Mutter Tofu

In 2006, I learned how to make Mutter Paneer, a popular North Indian dish.  Someone commented on a related post that they had successfully attempted the recipe, and had substituted tofu in place of paneer.  That comment has stuck with me the past few years, and when I finally decided to try this recipe myself, I decided to use tofu as well instead of the traditional paneer.  I also adapted the recipe to what I had in my kitchen — which slightly deviates from the original recipe.  Below the picture, I detail what I did to make the dish, what I would change in the future, and how this more simple approach differs from the original recipe — which I still think is probably the gold standard for mutter paneer.  

 

Ingredients (for approximately 4 servings)

1 teaspoon ground cardamom (I would reduce this to 1/2 tsp. moving forward, especially because I freshly ground cardamon seeds)

Vegetable cooking oil 

2 teaspoons store-bought ginger garlic paste (in place of homemade paste)

1/4 teaspoon fenugreek seeds (in place of dry fenugreek)

1 medium onion chopped

1 ½ medium tomatoes, chopped and microwaved for 2-3 minutes 

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon roasted ground cumin 

1/2 teaspoon roasted ground coriander (in place of 1 tsp. in original recipe — I may decrease in the future)

1 tablespoon chopped cilantro

1 green chile, sliced

2 tablespoons sour cream

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon store-bought masala (in place of homemade masala)

1 block extra firm tofu, squeezed dry and cut into 3/4 inch square pieces (I would recommend making them 1/2 inch square pieces instead)

3/4 cup frozen peas

Directions (I basically followed the original recipe, except for separate cooking of the tofu)

-Heat oil in saucepan (medium heat, depending on quality of pan)

-Add ground cardamom

-Add garlic/ginger paste, let simmer for a few minutes

-Add dried fenugreek and chopped onion

-Let simmer 5-10 minutes, or until the onions don’t smell raw

– At the same time, heat 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil in another pan on medium-high heat.  Add tofu, and saute, stirring occasionally, until the tofu is lightly browned on all sides or the desired consistency is reached. 

-Cut the tomatoes, and then put in microwave for 2-3 minutes

-Add paprika, cayenne, cumin, and coriander

-Add water if the ingredients are sticking to the pan (I would add about 1/4 – 3/4 cup of water)

-Add cilantro

-Add chopped tomatoes, and lower the heat a bit

-Let simmer so flavors blend (few minutes)

-Then put i
n a food processor, until consistency is like gravy

-Put back in pan, and add salt to taste

-Add 2 tablespoons of sour cream.  Turn up heat and stir vigorously until mixture bubbles

-Keep stirring after bubbling and add homemade masala

-Then add peas, stir and cover, lower heat to medium/low.

-Stir periodically and add water if looks dry (maybe another 1/4 cup).  Let simmer for 10 minutes.

-Uncover and stir in tofu, and let simmer for 3-4 minutes for flavor to set in paneer.

Potential Further Alterations

The recipe turned out incredibly well, though I think that there are three key changes I would consider making.  First, as I describe above in the ingredients section, I would reduce the cardamon to 1/2 teaspoon instead of 1 teaspoon.  I think the end result had a little too much cardamon flavor — potentially because I freshly ground the cardamon — and that made the dish a bit sweet.  Second, I would recommend cutting the tofu into smaller pieces.  I usually cut my tofu to about 3/4 inch square pieces when I stir fry them with vegetables, but I would that size is too big to get the tofu properly flavored in this gravy dish.  I think that a 1/2 inch square size would probably work better for this recipe.  Finally, I would add more water to the recipe as I detail in the directions section.  I added perhaps only 1/4 cup of water through the cooking process, and the leftovers were somewhat dry, so I would probably add approximately 1/2 – 3/4 cup through the cooking process.  I don't think that extra water would undesirably dilute the flavor.

I'll report back if I try these alterations in the future!