Gluten-Free Chilli Paneer
This recipe is the perfect answer for when you’re craving for something spicy and a bit fancy :). Popularly called as “Chilli Paneer”, this is one of the most popular street food dishes in India! Growing up, for any special occasion we would run to an Indo-Chinese restaurant for this fantastic dish. Chilli Paneer is enjoyed in 2 versions, a “dry” version for a starter and one with gravy as a main course.
Treat yourself and your loved ones to this exotic blend of rich paneer, bell peppers, and onions. This Indo-Chinese flavored dish has it all. Protein, veggies and an amazing blend of spices.
Isn't Chilli paneer usually gluten-free?
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You may find it shocking to know that the traditional recipes of Chilli paneer are not Gluten-free as they use all purpose flour/ maida to coat the paneer cottage cheese to give them a crispy texture. This recipe uses rice flour to coat the paneer/ cottage cheese for the desired texture. You may also use other certified gluten-free flour like sorghum.
Gluten-free Chilli Paneer
Equipment
- 1 Wok
- 1 Blender
Ingredients
Spicy Paneer Cubes
- 2 lbs Paneer (Cottage Cheese)
- 1.5 tbsp Cornstarch Gluten-free
- 1.5 tbsp Rice flour Gluten-free
- 2 tbsp Red chilli powder (kashmiri)
Vegetables
- 1 Large Red bell pepper
- 1 Large Green bell pepper
- 1 tbsp Red chilli flakes
- 1 Large Onion
- 2-3 medium Green onion shoots
- 2-3 stems Green coriander
Seasoning
- 1/2 cup Vegetable oil
- 1 tsp Salt Iodized
- 1½ inch Ginger
- 2 tbsp Soy sauce Gluten-free
- 6-7 medium Garlic cloves
- 4-5 pieces Green chillies
- 1½ tbsp Rice Vinegar Gluten-free
- 1/2 cup tomato ketchup Gluten-free
Instructions
Paneer Marination
- Gently rinse paneer in cold water and dab it on a paper towel to remove excess water. Cut paneer into 1/4 inch cubes and set aside.2 lbs Paneer (Cottage Cheese)
- In a bowl add in the corn starch, gluten free rice flour, some salt (about 1/2 tsp) , red chilli powder and let it rest for about 10 minutes1.5 tbsp Cornstarch, 1.5 tbsp Rice flour
Ginger Garlic paste
- In a small blender add peeled ginger, 4-5 garlic cloves and a tbsp of water. Make into a smooth paste
Veggie prep
- Chop onion into 6 large parts (approx. 1 inch) , then separate out the layers. Cut green and red bell peppers into halves, remove the stem and the seeds, dice them into 1 inch pieces. Finely chop the white portion of green onions. Finely chop green onion stems and set aside.
- Wash and chop coriander leaves and stems
Paneer Cubes
- In a Wok/ pan on medium heat, add 1/4 cup of oil, add some of the marinated paneer taking care not to over-crowd the pan. Saute for about 2-3 minutes, until the surface turns color slightly to a brighter red. Set aside saute'd paneer.
Grand assembly
- In the same wok/ pan, on med-high heat, add 2-3 tbsp of oil. Add in the ginger garlic paste and the onions (both red onion and the white part of the green onions). Add a 1/2 tsp of salt and saute until the onion softens and turns transparent and the raw ginger-garlic smell disappears.
- Stir in the ketchup, vinegar and soy sauce along and red chilli powder diluted with 2 tbsp of water. Add the paneer cubes and toss until well combined.
- Add in the bell peppers and the red chilli flakes. Add salt if needed. Note: Soy sauce also has salt, so be careful not to add too much salt. Saute for 1-2 muntes and turn off heat.
- Garnish with green onion stems and coriander. Enjoy with your rice, favorite gluten free roti, or just by itself.