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chilli paneer gravy recipe, how to make chilli paneer gravy | paneer chilli gravy

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chilli paneer
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chilli paneer gravy recipe with step by step photos – chilli paneer gravy is one of the most sought after indo chinese recipe.

this spicy chilli paneer is one of my favorite recipe too. i have to admit that i was never a huge fan of paneer. but one paneer dish that i really loved was chilli paneer. i remember going to any restaurant for dinner and without fail i would order chilli paneer with some naan or tandoori rotis.

here is my version of making this famous indo chinese recipe at home. this is a not a dry recipe of chilli paneer but the gravy version. if you want to make the dry version then kindly check this:

i used home made paneer to make the spicy chilli paneer. you can also use good quality store brought paneer.

i generally don’t add msg – mono sodium gluatamate or chinese salt to any of the indo chinese recipes i make at home. so the taste will be not restaurant style or like the chinese food we get at the chinese food stalls in india. nevertheless they are healthier and nutritious.

chilli paneer recipe

i made this chilli paneer gravy for hubby as he loves paneer dishes. chilli paneer is also hubb’s fav dish.

now an indo chinese recipe of chilli paneer gravy with naan is a unusual combo. but let me tell you it is a made for each other combo. when you dunk the naan in the umami & spicy gravy, take a bit of the green chilies and the soft succulent paneer in the naan and have it… you will know why their combo is awesome.

if you are looking for more indo chinese recipes then do check:

chilli paneer gravy recipe below:

chilli paneer recipe

chilli paneer gravy recipe | paneer chilli gravy recipe

chilli paneer recipe - a spicy and saucy indo chinese recipe of chilli paneer (cottage cheese)

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course main course
cuisine indo chinese
prep time 30 minutes
cook time 30 minutes
total time 1 hour
servings 2 to 3
calories 672 kcal
author dassana amit

ingredients (1 cup = 250 ml)

for frying the paneer:

  • 200 grams paneer (cottage cheese)
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper powder or crushed pepper (kali mirch powder)
  • 2 tablespoon corn flour (corn starch)
  • salt as required
  • oil for frying paneer as required

for chilli paneer gravy (sauce)

  • 1 tablespoon soya sauce
  • ½ tablespoon chopped celery OR 2 teaspoon dry celery
  • 2 crushed schezuan pepper
  • ¼ cup chopped spring onions (scallions) - reserve some greens for garnishing
  • ½ tablespoon chopped ginger-garlic
  • 4 to 5 green chilies
  • ¼ cup sliced capsicum (bell pepper or shimla mirch)
  • ½ teaspoon vinegar
  • ¾ to 1 cup veg stock or water
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper powder or crushed black pepper (kali mirch powder)
  • 2 tablespoon sesame oil
  • 1 tablespoon corn flour dissolved in 2 tablespoon water - for the corn flour paste
  • salt as required
  • sugar as required

how to make recipe

frying paneer:

  1. mix the paneer with black pepper powder, salt and corn flour.
  2. shallow or deep fry till done.
  3. don't overfry as the paneer might become hard.
  4. since we coat cornflour you won't be seeing the paneer as browned.
  5. so don't keep on frying to make it golden brown. the paneer will become hard.

making chilli paneer gravy (sauce):

  1. heat sesame oil. now add the spring onions/scallions and stir fry till they become transparent.
  2. add the ginger-garlic and stir fry till the raw smell disappears.
  3. add the capsicum and green chilies and stir fry till the capsicum is half cooked.
  4. add black pepper & crushed schezuan pepper. pour the veg stock or water. add celery and stir.
  5. add soy sauce, sugar, black pepper, red chilli powder and salt. simmer.
  6. add cornflour paste. stir well and let the sauce thicken.
  7. add the fried paneer cubes and simmer them in the sauce for 1-2 minutes.

  8. garnish chilli paneer gravy with spring onion greens and serve chilli paneer hot with veg fried rice.

recipe notes

  1. to make the chilli paneer gravy or sauce more thick, add some more cornflour paste.
  2. if the gravy has become too thick, then add some veg stock or water to thin it down.

rough nutrition info per serving:

Nutrition Facts
chilli paneer gravy recipe | paneer chilli gravy recipe
Amount Per Serving
Calories 672 Calories from Fat 513
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 57g 88%
Saturated Fat 18g 90%
Cholesterol 66mg 22%
Sodium 3512mg 146%
Potassium 86mg 2%
Total Carbohydrates 25g 8%
Dietary Fiber 3g 12%
Sugars 6g
Protein 15g 30%
Vitamin A 7.6%
Vitamin C 34.1%
Calcium 48.9%
Iron 2.2%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.


how to make chilli paneer gravy recipe:

1: in a bowl take the cornflour and salt. toss the paneer pieces in this mixture well so that the cornflour coats the paneer cubes well.

paneer pieces for chilli paneer recipe

2: shallow fry or pan fry the paneer cubes. the corn flour coating gives a nice white color to the paneer.

frying paneer for chilli paneer recipe

3: drain on kitchen paper tissues.

fried paneer for chilli paneer recipe

4: heat sesame oil and stir fry the spring onions till transparent.

fry onions for chilli paneer gravy recipe

5: add the chopped ginger, garlic. stir fry till the raw aroma of these disappear.

add garlic to chilli paneer gravy recipe

6: now add the capsicum and green chilies.

add chilles to chilli paneer curry recipe

7: stir fry these.

making chilli paneer gravy recipe

8: stir fry till the capsicum is almost half cooked and add black pepper & crushed schezuan pepper. if you don’t have schezuan pepper, then just don’t add.

