The Recipe
Makes: 200g
Cooking Time: 30 minutes
Setting Time: 40 minutes
Paneer is a fresh cheese commonly used in South Asian cuisine, particularly in Indian dishes. It is made by curdling milk with lemon juice, vinegar, or other acidic ingredients, then straining and pressing the resulting curds.
Paneer is a fresh cheese that requires no rennet or aging time to set. It is a type of ‘cottage cheese’ that is very common in both Southern and Northern Indian cuisine. In the Northern Indian sub continents (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh), paneer is more commonly known as chhena where it is predominately made with buffalo milk and used to make desserts. Chhena has a softer texture than paneer - is not set as hard as some of the moisture is retained.
Paneer is very easy to make by separating the curds from the whey in milk with an acid element such as lemon juice or vinegar. If you don’t have the time to make paneer or really couldn’t be bothered – queso blanco is a good substitute.
INGREDIENTS
1 litre of FRESH milk
2-3 tsp lime juice or lemon juice, depending on what flavour you prefer
METHOD
Boil the milk. When the milk starts to boil, add the lime juice and stir constantly. Wait a few minutes and if the milk does not curdle, add a little more juice. (How easy)
When the milk starts to curdle (you will be looking at a thick white mass at the top and a greenish-yellow liquid at the bottom), remove it immediately from the heat.
You can then strain the milk into a fine cheesecloth with a bowl underneath to catch the water. You can use the water to make almond milk, add it to soups, or whatever your heart so desires.
Squeeze the whey gently to remove any excess liquid pushing downwards. Be careful not to burn yourself as the paneer will be very hot!!
Secure the cheesecloth and place it on a plate with something heavy resting on top of it while it sets. The setting time should take about 30-40 minutes
You can use the paneer straight away or store it in the fridge which will last 2-3 days. Store in a sealed container.
NOTE: If you wish to keep the paneer soft, store some of the liquid that was drained from the cooked paneer. Once the milk starts to curdle you should take it off the heat unless you wish a harder-set cheese.
Throw the paneer into a palak paneer, and eat it with freshly grilled peaches or on its own!
The paneer will taste very neutral so feel free to throw in some herbs, salt, pepper or sugar.
