Paneer bhurji makes a great breakfast, lunch, or dinner. This spicy dish uses homemade paneer to create a scrambled egg-like texture that will make your family’s mouths water. Ready in less than a half hour, you can make this paneer bhurji recipe on a busy weeknight as a breakfast for dinner option or as a weekend breakfast the whole family will enjoy.
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What is Paneer Bhurji?
Paneer bhurji is a popular Indian and vegetarian preparation similar to scrambled eggs. It is sometimes known as Indian scrambled eggs, but made with paneer instead of eggs.
Our dish uses crumbled, homemade paneer mixed with spices and veggies. It creates a tasty, protein-packed spread that you can easily serve as is or with your favorite breads.
Paneer Bhurji Recipe Video
Why you will love this Paneer bhurji
Paneer bhurji is a flavorful, protein packed meal that is easy to spread over your favorite roti, dinner rolls or pav, or other breads like ciabatta.
Our recipe takes less than 30 minutes to make, so you can serve this as a quick dinner after a long day or as an easy weekend brunch item.
It’s also the perfect excuse to eat more bread because this creamy paneer recipe just begs to be put in sandwiches and wraps.
Paneer Bhurji Ingredients
Before beginning, you’ll need to make sure you have the following ingredients ready to go. The list is broken down into those needed for making paneer at home and those for paneer bhurji.
For the paneer, you’ll need:
- Full fat milk
- Vinegar
And for the Paneer Bhurji, you’ll need:
- Ghee or oil
- Large onions
- Garlic
- Ginger
- Green chilies
- Bell pepper
- Roma tomatoes
- Salt to taste
- Turmeric
- Red chili powder
- Coriander powder
- Water
- Paneer - You can use the homemade paneer - we’ll show you how to make it below!
- Garam masala
- Kasuri methi
- Cilantro chopped
- Table cream
You can also pair it with pav (Indian dinner rolls ), roti, or an open ciabatta toast. You can easily scoop the scramble right on top and eat it as a sandwich or on its own with a roll on the side.
How to make Paneer at home in Instant Pot
Ofcourse first you need Paneer to make Paneer Bhurji. So you can either use store bought cottage cheese or follow our step by step Paneer Cheese Recipe to make your own Paneer with just two ingredients.
How to make Paneer Bhurji
To start, heat the oil or ghee in a pan. Next, add the onion and sauté until golden brown.
Once the onions are ready, add in the garlic, grated ginger, and green chilies and give them a stir. Next, mix in the tomatoes, salt, turmeric, red chili powder, and coriander.
After you've added the tomatoes and spices to the onions , aromatics, and chilies, stir in the water and crumbled paneer before stirring in the garam masala, kasuri methi, and cilantro.
Finally, stir in the table cream.
Serve with our Pav, Ciabatta, or Roti so you can be sure to soak up all the yummy sauce!
Pro tips and tricks
When you make this tasty recipe, keep these tips and tricks in mind for the best results:
- Make sure to drain as much of the whey out of the paneer as possible because this will give it the best flavor and texture.
- Don’t cook the paneer for too long in the sauce since it only needs a minute or two to warm through and soak in the flavors from the onions, tomatoes, and spices.
- Serve on a roll, with roti, or on its own for a super easy breakfast or dinner.
Is Paneer Bhurji good for weight loss?
Keto or not, yes Paneer Bhurji contains a lot of healthy fats, proteins and is low in carbohydrates, thus plays a vital role during weight loss. It's a great source of protein for vegetarians.
Is Paneer Bhurji good for health?
Paneer Bhurji is low carbs and high protein. Paneer is a good source of calcium and is digested slowly which keeps you full for longer. It;s loaded with healthy fats and is a great source of protein for vegetarians.
How do you make a paneer crumble block?
Once you have curdled the milk, a great way to make the paneer crumble block is to use a strainer or a tofu press with a cheesecloth. Pour the curdled milk into the cheese cloth and allow the whey to strain.
Then wrap the cheesecloth and squeeze and press the Paneer flat. Place heavy objects to make sure you drain the whey properly.
What kind of paneer is best for paneer bhurji?
You want a fresh and soft paneer to make Paneer Bhurji. We love making our homemade fresh paneer because it is super easy and only takes a few minutes of your time. I find the store bought paneer not as soft and also chewy compared to the melt-in-your-mouth homemade paneer.
But if you don’t have an Instant Pot or just want to skip a step, you definitely can use store bought paneer. You should be able to find it in specialty or Indian grocery stores if it is not at your local shop.
How to make it vegan?
If you follow a vegan diet, you can still enjoy this recipe by substituting the paneer for tofu. We recommend using a softer tofu to give it a similar texture, but you could use any variety you have on hand.
Can this Paneer Bhurji recipe be used to make a paneer bhurji sandwich?
Yes you can make a delicious sandwich or wrap with this Paneer Bhurji Recipe.
What is the difference between paneer bhurji and paneer bhurji gravy?
