Paneer Butter Masala, a favorite at Indian restaurants, made in the Instant Pot or a traditional Pressure Cooker. This dish is also popularly known as Paneer Makhani.
Paneer Butter Masala has chunks of paneer or cottage cheese cooked in a mildly spiced onion tomato gravy. It is so smooth and creamy that you will not want to stop eating it. My daughter is a very very picky eater and has repeatedly requested this paneer dish, so I can attest that it is very kid friendly.
If you like paneer, check out other instant pot curry recipes – Palak Paneer, Paneer Tikka Masala and Matar Paneer.
How to make Instant Pot Paneer Butter Masala? – A different preparation
The preparation for this paneer butter masala is very different than the usual onion-tomato gravy. Usually to make gravy, we first sauté onions and then sauté tomatoes. However this one is done in a completely different way.
Add all the ingredients, except paneer, cream and honey in the instant pot and pressure cook for 8 minutes. You don’t need to finely chop the onions and tomatoes, as we are going to blend them later. This is also the reason, I suggest to add the whole spices in a pouch made from thin cheesecloth or a spice bag. This helps to get the flavor, but you can also remove it before blending.
Then blend the cooked ingredients using an immersion blender or in a regular blender. I used my immersion blender, which I could use directly in the pot. If using a regular blender, you would have to pour the contents into the blender and may need to let them cool before blending. Then pour them back to the instant pot after blending. The gravy is now ready. Add cream, honey and paneer chunks. Stir and let the curry rest for 5 minutes.
Paneer butter masala is ready. Garnish with some kasoori methi or cilantro and enjoy with naan, roti or rice.
Isn’t it a lovely color? And the most easy dish to prepare? This is my go to dish when I have not done much preparation…and oh, perfect to serve if you have guests coming over.
Love this gravy? Make it a dip with naan and serve it as an appetizer. This used to be a complimentary appetizer served at an Indian restaurant I frequently visited in Chicago.
This gravy also freezes well. Prepare in advance and freeze. Then when needed, defrost, give a boil and add chunks of paneer. And why only paneer, you can add green peas & paneer to make matar paneer or add green peas & sliced mushrooms to make mushroom matar. See notes for variations.
Don’t forget to check out my post on 23 Best Instant Pot Indian Recipes.
Paneer Butter Masala – Instant Pot Pressure Cooker
Ingredients
- 1 lb Paneer or Cottage cheese, chunks
- 2 tablespoon Butter
- 1 Green chili pepper , (optional)
- 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds (Jeera)
- 1 Onion, cut in large pieces
- 1 tablespoon Ginger, minced
- 1 tablespoon Garlic, minced
- 4 Tomato, cut in large pieces
- 1/4 cup Cashews
- 2 tablespoon Dried Fenugreek leaves (Kasoori Methi)
- 1/4 cup Water
- 1/4 cup Cream, heavy whipping or coconut cream
- 1 tablespoon Honey
- 1 teaspoon Salt, adjust to taste
Spices
- 1/2 teaspoon Ground Turmeric (Haldi powder)
- 1 teaspoon Coriander powder (Dhaniya powder)
- 1/2 teaspoon Ground Cumin (Jeera powder), or Garam Masala
- 1 teaspoon Cayenne or Red Chili powder, adjust to taste
Whole Spices
- 1 inch Cinnamon (Dalchini)
- 5 Green Cardamom (Elaichi)
- 2 Black Cardamom (Moti Elaichi)
- 1 teaspoon Black Peppercorns
- 1 teaspoon Cloves (Laung)
Instructions
- Make a spice pouch by adding the whole spices to a cheesecloth. Tie it such that the spices cannot come out of it.
- Except paneer, cream and honey, add all ingredients and spice pouch to the Instant Pot including the spices. Close lid with vent in sealing position.
- Set the instant pot to manual or pressure cook mode on high pressure for 8 minutes.
- After the instant pot beeps, release the pressure naturally.
- Remove the spice pouch carefully. Blend the contents in the instant pot with an immersion blender or regular blender to a smooth paste. If using regular blender, you may need to cool the ingredients before blending. Get the contents back to the instant pot.
- Add the cream and honey. Stir into the sauce.
- Add paneer chunks. Stir them into the sauce and let it rest for 5 minutes. You can cover with a glass lid.
- Paneer Butter Masala is ready to be served. Garnish with dry fenugreek leaves or cilantro.