stir to make chilli paneer recipe

9: add veg stock or water along with some fresh or dry celery. i have added dry celery (sun dried at home)

chilli paneer recipe gravy

10: add soy sauce, salt, sugar and simmer.

soy sauce to make chilli paneer recipe

11:  add corn starch paste to thicken the gravy.

corn paste to make chilli paneer recipe

12: i also felt that i needed to add some red chilli powder as well. so here goes the red chilli powder.

red chilli to make chilli paneer recipe

13: simmer till the corn starch gets cooked and the gravy is thickened. then add vinegar and the fried paneer cubes.

chilli paneer recipe preparation

14: lastly simmer chilli paneer gravy for 1-2 minutes. don’t simmer for long as then the paneer cubes can get hard or chewy.

recipe of chilli paneer gravy

15: serve the chilli paneer garnished with scallion greens with schezwan fried rice or corn fried rice or naan. i served the chilli paneer gravy with veg fried rice.

chilli paneer recipe, chili pnaeer gravy recipe




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Reader Interactions

{ 85 Responses }

  2. hello dassana,
    I have one question, can I use arrowroot powder in place of corn starch or corn flour.
    I want to make this dish on my father’s b’day.
    regards.

  3. Super recipes all are delicious and very mouthwatering one’s.
    All your recipes are healthy. 😍👌👌👌🙏

  7. Thanks. I made chilly paneer today n added 1 tspn tomato ketchup. it was very tasty n every body liked it. Especially my brother, father and mom really appreciate me.

  10. awesome fantastic dish – made it for my wife this morning and she loved it – thank you so much from Canada 🙂

  11. Hi Dassana,

    I made chilli paneer to go with fried rice (as mentioned in your site). However, the pungent quotient was a bit high. Next time, shall avoid chilli powder.

    Quick, easy and tasty recipe though 🙂

    Thanks!

    • thanks sulekha. the heat or pungent quotient is relative to taste. for some people even a bit of chilies or chili powder, becomes too much spicy or hot. this also depends on the kind of chili powder we use. if you use a mild chili powder, then you won’t feel it to be spicy. next time you can add less chilies, both the green chilies and red chili powder, so that is suits you and your family member.

  13. Would like to give this 5 stars – 10 even but the page will only show 4.
    So very delicious, we devoured it in minutes and could have gone again! Will become a regular dish in this household. Thank you.

  14. Hello!

    After frying paneer into golden red colour, paneer has become hard.

    How to make softer paneer

    • if the paneer are fried too much, they become hard. a tip is to soak the fried paneer cubes in warm water for 5 minutes. then remove them and slightly squeeze them and add them to the gravy or sauce.

  19. Chilli paneer and fried rice combination was awesome. Wife liked it very much

  21. Your way of cooking is really very easy and the method you choose to tell the recipe will also get positive comments. I am gonna try this tonight for sure. Thank you. (Hope my hubby likes it too).

  22. Hey,

    Tried ur recipe . Everybody loved it 🙂
    Wanted to ask 1 thing- do you recommend chinese sauces of particular brand coz mine dont really have much taste! !

  26. Wonderful recipe….I was thinking of making it for my daughter’s bday party. What preparations can I do in advance ?

  28. hey! Thanks for such an Awesome Recipe! This was my first biggest dish ever made! For the Account I’m 17!
    Everybody at my place loved it!!!
    Thank you Very Much Again!!!!

  29. I am a big fan of your website and decided to try the chilli paneer. The problem was no matter how much cornflour i added the consistency of the gravy remained same. What do you think went wrong during the preparation? I use olive oil instead of sesame oil.

    • thanks aarti. you added cornflour or corn starch. corn starch is white in color. in india corn starch is called as corn flour, so i have to use this word in the recipes. whereas corn flour is yellow in color and in india we call it maize flour or makki ka atta. it has got nothing to do with oil.

  31. Hi, your recipe looks awesome. I am thinking of making it as my husband is fond of Indian Chinese but can I fry the paneer and freeze it and use later to make chili paneer as and when he demands for his fav food
    Thanks

  34. Ur dish is awesome dassana….bt I hav a very stupid ques to ask that what is celery and instead of using spring onions can we use onions simple….??

    • hi parul. celery is a herb that is used in european and chinese cooking. like how we use coriander and mint in indian food. in the same way herbs like celery, parsley, basil, rosemary, thyme etc are used in world cuisine. the celery stem is used and not the leaves. here’s a lot of info on celery – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celery

      you can use onions instead of spring onions. in fact even in restaurants, they add onions instead of spring onions. just skip the celery if you don’t have it.

    • prashanth, for dry chilli paneer you don’t need to add corn flour paste and water. after you add the paneer to the fried chilies and onions, just sprinkle little bit of corn flour and add stir for a couple of minutes. this will give a glaze and smoothness to the paneer. you can also sprinkle some drops of water and saute for a couple of minutes.

  36. Tried your recipe for chilli paneer. The step by step method made it so much easy and simple to cook and the dish came out perfect. Thank you.

  41. this might sound stupid but i always wonder what is the difference in paneer manchurian and chilli paneer. they are almost identical when i see the recipes.

    • there is a difference in what i have seen in the way these two dishes are prepared. in chilli paneer, there are a lot of green chillies added as compared to the paneer manchurian. also in manchurian, tomato sauce is added which is not added in chilli paneer.

  46. this is in my list for long time but don’t get chance to make it soon. this looks really delicious. I am not big fan of indo chinese but my hubby is. So now i have to make it for him.