Paneer Bhurji is the dry scramble that can be packed into breads, while paneer bhuji gravy is more saucy. If you want the paneer bhurji to have more of a sauce or gravy, you can easily do this by adding more tomatoes and water. When they break down a bit, they will create a larger gravy for the paneer.
If you make a larger gravy, make sure you have bread, roti, or naan on hand to soak up all the extra flavor!
Paneer Bhurji Recipe variations
If you want to try a couple variations to the recipe, you could try one of these two flavor combinations. They use the same base recipe, but you need to swap out the spices. Here spice variations:
- use pav bhaji instead of the other spice blends
- try chole masala instead of the regular spice blend
Serving suggestions
If you love sandwiches, this is the perfect dish! It lends itself perfectly as a spread or as a filling for a sandwich made with ciabatta toast, dinner rolls, or naan.
You could also use it to make bhurji pav, which are small sliders perfect for sharing.
Likewise, you can serve it alongside green chutney or on apaneer tikka pizza.
How do you store paneer bhurji?
Though this dish is best served fresh, you can store leftovers if you have them.
To store, first allow the paneer bhurji to cool and then scoop into an airtight container. After it has cooled and been put in a container, place the container in the fridge. You should be able to store it for about 2 to 3 days.
To reheat, you can place a serving into the microwave for about 1 to 2 minutes or until heated through. However, if you prefer, you could gently warm over low heat in a small pot or pan.
Love Paneer? Try these
Do you love paneer? You should check out these other great paneer recipes that you can try tonight.
- Paneer saag
- Shahi paneer
- Paneer tikka masala
- Matar paneer
- Palak paneer
- Kadai paneer
- Paneer biryani
- Tandoorti paneer tikka
Let us know what you think
If you make this delicious paneer bhurji recipe, let us know how it went! When you make this, be sure to take a pic and tag us on Instagram @dbellyrulesdmind or Facebook @thebellyrulesthemind!
Paneer Bhurji Recipe
Paneer Bhurji Recipe
Paneer bhurji makes a great breakfast, lunch, or dinner. This spicy dish uses homemade paneer to create a scrambled egg-like texture that will make your family’s mouths water. Ready in less than a half hour, you can make this paneer bhurji recipe on a busy weeknight as a breakfast for dinner option or as a weekend breakfast the whole family will enjoy.
Ingredients
Ingredients to make Paneer
- Full fat milk 6 cups
- Vinegar 3 tbsp
- Follow our recipe to make paneer here.
Ingredients to make Paneer Bhurji
- Ghee or oil 1 tbsp
- 2 large onions, diced
- Garlic, chopped 1 tbsp
- Ginger 1 inch, grated
- 2 green chilies, chopped
- Bell pepper 1 , finely chopped
- Roma tomatoes , 3, finely chopped
- Salt to taste
- Turmeric ½ tsp
- Red chili powder 1 tsp
- Coriander powder 1 tbsp
- Water 1 cup
- Crumble the paneer made above
- Garam masala 1 tsp
- Kasuri methi 1 tsp
- ¼ cup cilantro chopped
- Table cream 2 tbsp
- Pair with Pav (Indian Dinner Rolls ) or Roti or an open ciabatta toast with paneer bhurji on it.
Instructions
How to make Paneer at home in Instant Pot
Ofcourse first you need Paneer to make Paneer Bhurji. So you can either use store bought cottage cheese or follow our Instant Pot step by step Paneer Cheese Recipe.
First, pour the milk and vinegar into the Instant Pot. Close the lid, seal the vent, and then pressure cook for 4 minutes followed by a natural pressure release.
Once the pressure has released and the pin dropped, carefully remove the lid and stir the curdled milk. If you would like to flavor the paneer, you can add in dried mint leaves or other dried herbs now.
Next, line a strainer or tofu press with a cheese cloth and pour the mixture through the cheese cloth so that the whey drains.
Once the whey has drained, wrap the cheesecloth and then squeeze and press the paneer flat. When we make it, we use heavy cans placed on top of the paneer to apply pressure for a couple of hours as any remaining whey drains.
Finally, before serving, cut the paneer into squares before serving or using in your favorite recipe.
How to make Paneer Bhurji
To start, heat the oil or ghee in a pan. Next, add the onion and sauté until golden brown.
Once the onions are ready, add in the garlic, grated ginger, and green chilies and give them a stir. Next, mix in the tomatoes, salt, turmeric, red chili powder, and coriander.
After you've added the tomatoes and spices to the onions , aromatics, and chilies, stir in the water and crumbled paneer before stirring in the garam masala, kasuri methi, and cilantro.
Finally, stir in the table cream.
Serve with our Dinner Rolls aka Pav, Ciabatta, or Roti so you can be sure to soak up all the yummy sauce!
Notes
Pro tips and tricks
When you make this tasty recipe, keep these tips and tricks in mind for the best results:
- Make sure to drain as much of the whey out of the paneer as possible because this will give it the best flavor and texture.
- Don’t cook the paneer for too long in the sauce since it only needs a minute or two to warm through and soak in the flavors from the onions, tomatoes, and spices.
- Serve on a roll, with roti, or on its own for a super easy breakfast or dinner.
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