Paneer is an Indian cheese made with either cow or buffalo milk. The flavor is very fresh and milky. It is great added into Indian curries but can also be used as a topping for pizzas and salad.

Use it to make paneer pakora or paneer bhurji.

Homemade Paneer

Author avatar
By Puja
4.75 from 12 votes

Paneer is an Indian cheese that can easily be made at home

Homemade Paneer
Prep Time
Cook Time3030 minutes
Total Time11 hours
CourseSnack
CuisineIndian
Servings4
Calories160 kcal
4.75 from 12 votes
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Ingredients

Scale:
  • 1 quart whole milk
  • 2 lemons

Instructions

  1. Bring the quart of milk to boil.
  2. As soon as it starts boiling, turn off heat.
  3. Squeeze the juice of one lemon into the milk and stir. The milk solids with start to separate from the whey. Keep adding more lemon juice until the whey has lost all milkiness. It should be a clear yellowish liquid.
  4. Line a large sieve with a cheese cloth or paper towel. Pour the separated milk through, collecting the milk solids. (You can save the whey to make bread with if you want)
  5. Collect the four corners of the paper towel or cheese cloth to form a sack around the milk solids. Gently twist the top to squeeze out the liquid whey.
  6. Place a weighted object on top, canned food works well, and let sit for at least 30 minutes. The weight will help squeeze out more liquid to yield a firmer cheese.
  7. When you’re ready to use the paneer, unwrap the disc of cheese and cut into cubes.

Notes:

Makes about 1/2 cup of paneer. Can easily be doubled or quadrupled.


Calories:160kcal
Carbohydrates:16g
Protein:8g
Fat:8g
Saturated Fat:4g
Polyunsaturated Fat:1g
Monounsaturated Fat:2g
Cholesterol:24mg
Sodium:103mg
Potassium:387mg
Fiber:2g
Sugar:13g
Vitamin A:395IU
Vitamin C:29mg
Calcium:281mg
Iron:1mg


It is super easy to make and only 10 minutes of active work!

  • Mike Blair's avatar

    Mike Blair

    Can you flavour the paneer? Would effect the setting process?

    • freudsbride's avatar

      freudsbride

      Tonight I made a ginger infused paneer, and I have also infused paneer with turmeric in the past – both worked beautifully. I do the infusion while I’m heating the milk – for the ginger, I used a combination of Pukka Three Ginger tea and fresh grated ginger. For the turmeric version I have used both fresh and powdered – both give a lovely golden colour and an earthy flavour.

    • Puja Thomas-Patel's avatar

      Puja Thomas-Patel

      Hi Mike,
      I’ve often added cilantro or cumin to paneer and never had a problem with it setting. So I think it would be just fine if you wanted to add some herbs or spices. 🙂

  • Christine's avatar

    Christine

    I love how so many cultures seem to have a version of this cheese. I once made ricotta in almost the same way. My Mexican husband told me it tasted very similar to a fresh cheese they have in Mexico…and now I find that paneer is similar. I love the idea of putting ginger, turmeric, and cumin to it! When my family moves back to the US this summer, I am looking forward to trying some of your beautiful Indian recipes!

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