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You can freeze paneer for up to 2 months – just make sure it’s well wrapped before you pop it in the freezer.
Jamie's £1 Wonders & Money-Saving Meals
By Jamie Oliver
Ingredients
HOMEMADE PANEER
2 litres whole milk
3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
DAL
1 butternut squash (1.2kg)
olive oil
5cm piece of ginger
4 cloves of garlic
½ a bunch coriander (15g)
2 teaspoons chilli flakes
2 heaped tablespoons jalfrezi curry paste
300g fresh or frozen chopped mixed onion, carrot & celery
2 x 400g tins of plum tomatoes
1kg red split lentils
16 uncooked poppadoms
2 tablespoons sunflower oil
1 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
1 tablespoon black mustard seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
Top Tip
For the best results when making paneer, leave it to set overnight after you’ve wrung it out – simply pop it in the fridge and weigh it down with a plate.
Method
- Pour the milk into a large deep pan on a high heat. As it comes to the boil and starts to rise up the pan, turn the heat off and immediately add the vinegar, stirring gently. Leave it to curdle for 5 minutes – white, creamy curds should separate from translucent whey. Turn the heat onto low for just 30 seconds to harden the curds.
- Put a clean tea towel in a colander inside a large bowl, then carefully pour in the contents of the pan. Bring the edges of the tea towel together and lift it out of the colander, squeezing and compressing to remove excess liquid into a measuring jug. Keep your hands away from the hot end where the cheese is forming.
- Open the tea towel on your work surface, randomly slice up the cheese with an eating knife, sprinkle with a pinch of sea salt, then mix together using clean hands, scraping it off the surface of the towel. Wrap again and squeeze out any last bits of moisture into the jug, compressing into one piece of cheese, and leave to sit for at least 1 hour (see tip).
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas 4, placing oven racks at the top and bottom. Scrub the squash (there’s no need to peel it), halve it lengthways, scoop out the seeds (see Leftover Love tip), then rub with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and season with a pinch of salt and black pepper. Place skin-side up and bake at the top of the oven for 1 hour to 1 hour 20 minutes, or until golden and tender, then transfer to a board.
- Place a large deep ovenproof casserole pan on a medium-high heat with 2 tablespoons of oil. Peel, finely chop and add the ginger and garlic, then finely chop and add the coriander stalks (reserving the leaves). Add half of the chilli flakes and the jalfrezi paste and fry for 2 minutes, then tip in the chopped mixed veg and cook for 10 minutes, stirring regularly, or until starting to caramelise.
- Tip in the tomatoes, breaking them up with your spoon, and stir in the lentils. Top up the measuring jug of whey with water until you have 3 litres, then pour it all into the pan. Bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer and roughly snap in 4 uncooked poppadoms. Transfer the pan to the bottom of the oven and bake for 40 minutes, or until thickened, adding splashes of water to loosen, if needed.
- Meanwhile, roughly chop or break the cooked squash into bite-sized pieces and stir most into the lentils, reserving a few pieces to garnish.
- Drizzle the sunflower oil into a small non-stick frying pan and add the fenugreek, mustard seeds, cumin seeds and the remaining chilli flakes for 1 minute, or until they begin to pop, stirring regularly, then pour over the dal.
- Break some of the paneer (around 30g per person) into the frying pan, drizzling in 1 tablespoon of oil and frying for 2 minutes on each side, or until golden, then scatter over the dal, along with the reserved roasted squash and remaining coriander leaves.
- Puff up the remaining poppadoms in the microwave for 30 seconds and serve alongside the dal, for dunking.
Instead of throwing the squash seeds away, turn them into a tasty topper or simple snack. Bake at 180°C/350°F/gas 4 for 5 to 10 minutes, or until lightly golden. Leave to cool, then store in an airtight container until needed. For an easy dinner, warm up any leftovers and top with a fried egg.
Feel free to mix up the spices here, if you like – dried curry leaves, coriander seeds or nigella seeds would all be delicious.
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