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Shilpa

Instant Pot Paneer Lababdar - Easy Paneer Lababdar

Now let’s get to making this awesome dish! I hope you and your family will enjoy this as much as my family does.
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Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Cooling time 8 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings: 6
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Indian, North Indian
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

For the Paste
For the Gravy
  • 3 tbsp oil of choice or ghee (clarified butter)
  • 1 dried bay leaf (tej patta)
  • 1/2 onion finely chopped (red) (roughly ¾ cup chopped)
  • 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste (fresh or packaged)
  • 1 serrano pepper green chili pepper slit lengthwise into 2 halves (green chili pepper)
  • 1 tsp ground coriander (dhaniya powder)
  • 1/2 tsp ground cumin (jeera powder)
  • 1/2 tsp garam masala
  • 1/2 tsp red chili powder (ground cayenne pepper)
  • 3/4 cup water
  • 1 and 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp sugar
  • 1 12 oz pack of paneer cubed into 1.5 inch pieces (2 cups chopped)
  • 2 tbsp grated paneer (1 piece)
  • 2 tbsp dried fenugreek leaves (kasoori methi)
  • 3 tbsp heavy whipping cream
  • 1 tbsp fresh cilantro finely chopped (for garnish) (dhainya ke patte)

Method
 

Prep
  1. Wash and finely chop the onions, and cilantro. 
  2. Slice a one inch piece of the paneer and grate it.
  3. Dice all the remaining paneer into 1 inch cubes.
  4. Wash and slit the serrano pepper into two halves lengthwise.
  5. Wash and dice the tomatoes into small pieces.
Paste
  1. Select sauté on the instant pot and adjust to normal.
  2. Add the tomatoes, water, cashews, cinnamon stick, cloves, green cardamom, and whole dried chili peppers to the pot.
  3. Let the ingredients sauté until the mix get mushy for about 3 to 4 minutes. Stir.
  4. Press cancel.
  5. Let it cool for a few minutes. Transfer the paste in a blender and grind it to a fine paste.
Gravy
  1. Rinse the inner pot with water and dry it with a napkin.
  2. Select sauté on the instant pot and adjust to normal.
  3. Add ghee or oil to the pot.
  4. Add the dried bay leaf to the pot.
  5. When the ghee or oil is hot add the onions.
  6. When the onions turn golden in roughly 2 to 4 minutes add the ginger garlic paste and serrano pepper (green chili pepper). Stir and sauté for 30 seconds.
  7. Then add the blended paste to the pot. Stir
  8. Add ground coriander, cumin, garam masala, and cayenne pepper (red chili powder). Let the mixture sauté for one minute. Keep stirring occasionally.
  9. Then add water, salt, and sugar. Sauté for another minute. Keep stirring. Add the chopped paneer and stir gently.
  10. Make sure nothing is stuck to the bottom of the pot and scrape the bottom of the pot well.
  11. Press cancel. 
  12. Secure the lid on the pot and close the pressure-release valve.
  13. Select manual and cook at high pressure for 2 minutes. 
  14. When cooking is complete, use quick pressure release to depressurize.
  15. Open the lid.
  16. Add the dried fenugreek leaves, heavy whipping cream and the grated paneer. Stir and mix well.
  17. Cover with a lid and let it sit for 5 minutes.
  18. Transfer in a serving bowl. 
Serve
  1. Discard the bay leaf and garnish with cilantro. 
  2. Serve with naan (Indian flat-bread), steamed rice, or roti.

Notes

  • This recipe has been tried on a 6-quart instant pot. The proportions may vary depending on the size of the instant pot you choose to use.
  • Most ingredients can be found in an Indian grocery store or on Amazon.
  • Ground cayenne pepper and red chili powder can be used interchangeably as both of them make the dish spicy. So if you don’t have red chili powder you can use ground cayenne pepper instead.