Name: Chilli paneer
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 2
Cuisine: Indian
Ingredients: 4 tbsp vegetable oil; 2 tbsp cornflour; 2 tbsp plain flour; ½ tsp Kashmiri chilli powder; 226g paneer cut into 1cm cubes; 1 spring onion finely sliced; cooked rice to serve; 2 tsp cornflour; 1 tbsp dark soy sauce; 1½-2 tbsp hot chilli sauce, to taste; 1½ tbsp ketchup; 1 tsp rice vinegar; 1 tsp honey; 25g ginger, peeled and finely grated; 4 garlic cloves crushed; 1 green chilli finely chopped (deseeded if you like); ½ tsp Kashmiri chilli powder; 1 red onion roughly chopped; 1 green pepper deseeded and roughly chopped

Chilli paneer in two bowls with glasses of water alongside

4 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp cornflour
2 tbsp plain flour
½ tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
226g paneer
cut into 1cm cubes
1 spring onion
finely sliced
cooked rice
to serve

For the sauce

2 tsp cornflour
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
1½-2 tbsp hot chilli sauce, to taste
1½ tbsp ketchup
1 tsp rice vinegar
1 tsp honey
25g ginger, peeled and finely grated
4 garlic cloves
crushed
1 green chilli
finely chopped (deseeded if you like)
½ tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
1 red onion
roughly chopped
1 green pepper
deseeded and roughly chopped

Method

step 1
Heat the vegetable oil in a large non-stick pan over a medium heat. Combine the cornflour, plain flour, chilli powder, 1 tsp fine sea salt, ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper and 2 tbsp water in a bowl until you have a smooth paste, adding a splash more water if it's too thick. Add the paneer cubes and toss to coat. Carefully tip the coated paneer into the hot oil in the pan and fry, stirring, until crisp and browned on all sides. Transfer to a plate lined with kitchen paper, and set aside.
step 2
To make the sauce, tip the cornflour into a jug and gradually whisk in the soy sauce until smooth. Add the chilli sauce, ketchup, rice vinegar, honey and 90ml water, then whisk again and set aside. Drain most of the excess oil from the pan and return to a medium heat. Fry the ginger, garlic and chopped chilli for a few minutes until fragrant. Stir in the chilli powder, onion and pepper, turning up the heat to medium-high, and fry until lightly browned. Tip in the soy sauce mixture bubble until thickened slightly.
step 3
Remove from the heat and stir in the paneer, ensuring it’s well-coated in the sauce. Add a splash more water if needed, and season to taste. Sprinkle over the spring onion and serve with rice, if you like.