Paneer Recipe: A quick and simple way to make paneer at home

Paneer is one of the most loved ingredients in desi households. Indian moms easily fix up paneer with all kinds of dishes like Palak Paneer, Mutter Paneer, Paneer Bhurji, and a lot more. With such a wide variety of dishes to pick from, paneer is a heavenly choice for vegetarians. But with the changing climate and excessive use of chemicals and artificial ingredients, a lot of people prefer to make their own batch of paneer at home. It is a simple method and can be easily done by anyone. Here is how to make Paneer at home.  

A simple way to make Paneer at home 

Ingredients required: 

• 1-litre full-fat milk or full cream milk 
• 3 to 4 teaspoons lemon juice or vinegar or 3 to 4 tablespoons curd or yoghurt 

Materials required 

• Cheesecloth or muslin or a thin cotton napkin 
• Some bowls and a heavyweight 

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How to make?  

Boiling milk 

• Boil milk in a heavy saucepan on a medium-low flame.  
• Stir occasionally so that the skin does not form on the surface and also to make sure that the milk does not get burnt from the bottom. 
• Meanwhile, take a pan or a bowl and place a strainer on the pan. Line the strainer with a clean muslin or cheesecloth or cotton napkin.  

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Adding food acid 

• When the milk starts boiling, add the lemon juice or vinegar and start stirring. 
• The milk has to curdle completely. Stir continuously so that the curdled milk does not stick to the base of the pan. 
• Sometimes milk can be seen curdled partly but no watery whey can be seen. At this moment, add 1 to 2 teaspoons of food acid and stir again. You should see the greenish coloured whey in the milk. 
• After the milk has curdled completely and the greenish whey can be seen, switch off the flame and then immediately pour the entire mixture in the strainer lined with the cloth. 
• Carefully gather the edges of the muslin as the coagulated milk mixture will be very hot. While doing this, more of the whey will be strained. 
• Run some freshwater all over on the gathered muslin. 

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Making paneer 

• Gather the muslin edges tightly and place it back on the strainer keeping it in on a plate or a tray. 
• Keep something heavy on the top of the muslin or cheesecloth for 30 to 40 minutes. Use a heavy object that has about 500 to 600 grams in weight. One can even hang the muslin for an hour if not using a heavyweight object. 
• Some more whey will be strained when you place the heavyweight object, remove the whey from the plate.  
• After 30 to 40 minutes the paneer will be set. Once cooled, cut paneer into cubes or any shape. 
• You can also refrigerate the paneer. Keep it in an airtight container or immerse the paneer block in a bowl of water and keep in the fridge. 

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