This is a recipe for how to make Paneer, a cottage cheese from the Indian subcontinent used in traditional dishes such as Palak Paneer (Spinach Curry). It’s far superior to store-bought with a much softer, creamier texture.
Super-easy to make, and so very satisfying!
Paneer – Fresh Indian cheese
Paneer is a fresh cheese that is a common ingredient used in northern Indian (as well as other nearby countries’) cooking. Perhaps most well known is Palak Paneer, the iconic green spinach curry served with golden pan-fried paneer!
These days, you can buy paneer at large grocery stores in Australia such as Coles and Woolworths. But it’s much harder in texture and not a great product. Homemade is far superior – it’s softer and creamier.
Besides, it’s such a cinch to make and lasts for a couple of weeks in the fridge. So why wouldn’t you just make your own??
What paneer tastes like
Paneer is a fresh cheese so it’s somewhat similar to other fresh cheeses like ricotta, quark and cottage cheese. It’s got a milky flavour and a lovely texture a bit like firm ricotta. It’s not as creamy as say a brie, because it doesn’t have anywhere near the same amount of fat.
Paneer is unsalted so it’s quite bland if eaten plain. For Indian cooking, it’s intended to be eaten with flavourful sauces or spicing – like the Spinach Curry sauce pictured below for Palak Paneer!
What you need for homemade paneer
All you need is milk, and lemon juice or vinegar. Gee, I wish more recipes on my website called for just 2 ingredients! 😂
Milk – It has to be full-fat, otherwise it won’t set properly. I’ve only used cow’s milk, but I’ve read that buffalo milk works just as well; and
Lemon juice or vinegar – This along with heat is what causes the milk to curdle, the starting point of any cheese. Curdling is when the dairy separates from the liquid. I prefer lemon juice because it’s fresher and not as harsh in acidity flavour-wise, but standard white vinegar works too.
How to make paneer (fresh Indian cheese)
Heat milk, add lemon – Bring milk to just below boiling point. This is when the top is all foamy, and you can see it’s hot and steamy.
Once the milk is hot, turn the stove off. Add the lemon juice and stir for 1 minute;
Curdled milk – You’ll see the milk begin to curdle, with little white bits separating from the clear(-ish) liquid. This liquid is called the whey. The white bits are the good stuff, called curds – the foundations of cheese!
Milk not curdling? Turn the stove back on and bring the milk to a boil again, just until it starts separating. Then turn the stove off and keep stirring.
Line colander with cheesecloth – Set a sieve, strainer or colander over a large bowl, then line the strainer with 2 layers of cheesecloth (yes we’re actually using cheesecloth today for it’s original purpose!)
What’s cheesecloth? It’s a thin, loose-woven fabric used for cheese-making and other cooking purposes. It acts like a sieve, but the holes are much finer than standard utensils. Don’t try to drain paneer in a fine-mesh strainer or sieve –- you’ll lose the curds through the holes!
Where to find cheesecloth? At fabric stores and some kitchenware stores. You can get it for as little as $3 per metre.
Cheesecloth alternatives – Clean blue Chux wipes (yes, seriously!), a double layer of good-quality paper towels (don’t use cheap paper towels, they will disintegrate), or very thin handkerchiefs.
Drain paneer – Start by ladling the curdled milk into the lined strainer. When you have spooned in about half, you can pour the rest in. The whey can take 5 to 10 minutes to finish draining away, so if your strainer is small, you may need to strain the curdled milk in batches.
The paneer is drained once liquid stops dripping out. At this stage, the paneer will still be quite soft and watery.
Rinse – Bundle up the paneer so it’s wrapped in the cheesecloth, Then give it a rinse under the tap. This is just to remove the excess lemon flavour.
Squeeze out excess water – Twist the top of the cloth and squeeze the bundle itself, to squeeze out excess water and whey.
You don’t need to use brute force here because we will be draining further in the fridge. Just squeeze out what you can. If the paneer starts getting forced out through the cheesecloth holes, you’re squeezing too hard!
At this stage, the paneer will still seem watery and wobbly. It sets more in the next step!
Prepare to refrigerate – Discard all the liquid in the bowl. Then set the paneer in the cheesecloth back in the strainer, and set over empty bowl. Shape the paneer into a 2cm/ 4/5″ thick disc.
Weigh down – Top with a small plate, then weigh down with 2 x 400g/14oz cans or something else of similar weight. This weight helps the paneer set because it’s compressing the cheese, as well as helping to further remove remaining excess water.
Leave in the fridge for 4 hours.
Try not to leave much beyond 4 hours. The longer the paneer is in the fridge with the weights on it, the firmer it will get (as more liquid continues to be pressed out of it).
