Paneer Butter Masala is an authentic Indian main course. It is a delicious and creamy curry with paneer and goes well with tandoori roti, butter naan or plain rice. Paneer butter masala has a yellow gravy base made with tomatoes and cashews. The yellow gravy has a subtly sweet taste and creamy texture. Today I am going to show you how to make an authentic restaurant-style Indian Paneer butter masala and tandoori roti using a pan. This curry has been a staple gravy from the time kings ruled India. Above all, Its rich texture and flavour have a special place In Indian cuisine.

Personally, paneer butter masala has been my go-to comfort food when I am tired and need to make something quick. As a matter of fact, there are so many variations to make this luscious gravy. But today I am going to show you how to make this mouth-watering dish – the restaurant style. Paneer is a dairy product made from cow or buffalo milk. If you prefer the vegan option, you can always opt to replace paneer with other items, for example – tofu. The yellow gravy used in this recipe is surprisingly versatile. It can be used to make butter chicken and mixed vegetable curry. Although, I personally prefer panner instead of tofu.

How to make Paneer Butter Masala restaurant-styled

Traditional panner butter masala is not supposed to be spicy. If you are someone who prefers spicy gravy, you can add more chilli powder or green chillis. However, if you want to try something spicier, you can make this delicious Kadai paneer recipe. Tandoori roti is an Indian flat bread. However, restaurant-style tandoori roti is made in a huge clay oven called tandoor. Understandably If you do not have a tandoor at home, do not fret. I am going to show you how to make restaurant-style tandoori roti without a clay oven. we can use a pan or a tawa to make this roti and trust me, it will be just as delicious.

Let us jump right to the recipe

For Making Paneer Butter Masala with Tandoori Roti

Ingredients

For Making Paneer Butter Masala 

•  ½ cup Oil 
•  2 tbsp Butter
•  ¼ cup Cream
•  500 grams Paneer (Cut into cubes )
•  50 grams Cashew
•  2 Onions (Big )
•  3 Tomatoes (Big )
•  4-5 Red chillies (Dried )
•  Salt to taste
•  1 tbsp Chilli powder 
•  1 tbsp Ginger Garlic Paste 
•  2-3 tbsp Khus Khus
•  1 tbsp Kasuri Methi
•  1 Bay Leaf 
•  ½ tbsp Jeera
•  2-3 Cloves
•  1 Cardamom

For Making Tandoori Roti 

• 1 ½ cup Whole Wheat Flour 
• ½ cup All Purpose Flour 
• ¼ tbsp Salt 
• ¼ tbsp Baking Soda
• ¼ tbsp Oil
• Water (as needed)
• ¼ cup Curd

Instructions

How to make Paneer Butter Masala 

• Firstly, Take a pan and add roughly chopped onions, tomatoes, cashews, all the dry spices, ½ tbsp salt, Red chillies, ginger garlic paste, Khus Khus and ¼ cup water. 
• Now, simmer the mixture. Importantly, make sure the tomatoes and onions are well cooked 
• let the mixture cool down. 
• Then blend the mixture to make a smooth paste. This would be your yellow gravy base.
• Now, Take another pan, and add some butter and oil to it. Then, add ½ tbsp red chilli powder to the butter and oil. 
• Next, add the yellow gravy to the pan and let it simmer for 5 minutes. 
• After the oil separates, add the paneer pieces and let it cook for another 2 minutes. 
• Next, crush the kasuri methi and add it to the curry. 
• Top it off by adding ¼ cup of cream. You can check the taste and add salt accordingly. 
• Paneer Butter Masala is done and ready to be served

How to make Tandoori Roti 

• Firstly, take a bowl and add all-purpose flour, salt, whole wheat flour, baking soda and curd. Mix it well. 
• Now knead the dough and add water accordingly. 
• Let the dough rest for ½ an hour 
• Next, divide the dough into smaller portions and flatten it using a rolling pin.
• After flattening the dough brush some water on one side of the roti 
• For this step, do not use a non-stick pan. Place the roti on the pan and turn it upside down to face the flame and let it cook until it is golden brown colour. 
• Brush the roti with butter. Serve it hot. (optional)
• Enjoy hot paneer butter masala with tasty tandoori roti.

Conclusion and tips for making Paneer Butter Masala

As I said earlier, the yellow gravy made in this recipe can be used to make many dishes. Personally, I like to store the gravy to make quick curries. Whenever I have leftover chicken, I pan fry it and add it to this gravy to make delicious butter chicken. However, It is only a quick hack to make butter chicken and is not an authentic recipe. Although you can use store-bought paneer if you are feeling a little adventurous, you can make it at home. Click here to learn how to make paneer at home!

When making paneer butter masala, you can add 1 tablespoon of tomato ketchup if you like a sweet and tangy flavour. However, I personally do not prefer it. If you like the gravy to be a little tangy and sweet comparatively, you can opt to add some ketchup to it. By all means, you can add cream and butter according to your personal liking. Moreover, If you like the gravy to be sweeter and creamier, you can add more butter and cream. If you are health conscious, you can use non-fat cream and opt out of using butter.

As mentioned before, you can eat paneer butter masala with roti or rice. If you decide to make tandoori roti at home, do not forget to use a stainless steel pan or an iron cast pan. If you use a non-stick pan, when you invert the pan to sear the roti, it might fall. Always brush one side of the roti with water so that it will stick to the pan and does not fall when you are searing it.

Try this recipe at home and let us know in the comments below. Until then, Happy cooking!