How To Make Paneer At Home | Quick And Easy

Follow our simple, fool-proof, step-by-step instructions on how to make paneer at home with this easy homemade Indian cheese recipe and enjoy your meals with the best fresh and soft paneer.

Paneer is a type of fresh, non-aged, un-ripened, non-melting Indian cheese made by curdling milk through the addition of a food acid or souring agent. It is also called cottage cheese or chenna and is widely used throughout the Indian subcontinent in various forms.

Learning how to make homemade paneer is very easy, quick, and convenient.

How to make Paneer from milk:

After the milk has been curdled, the milk curds or coagulated milk solids are collected in a muslin cloth or cheesecloth and hung or weighed down with a heavy object to remove excess moisture and to solidify and shape the cheese curds. This yields a block of paneer, which is used in a variety of mouth-watering paneer dishes like Paneer Butter Masala, Aloo Paneer, Achari Paneer, and many others.
 

Paneer is not a fermented, cured, or aged product like other varieties of cheese in the world. It is also generally unsalted. In texture, it is more like halloumi cheese or tofu, and not like cheddar or mozzarella.

Since the making of paneer does not require rennet as a curdling agent, it is considered lacto-vegetarian and hence is a major source of protein for vegetarians in India.
 

Homemade Paneer vs Store-bought Paneer:

The difference between homemade paneer and store-bought paneer is readily apparent in both taste and texture. Packaged paneer is smoother and firmer, while homemade paneer is softer, more delicate, and has a creamier texture. Homemade paneer is fresh, has no preservatives or additives, is more hygienic, and less expensive.
 

Tips on how to make homemade paneer:

All you require for our “how to make paneer” recipe are two ingredients: full-cream milk or whole milk and a souring or acidic agent to curdle the milk.

Make sure to use full-fat, full-cream, or whole milk for the best results for a soft paneer. The higher the fat content in the milk, the richer, smoother, creamier, and tastier the paneer.

Do not use skim, toned, low-fat, or zero-fat milk. The paneer will not set properly when toned milk is used. Skim milk will yield less paneer and that too of a hard texture.
 

Always use fresh milk of good quality within the period of its shelf life. Do not use old or spoiled milk to make paneer.

Any one of five food acids can be used to curdle milk: lemon juice or lime juice, white vinegar, curd or yoghurt, buttermilk, and citric acid.

In our how to make paneer recipe, we have used vinegar to coagulate the milk.
 

A slight taste of each souring agent will be found in the final product, whether it is lemon/lime juice, curd, buttermilk, or leftover whey from a previous batch of paneer. We favour using vinegar as it does not leave behind a noticeable residual taste.

While we prefer using the fresh paneer immediately after making it, there are some who think it is a good idea to refrigerate the paneer, submerged in a bowl of water, before cooking with it allowing this Indian cottage cheese to firm up. They feel it decreases the likelihood of its disintegration during cooking. Try both and see what works for you.
 

Tips on how to make Soft Paneer at Home:

• Use full-cream milk or whole cream milk to make paneer
• Reduce heat immediately upon adding vinegar and allow to simmer only for 1 minute till curdled.
• Drain on a muslin or cheese cloth for 2 to 3 minutes only.
• Twist the cheesecloth / muslin to make a pouch and allow the liquid to be squeezed out gently. Don’t put too much pressure.
• When you weigh down the paneer in the cheesecloth, weigh it down with quite a heavy weight – maybe 3 to 4 kilograms – but only for 5 to 7 minutes. This keeps the paneer soft, moist, and fluffy, and not hard, dry, and compact, as you will find if you keep it pressed for too long.
   

How to store homemade paneer:

To store paneer in the fridge, soak the block of paneer in water in a bowl. Alternately, keep the paneer in an airtight stainless steel or glass container and soak the paneer in warm water after removing it from the fridge when ready to use. Paneer can be refrigerated soaked in an airtight container for up to a week. Change the water every day.
 

What to do with the Whey after making Homemade Paneer:

A by-product of paneer is whey, a greenish-coloured liquid that is very rich in nutrients. Do not discard the whey. Instead collect this liquid and use it for kneading dough for flatbread (chapati, roti, paratha) or any baked bread or even for cake batter. You can also add whey when cooking rice (pulao, biryani) instead of water, gravy, or curry. You can also use it to make dal, vegetables, soup, and pasta. You can also have it as a tangy, refreshing drink by adding salt, cumin powder, and other spices.
 

Note that the taste of the whey will reflect the nature of the food acid or souring agent used to make the paneer. For example, lemon juice will yield a sour whey.

You can also save and refrigerate the whey and use it as a food acid to make the next batch of paneer.

A non-culinary use of whey is adding it to garden plants as a nutrient after cooling it and diluting it with some water.
 

Learn how to make best paneer from milk with our step by step easy method. Use our simple, fool-proof recipe and video on how to make paneer at home.

Use this easy and fresh homemade soft paneer for many delicious Yummefy recipes including:

Paneer Biryani
Kashmiri Lal Paneer
Malai Kofta
Paneer Tikka
Paneer Frankie
Tiranga Paneer
Paneer Pakoda

Or see all our Vegetarian Recipes right here!