Ready for use! Remove the paneer from the fridge and unwrap it. There will be a dent in the middle – this is normal, it’s from the liquid draining away.
You can either use it immediately for cooking, or you can keep it for up to 2 weeks in the fridge. Just keep it whole in an airtight container, then cut off pieces as you need them!
How to cook and use paneer
Paneer is typically cut into small bite-size pieces, either cubes or rectangles. Then they are either:
Stirred into curries, just as-is. Paneer doesn’t need cooking, just heating through. The idea here is that the paneer absorbs the flavour of the curry sauce; or
Pan-fried until golden – like you do halloumi – before being stirred into curries such as Palak Paneer, and other dishes.
It will come as no surprise to anyone that I prefer the latter. Because, as I always say, browning = flavour!! The paneer looks irresistible when it’s crispy and golden on the outside. You just want to eat it straight out of the pan. You really will. I do!
Bonus: Pan-frying also causes the paneer to set better, so it’s less likely to break up when stirred into curries – a common problem when uncooked paneer is stirred into curries.
Dishes using Paneer
I’m sharing today’s homemade paneer recipe for use in Palak Paneer, India’s famous Spinach Curry with Paneer.
But there’s a wide variety of other Indian dishes that use paneer, both savoury main dishes as well as desserts and snacks.
It’s also common to substitute paneer for meat in some dishes, as it makes a great vegetarian alternative that’s equally filling and satisfying. Here are a couple of curry recipes I’ve previously shared that can be made vegetarian by switching the meat with paneer:
Paneer Tikka Masala – Substitute the chicken with paneer in my Chicken Tikka Masala recipe; and
Paneer Butter Masala Curry – Switch the chicken in my Butter Chicken.
Enjoy! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Homemade Paneer (Fresh Indian Cottage Cheese)
Ingredients
- 2 litres / 2 quarts milk , full-fat (low-fat won't work)
- 4 tbsp lemon juice (sub white vinegar)
Instructions
Curdle milk:
- Heat the milk in a large saucepan over medium high heat until the top becomes foamy, just as looks like it's about to boil.
- Turn stove off. Add lemon juice and stir for 1 minute. The milk should begin to curdle. If it doesn’t, turn the stove back on and bring back to a gentle boil until the solids separate.
Strain & remove excess water:
- Line strainer or colander: Place over a deep bowl. Line strainer with 2 layers of cheesecloth (Note 1).
- Strain: Ladle in half of the curdled milk to begin with, then pour the rest in. Leave until all the liquid drains – this might take 5 to 10 minutes.
- Rinse: Discard liquid (whey) in the bowl. Bundle the paneer up in the cheesecloth (it will still be quite watery at this stage) then rinse bundle briefly under cold tap water. This helps to remove lemon flavour + cool for easier handling.
- Squeeze out excess water by twisting the cheesecloth and squeezing the bundle, but not so hard that paneer squeezes out through the cloth. Once liquid no longer comes out, stop. The paneer will still be quite soft at this stage.
Set in fridge:
- Weigh cheese down with weights: Shape cheese into a disc around 2cm / ¾" thick, still wrapped in cheesecloth. Place in a strainer or colander set over a bowl. Top with a small plate then 2 x 400g/14oz cans (or similar weight).
- Refrigerate for 4 hours. During this time the paneer will set (become firm) and remaining liquid will drain out. (Note 2)
Storage / cutting:
- Remove paneer from fridge and carefully unwrap. There will be a dent in the middle, this is normal (it's from the draining).
- At this stage, the paneer is now ready for use. You can either cut it immediately and use in a recipe (such as Palak Paneer!), or store the whole uncut block for another time and just cut when needed.
- Store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks, or freeze for 3 months.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
Weekend teeth inspection. I always think he has disproportionally small teeth for a dog that big!!
Love your recipes Nagi San will do the paneer this week
why do you say paneer can be stored in the fridge for 2 weeks while all other sites say it can only be kept in the fridge for 2 or 3 days.Greatly appreciate a reply.
I use 2 1/2 teaspoons citric acid dissolved in a little warm water then stirred into the heated milk. Sets well.
I’m planning to make this recipe very soon. Love this combination!
Wow this is awesome Nagi!!!!!!!
Thank you
I did exactly what the recipe said, with the lemon juice, but maybe it wasn’t acidic enough? Only once I added white wine vinegar did the solids separate.
Just thought I’d mention this, in case anyone else has the same problem.
I also had to increase amount of lemon juice (about 50% more), and continued healing milk for and extra couple of minutes. I raised the fat content of the milk by adding 10% by volume whole milk powder, pre-mixed to prevent lumps.
