Recipe: Madras paneer curry

Every now and then, you make something that’s so good you have to write it down immediately — this was one of those times. A vibrant, spicy, creamy curry that balances heat from the madras paste with the sweetness of peppers and peas, plus that toothsome texture of paneer. Perfect with basmati rice for a quick, meat-free dinner (especially if you’ve made the madras paste in advance). Serves 4.

Ingredients

For the madras paste:
Use Tom Kerridge’s madras curry paste recipe and add 1 tbsp salt to the whole batch. You’ll only need about half the batch for this recipe – the rest keeps well in the fridge or freezer.

• 1 tbsp oil
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 red pepper, diced
• 125 g sugarsnap peas
• 1 thumb-sized piece of ginger, julienned
• 2 cloves garlic, finely sliced
• 1 red chilli, finely sliced
• 3–4 tbsp madras paste (about half the batch above)
• 1 tin (400 g) chopped tomatoes
• ½ tin of water
• 1 block paneer, diced (approx. 350-450 g)
• 150 g frozen peas
• 2 handfuls cashews
• 100 ml cream
• Large handful fresh coriander, chopped
• Salt, sugar and lemon juice, to taste

Instructions

1. Blister the vegetables: Heat the oil in a wok or large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the onion, red pepper and sugarsnap peas, and stir-fry for about 5 minutes until lightly blistered. Remove from the pan and set aside.

2. Fry the aromatics: In the same pan, reduce the heat to medium and add the ginger, garlic and chilli. Cook gently for 2–3 minutes until fragrant.

3. Add the madras paste: Stir in the madras paste and fry for another 5 minutes, letting the spices cook out and deepen in flavour.

4. Simmer the sauce: Add the tinned tomatoes and half a tin of water. Stir well and bring to a gentle bubble. Add the diced paneer and simmer for 5 minutes so it soaks up the sauce.

5. Finish the curry: Return the blistered vegetables to the pan along with the frozen peas and cashews. Simmer for another 5 minutes until everything is heated through.

6. Add the finishing touches: Stir in the cream and chopped coriander. Taste and adjust with salt, sugar and/or a squeeze of lemon juice.

7. Enjoy: Serve hot with fluffy basmati rice.