Mattar Paneer is known across India’s 23 official cuisine regions. this ‘cool’ curry’ goes by many names, and pops up in many different variants according to where you eat it. But whatever you call it or put in it, it’s just as delicious and nutritious!
This is one authentic, ancient curry that will appeal to almost everybody. It can be made not-too-hot, more or less umami-ish, or however you like it. It’s not dauntingly complex, doesn’t take hours to simmer, and it delivers a full nutritional protein complex as a one-pot meal.
As flexible as where you order it…
The official name of the source recipe is Mattar Paneer. That literally translates to ‘Peas and Cheese’. But you can use a number of other ingredients in place of the Paneer if it’s hard for you to get, or too expensive for your budget. You can substitute Tofu, of course – which should be your first-choice alternative. But you can also use any soft, fresh cheese available.
We’ve recently seen how easily Greek Halloumi, Paneer and Tofu can stand in for each other in other dishes. All are essentially blank flavour canvasses which can be marinated – or simply sauced – to complement almost any dish.
Tips…
As the source recipe states, “cumin seeds and aromatic garam masala shape the simple spicing.” The other ingredient vector consists of, “a simple onion-ginger-garlic [fresh] masala cooked with softened toma-toes.”
As we’ve recommended in reference to other Asian recipes recently, use store-bought, pre-blended garam masala to streamline the prep. Garam masala (see photo of basic ingredients, top of page) is just one of doaens of clasic Indian spice blends you’ll enclounter over and over again when preparing Asiab dishes.
But pay particular attention to the fresh/moist ingredients: onion, ginger, garlic, tomatoes and tomato paste, green peas and coriander. They’re important to the flavour, appearance and texture of the dish. Use frozen peas if you wish, and canned tomatoes. But use fresh garlic, ginger and onions.
Add as much or as little as you wish of the chili powder. I like this recipe specifically because it’s not ‘heat-forward’, the way so many other curries are.
And don’t forget to add the tsp. of sugar. It’s essential to round-out the flavour complex of this dish and unite all the other flavours in a coherent whole.
Serve over plain steamed white rice to create a vegetarian main delivering a complete dietary protein complex.
My take
I promised you more Asian dishes demonstrating how you can learn about plant-based foods while easing into a spicier culinary lifestyle!
Mattar Paneer is a great example of a rich, flavourful dish that doesn’t rely on an explosion of hot peppers to make its point. Rather, its deep, savoury umami-inspired character is more like the roasted meat experience most Western diners are used to.
Stay tuned for more specially-curated recipes designed to help you prep yourself and your family for our shared plant-based future…
~ Maggie J.