Video
Notes
- Matar Paneer / Mushroom Matar / Roasted Cauliflower – You can also add different veggies to this sauce and make delicious curries. All of the veggies can be added after making the sauce. Simmer for 3-4 minutes on saute mode to cook the veggies.
- Butter Chicken or Murgh Makhani – You can also cook butter chicken with this recipe. Add chicken thigh pieces on top of the other ingredients before pressure cooking. Cook for 10 minutes at high pressure. Remove chicken and cut into 2-3 inch size pieces. Add back to the sauce. Voila, butter chicken is ready! (Update: Butter Chicken Recipe here)
- Love this gravy? Make it a dip with naan and serve it as an appetizer.
- Vegan: To make this curry vegan, replace cream with coconut cream and paneer with tofu or vegetables.
Nutrition
Check out other Instant Pot Curries you might enjoy:
Hey meeta! Can this recipe be made without onion, garlic and cream?
Hey Sonia Рyes, I think it will work well. Add some more cashews for a creamier texture. If you like, you can also try adding some whisked yogurt at the end in place of cream. If you do add yogurt, keep on saut̩ mode and keep stirring until there is a boil so it does not separate. Hope you enjoy it!
love this recipe. I tried the recipe without much expectation as i needed something quick and it came out really yum and delicious even the color looked great as mentioned in the recipe??
Hey Kari – So glad to hear you enjoyed the paneer butter masala. Thank you for sharing back your review!
OMG! This paneer recipe turned out to be THE bomb ??. The first time I made it, it was finger licking good. So I made it for a party and got huge compliments and the best part was the taste was exactly the same. So it wasn’t a stroke of luck !!!!! Thank you so much. My kids love it too ?.
Hey Yashada – So glad that you all and your friends enjoyed the paneer butter masala. Thank you for sharing back your review!
Thank you so much for the recipe! I’ve been really intimidated by Indian cooking for years but got an instant pot for Christmas and it seemed like the perfect way to start. This is the first recipe I’ve made and it turned out delicious! Can’t wait to make more 🙂
Hey Savannah – So glad to hear you enjoyed the paneer butter masala and the instant pot is helping you start with indian cooking. Thank you for sharing back your review. I would love to hear if you try any other recipes!
Hi there! I tried this recipe last night and it was delicious. The flavor was on point but the gravy came out a little thin for our taste. My husband called it watery. Do you have any advice on how to thicken it? I followed the recipe to the T, made no alterations. Thanks in advance. I appreciate you and this site so much!!!
Hey Leslie – Sorry to hear that the gravy was thinner to your taste. Tomatoes release a lot of liquid, maybe you can try without adding any water next time. As you refrigerate the curry, it also thickens. For now, the option could be to add some corn starch (mix 1 tbsp in 1/4 cup water) and give it the curry a boil. Hope that helps! I am glad to hear you are enjoying the site.
I want to make ans it and try to give my kid who can’t have honey. Any substitute?
Hey Priti – You can just skip the honey. After tasting if you want to add some sweetness, maple syrup or sugar could work too. Hope you enjoy it!
Is the fenugreek to be added in the beginning or right at the end for garnishing ?
Hey Vikram – For this simplified recipe, I added it along with the other ingredients before cooking. But either way would work, so feel free to add it at the end along with the paneer. Hope you enjoy it 🙂
I have tried this recipe a few times and it turns out great always!! I made it again today and took one of the comments above about using the Vitamix instead of an immersion blender and the gravy was smooth!! Thank you for the simple and awesome recipe!
Hey Namita – So glad to hear you have tried the Paneer Butter Masala many times. I agree the gravy is much more smooth with the vitamix. The only downside is transferring and cleaning. Thank you so much for sharing back your review!
Thank you for a simple and delicious recipe. Still licking my fingers ?!
So glad you enjoyed it, Namita. Thank you for sharing your review!
This was phenomenal. Comments from my kids included :’you’ve outdone yourself” and it was ALL gone. I cannot believe how easy that was.
Hey Teresa – So so glad that you and the kids loved the paneer butter masala. Thank you for sharing back your review!
Awesome and easy to follow receipe. I made a mistake of mixing honey and cream directly into the pot before the 8 min step and still came out good.
Hey Amit – Glad you enjoyed it. I usually add cream later as it can sometimes make the curry thick which can cause burn. But looks like it worked well. Thanks for sharing back your review!