Easy Paneer Recipe
Easy Indian Cheese recipe made with milk and lemon juice
Ingredients
- 2 litres/8 cups full cream milk
- 1/2 cup fresh cream (optional)
- 1/4 cup white vinegar
Instructions
- Pour the milk and fresh cream (if using) into a large pot and bring to a gentle boil on low to medium heat.
- Keep a close eye on the milk and stir regularly as it can burn or spill over.
- Just as the milk reaches boiling point.. remove the milk from the heat. Add the vinegar, 1 tablespoon at a time and stir until it curdles. You should have chunky bits of curdled milk. Only add vinegar until the milk curdles, you may not require all of the vinegar. If the milk doesn't separate after about 3 tablespoons return to the heat and stir on low heat, adding the remaining vinegar. Remove as soon as the whey turns yellow and is no longer milky.
- Line a sieve with a cheese or muslin cloth and strain the paneer into this. Rinse it under some cold water to cool it down
- Use your hands and squeeze any excess water from the paneer. Wrap the cheeecloth around the paneer very neatly and shape it into a block.
- Place something heavy on top of the paneer. It should take about 10 minutes until all the liquid is drained. However, leave the object on top for at least an hour. You can refrigerate the paneer for an hour to firm up a little more.
- Cut into little cubes. Makes about 2 cups of cubed cheese. You can use it immediately or store it in the freezer for later use.
Notes
- When stirring you will see the curd separating from the whey, the liquid will be a clear, yellowish colour
- If you do not have a cheese cloth or muslin cloth a clean kitchen towel will work
- Do not add more vinegar than required as it will result in a hard paneer
- I did use lemon juice before, however the vinegar definitely yields much better results in terms of texture