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HOW TO MAKE PANEER (HOMEMADE PANEER)

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         Homemade-paneer-recipe

    This is the first time I am making paneer at home, other than I made it for making Rasgulla. That is this is the first time I am setting paneer and made to cubes. Here paneer is bit expensive and also cannot rely on a specific brand. The place where I shop always changes the brand they are selling, so get puzzled at the ingredients and the quality. I love amul paneer but its been ages since they kept it here for sale. After that tried few unknown brands and was not that satisfied.I then liked kohinoor paneer, but they stopped keeping that too. From that time onwards I used to think I should try making at home. But always wondered, 1 litre milk makes only this much paneer? But not bad you know, its enough to make once any paneer dish, that serves 2-3.
  So for first time I am very much satisfied with the results and I am sure I can make this often. This time I was not patient enough to leave it, I kept on checking if the paneer is set or no and learnt few lessons. Next time I am sure I can make it perfect… Don’t forget to check out the notes section.
how-to-make-paneer-at-home

Ingredients(to make 30 small cubes)

Milk (I used full cream) 1 litre
Curd 1/4 cup
Ice cubes few

 

Method

  1. Boil milk and add beaten curd to the boiling milk.1-paneer
  2. Continue heating until milk completely curdles and you could see the whey water getting separated completely. Switch off the stove and add ice cubes.2-paneer
  3. Now take a cheese cloth or thin dupatta and strain the paneer. I did this with the cloth over a metal strainer and a bowl below to collect the whey water.3-paneer
  4. Squeeze the excess water and hang it above the sink(or in the sink tap).4-paneer
  5. Let the excess water drip completely. Say for 2 hours. I squeeze gently twice in between. 5-paneer
  6. Place it in a flat platform and keep a flat weight over it. I used an iron dosa pan and a pestle to press the paneer for setting it.6-paneer
  7. Wait for 3 hours or more to set it and then cut into stripes using knife. You can refrigerate before cutting and cut when ever you are going to use the paneer.7-paneer
  8. Then cut into small cubes and store in the fridge in a ziploc. (Use within 2-3 days)8-paneer

This can be enough to serve 2 people if you make any gravy with it. To use it from freezer/ fridge, just immerse in hot water(not boiling) until you use. Will post an all time favourite recipe next week with paneer ~ Paneer butter masala :):)
homemade-paneer

Notes
  • Sometimes, depending upon the cloth you use for hanging the paneer, some cloth retains water.So you  may need to squeeze the excess water now and then.
  • Make sure to hang for at least 3 hours. And also setting time at least 3 hours. More the time, better the texture of the paneer to get smoothness.
  • You can knead the chenna (paneer separated from whey) after step 5 to make the paneer smooth. Also you can blend in a mixer.Setting time may be more if you blend in mixer.
  • If the cloth is not tight enough to hold the shape in the sides, then sides may be bit crumbly.
  • If using iron pan or anything make sure to put a tissue above the cloth before you place the weight. This prevents any dirt sticking over the cloth/paneer.
  • You can use lemon juice form a lemon to curdle the milk instead of curd. But number of paneer cubes may reduce. Use more curd as mentioned to curdle properly.
  • You can add 1/2 tsp of corn flour or all purpose flour(maida) in milk. This is used as binding agent and also prevents the paneer from crumbling.
  • Colour of the paneer may vary with the milk type we use.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  7. Adding curd to curdle the milk is new to me..I have used lemon juice only..shall try this while making paneer next time!

    பனீரை அழகா கட் பண்ணிருக்கீங்க ராஜி! 🙂

    Reply

  19. I too learned to make paneer after many trials. Even today, the quantity and quality depends on the milk we use. I somehow do not get much while using the tetra pack ones as much as you would with fresh milk/ Aavin in India. However, a friend suggested making with powder milk….should I give it a try, t shall share that!
    Your tip of adding ice cubes is excellent.

    Reply

  21. Dear Raks I have visited ur site a lot of times . Very nice recipes . I am also residing in Singapore . Let me know what milk u used for making these perfect Paneer cubes dear .

    Reply

  22. பன்னீர் பார்க்கவே அழகா இருக்கு… இந்த முறையில் பன்னீர் செய்து, எத்தனை நாட்கள் ப்ரீசர்-ல் வைத்து யூஸ் பண்ணலாம் ?
    An useful post…. thanks for sharing raji…

    Reply

  28. Cant say you are making it for the first time..Perfect cubes!!! I have been planning to try n make homemade paneer too…Till now I have relied on Amul or nilgiris brand..But your homemade ones look so much more better…
    Prathima Rao
    Prats Corner

    Reply

  37. raks, I dont think Walmart sells curd. If I DO use lemon juice, is it still 1/4 cup? Thanks. There is ONE indian place here in my town and I sooo love it. The problem is that I am on a reduced salt diet so I cant go very often. I am starting to buy indian spices and trying some recipes at home. My GF loves the peas paneer and being able to make it at home would be great. Looking forward to making the homemade paneer.

    Reply

  38. No No. if it is lemon juice, use a whole lemon, that should be enough to curdle. Once it starts curdling, continue heating so that whey separates completely and then immediately add ice cubes. Wash thoughroughly to get rid of lemon smell and tangy-ness. Let it be hanged as mentioned, knead well until smooth then compress for solid hours to get it done. Hope this helps.

    Reply

  39. Hi! nice blog u have got there….great paneer recipes too. I tried to make paneer at home with yogurt. And to make sure it stays firm I used a little of corn flour and kneaded the paneer and then it it set before cutting into pieces. however, storing paneer in zip log turned the edges of paneer yellow, so I shifted to an air tight container with water in it…and the paneer was great even after 2 days…..

    Reply

  41. HII!! I was looking for Potato Fry when I chanced upon your website and I'm SO GLAD that I did!! Loving all your paneer recipes and it seems so much simpler than other recipes! Also, the quantities are perfect as I just got married and there's only 2 of us at home! And we live in Singapore too so ingredients and all should be easy to find 🙂

    Anyway regarding this recipe:
    1. What brand milk do you use? I use Farmhouse to make yoghurt at home. Should I use the same?
    2. Where do you buy the cheese cloth needed for this?
    3. When adding ice cubes to the mixture, will they melt into it and cause dilution? Or is that the intended effect?

    Can't wait to try out all your delicious recipes!!

    Reply

  42. Hi Archana, Thanks for your appreciation 🙂

    You can use any brand milk, even fresh milk works fine.
    I just used my thin white dupatta for this. SO any thin white cloth is fine.
    Adding Ice cubes wont dilute, it makes the chenna stiff actually. The step is optional, you can skip that too.

    Reply

  45. Hi rak's

    ur recepies are amazing.
    I tried some of ur baking recepies it came out good.
    And i tried ur chilli paratha in my version using chapathis it came out really good(as i didnt had parathas)

    Can i use fat free milk for making paneer will the amount i get from fat free milk will be less.Once i tried making paneer with fat free milk amount of paneer i got was so less. i used only some drops of lemon juice in it. Thanks in advance

    Reply

  57. I have been seeing your blog for sometime now. It is very good. All recipes are quite helpful for working moms like me. I have made panner using this recipe twice till now. It was awesome both the times. Now am wondering how v used to eat that store bought which is so rubbery and tasteless.I had tried earlier to make paneer but it was a flop.I was little skeptical to try again but am so happy i did. Thank u so much for this recipe and this blog.

    Reply

  65. Hi Raks, I've been following your blog and tried many recipes.. Your steps are very easy to follow w/ amazing pictures.. Can you tell me when should we be adding cornflour/maida? – Before boiling the milk or After adding the curd?

    Reply

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