Hi Nagi,
Would love to see your version of rasmalai!
Made cheese for the first time. I’m glad you had the video. Obviously I didn’t heat the milk enough before I put lemon in. I had to see the video to see what was suppose to happen. The pan-frying really added a nice flavor.
Hi I love your recipes .can you please tell me if I could use veg prawns in the butter chicken sauce please
I left my paneer weighted for 24 hours and it’s still crumbly. What have I done wrong?
I let it go cold before straining, could this be the problem?
My first ‘fail’ : (
Hi Alison, sorry you had issues here, you need to strain it hot so the curds stick together and form a solid piece! N x
Thank you.
I obviously wasn’t paying attention to the instructions. I was doing it like homemade Greek yogurt.
That’s a lesson learned 🙂
Is there anything I can use my crumbly paneer for?
By the way the left over whey was delicious, drunk as it and made into smoothies so not all was lost 😃
Ok. I’m on my second attempt with a different brand of milk. Still looks like miso soup. Any suggestions?
Hi Alison, sorry you’re having issues here – what type of milk are you using? N x
I’ve had the same problem with full cream milk (12% total fat according to the bottle)
I make this very often and often season it with chopped parsley, rosemary, spring onions, salt, pepper, sun dried tomatoes…. endless choice 😊 we get stainless steel containers specially for this. It’s easy and fun. By the way, I make it very soft sometimes and crumble it over salads….. And Dozer has perfect teeth! 😁
Sounds fabulous Raana!! N x
Great instructions… Diluted white Viengar works well too if lemons are aren’t available.
Yes 100% Mel, it’s just about adding an acid 🙂 N x
about the milk — thekitchn says “avoid using ultra-high temperature (UHT) pasteurized milk, as this process changes the protein structure of the milk and prevents it from separating. Unfortunately, many organic milks are UHT pasteurized, so if organic ricotta is your aim, definitely check the carton before buying.”
I wonder if you’ve run into this problem?
Hi Philindo, I’ve never had this happen luckily!! N x
I can’t wait to try this! You are the most reliable sunshine on the internet, Nagi. Thank you so much for being you, and for brightening my day whenever I take time to open one of your tempting emails with one of your great recipes. In this post, I really appreciate your details on alternatives to cheese cloth. I *know* I have some cheese cloth in the house but I am 100% sure I don’t remember where it’s hiding within the kitchen or pantry.
Oh shucks… thanks SO much Philindo!
Can lactose free full fat milk be used?
Hello, I just made it with %2 Fat Lactose free milk. It took more time and 2 more tablespoons of lemon juice but it worked. Success!
Hi Cher, I haven’t tested this but I have heard that you can make it with lactose free milk. N x
Great recipe for paneer! Thanks. But, please, don’t discard the whey!! It is healthy and so useful for soups, gravies, liquid for breads and baking, as homemade stock base, animal treat – or better yet – make more cheese. Ricotta or mysost are made from leftover whey! Here’s a link with a lot of ideas.
https://www.farmcurious.com/blogs/farmcurious/17599408-cheesemaking-what-to-do-with-all-that-whey
Yes great suggestions Linda! N x
I used to make yogurt a lot and always kept the whey, Treat it like buttermik – it’s great for bread, pancakes and waffles. I never had luck making ricotta with it though.
Hi Nahin, I love your recipe video and blogs. Your details makes it worthwhile. You are so cute!!
A tip I learned is to mix a little bit of water to the lemon juice or vinegar before pouring it into milk. Pouring the acidity directly will cause a shock to the milk and harden a bit.
Hi Tami, great tip – I’ve never encountered this problem but you could definitely do this if you prefer! Nagi x
Hi Nagi, do you think this would work with full fat powdered milk? We’re in HK and milk is super expensive, which would make this some very pricey paneer! Thanks.
Hi Alecia, I’m not sure to be honest, I imagine so – leave it with me! N x
I’m currently making this with powdered milk – it seems to be working ok 🙂 The separation out into the curds and whey went as planned; the curds were a lot finer than when I made it last week with ordinary milk, but it drained fine, and is now sitting in the fridge for the pressing.
Right. Well. I think my mixture is more lemon juice/vinegar at this point and still not curdling. Should I be using a wooden spoon to stir instead of metal? How do I save it🥺
That is so interesting that just those two ingredients make paneer cheese. My daughter was doing a science experiment with the same two ingredients to make casein plastic, but she just dried it till it was rock hard. Love your blog and dozer.
It’s like a science experiment isn’t it Karen!! N x
Hi Nagi,
What weight does the paneer weigh after the 4-5hrs.
Thanks, Pam