Paneer Butter Masala with a Chance of Chicken Pieces!

Mothers are great time and money savers. Mothers like me use that saved up time and money to do things they like! Like shopping for their little bub.

Remember the Anaarkali Butter Chicken from the other day?

Well, I saved its leftover gravy/sauce for a day like today. Sunny, bright, warm at eight degrees. Perfect to go out for a stroller walk. Little time to spend in the kitchen.

I work well when I get my dose of vitamin D. That affects the way I think. And today I came up with an award-winning idea of making paneer a little differently. To go into the leftover butter chicken gravy. This is how meals on the spur are made in my home now that I have a baby who vies for attention all the time.

I boiled three litres of whole milk. While the milk was bubbling, I added about four tablespoons of white vinegar to curdle the milk.

I quickly chopped some fresh coriander leaves, about 10 raisins and crushed some kasuri methi to add to my paneer. No pre-meditated thought about these ingredients. I just thought that they would go well with the butter chicken gravy.

As soon as I added the herbs, I turned the heat off and mixed everything well. I wanted to retain the color of the coriander.

A colander lined with two layers of cheesecloth was already kept ready in the kitchen sink.

Twist and turn the cheesecloth to tightly pack the curdled cheese in it. I used the kitchen faucet to hang my cheese for about 20 minutes to get the last drop of liquid drip off.

Then I used two large dinner plates and the granite mortar to squeeze out the last remains of moisture from the paneer and give it some structure.

Since I was still gripped with a rare bout of creativity, I cut the paneer block into little diamonds. Or so I thought.

I heated the leftover sauce with a little warm water. Added a handful of green peas and dunked the paneer in.

And voila! I had the most beautiful-looking Paneer Butter Masala for dinner today. But hush, no one should know that it was made with leftover butter chicken gravy. Not until someone bites into a little piece of chicken!

On another day, I’d make a paneer dish like this or this.