaneer tikka pizza recipe

15. Paneer paratha – Indian flatbread made with cottage cheese. Paneer paratha is one of the many popular paratha varieties from Punjab. Its an all time favorite paratha at home and is served in most restaurants as well as Punjabi dhabas (road side eateries).

paneer paratha recipepaneer paratha recipe

16. Amritsari paneer tikka – tasty starter snack of crisp shallow fried paneer cubes. The paneer cubes are marinated in a mixture of gram flour, spices, herbs and then fried. This tikka recipe comes from the city of Golden Temple – Amritsar in Punjab.

amritsari paneer tikka recipeamritsari paneer tikka recipe

17. Paneer pav bhaji – It is a variation of pav bhaji. There are some variations of pav bhaji which you will get in Mumbai and paneer pav bhaji is one of them.

Paneer Pav Bhaji RecipePaneer Pav Bhaji Recipe

18. Paneer pizza – this is a yum & delicious homemade pizza made with toppings of paneer and mix veggies. The recipe shared shows how to make the pizza dough and then bake the pizza in an oven.

paneer pizza recipepaneer pizza recipe

19. Paneer koliwada recipe – tasty snack made with marinated and batter coated fried paneer cubes. Serve paneer koliwada hot with a side of sliced onions, lemon wedges and mint chutney. Don’t forget to sprinkle some chaat masala

paneer koliwada recipepaneer koliwada recipe

20. Paneer palak kathi roll – easy to prepare and tasty palak paneer wraps. the palak paneer wrap recipe shared here is a simple yet delicious palak paneer bhurji stuffed in a roti wrap along with onions & cheese.

palak paneer kathi rolls recipepalak paneer kathi rolls recipe

21. Grilled Hariyali paneer tikka in oven – This paneer tikka is made with fresh green herbs which lend a green color to it and thus the name hariyali paneer tikka. The recipe I am sharing is a simple and easy recipe, but one which gives tasty paneer tikka.

hariyali paneer tikkahariyali paneer tikka

22. Paneer bhurji sandwich – this yummy sandwich is stuffed with spiced paneer bhurji and then toasted or grilled. this is a quick paneer recipe as making paneer bhurji does not take time. In case, you have already prepared paneer bhurji, then you just need to toast the sandwiches. these sandwiches are good for a quick brunch, lunch box or for a cocktail party.

paneer bhurji sandwich recipepaneer bhurji sandwich recipe

26. Paneer cheese cutlet – crisp and melt in the mouth are these pan fried cutlets made with paneer and mozzarella cheese. They are easy and quick to make and serve as a nice party snack or a finger food.

paneer cheese cutletpaneer cheese cutlet

27. Paneer cheese toast sandwich – an easy yet delicious toast sandwich that can be made are these cheesy, spiced paneer cheese toast recipe. the entire paneer cheese toast recipe is made on a tawa.

paneer cheese toast recipepaneer cheese toast recipe

28. Malai paneer tikka – a popular and delicious variety of paneer tikka that is served in restaurants is malai paneer tikka. Malai tikka has mild light flavors as compared to the regular paneer tikka.

malai paneer tikka recipemalai paneer tikka recipe

29. Paneer popcorn recipe – an easy to make crispy snack. These crunchy paneer bites can also be called as paneer nuggets. this recipe is lightly spiced and not spicy or pungent.

paneer popcorn recipe, paneer nuggets recipepaneer popcorn recipe, paneer nuggets recipe

30. Paneer peas toast sandwich – a simple and healthy toast sandwich recipe made with paneer, green peas and spices. This recipe makes for an easy brunch or snack.

matar paneer toast sandwich recipematar paneer toast sandwich recipe

4 paneer recipes with rice

1. Paneer fried rice – Indian inspired delicious recipe of a mildly spiced paneer fried rice with mixed veggies. Instead of paneer you can also use tofu. If you have leftover rice, then the recipe is easy and quick to make.

paneer fried rice recipepaneer fried rice recipe

2. Paneer pulao – aromatic, delicious and mildly spiced paneer pulao recipe. for this paneer pulao, I have ground whole spices to make a fragrant pulao masala. Its this masala, that gives a nice aromatic flavor to the pulao.

3. Paneer biryani – This is a mildly spiced and delicious dum cooked layered paneer biryani. Easy recipe as you just need to marinate the paneer cubes, layer with cooked rice and then dum cook. Serve paneer biryani with raita like a onion-tomato raita or cucumber raita or boondi raita.

paneer biryani recipepaneer biryani recipe

4. Pressure cooker paneer biryani – a relatively easy and foolproof recipe of preparing delicious paneer biryani in pressure cooker. This biryani is layered and has the flavors of a dum cooked biryani.

paneer biryani in pressure cooker recipepaneer biryani in pressure cooker recipe

8 sweets recipes made with paneer

1. Kalakand sweet – two ingredient kalakand or Indian milk cake recipe in 15 minutes. only two ingredients are required sweetened condensed milk and paneer or chenna.

kalakand recipekalakand recipe

2. Gulab jamun recipe – an easy recipe of gulab jamun made with khoya or evaporated milk, paneer and all purpose flour (maida). these soft sugar syrup soaked balls are a treat always.

gulab jamun recipegulab jamun recipe

3. Kala jamun – easy and delicious recipe of kala jamuns made with khoya and paneer. these kala jamuns stay well for about a week in the fridge.

kala jamun recipekala jamun recipe

4. Malai ladoo – easy and delicious two ingredient malai or paneer ladoo recipe. These malai ladoos stay good for 4 to 5 days in the fridge.

malai ladoo recipemalai ladoo recipe

5. Paneer barfi – one easy recipe of soft sweet fudge made with cottage cheese, condensed milk and cream.

paneer barfi recipepaneer barfi recipe

6. Dry Jamun – these delicious dry gulab jamuns are made with khoya (evaporated milk solids) and paneer. Dry is the english word for ‘sukha’ in hindi. As the name suggests these jamuns do not have sugar syrup served with them. Hence these gulab jamuns are known as sukha jamuns.

dry gulab jamun recipedry gulab jamun recipe

7. Paneer kheer – quick and easy paneer kheer flavored with cardamom powder, saffron and rose water. Always use fresh milk while making this kheer.

paneer kheer recipepaneer kheer recipe

8. Chhena poda – It is a delicious dessert popular in Odisha. Its made with chenna or fresh paneer. The entire dish is baked and can also be called paneer cake. Its also said that chhena poda is the favorite sweet of Lord Jagannath (the presiding deity of Puri Jagannath Temple in Odisha). Chena poda is also made during festivals like Diwali or Durga Puja.

chhena poda recipechhena poda recipe