Matar Paneer Recipe - Green Peas & Paneer Curry (20 Minutes)

Why This Recipe Works

If Shahi Paneer is the celebration paneer and Palak Paneer is the restaurant paneer, then Matar Paneer is the everyday paneer — the one Indian mothers make on a Tuesday night with whatever's in the kitchen. It's one of the top-5 most searched paneer recipes globally, and the reason is its beautiful simplicity: paneer cubes, frozen peas, onion, tomato, and a handful of everyday spices. No cashew paste, no spinach, no cream, no frying the paneer first (unless you want to). It's a 20-minute, one-pan, budget-friendly curry that produces maximum comfort with minimum effort.

The magic of Matar Paneer is the contrast: soft, mild, creamy paneer against sweet, bright, slightly firm green peas, all held together by a thin but flavourful tomato-onion gravy. It's the curry that children grow up eating, that students survive on, and that working parents default to when there's no time to cook anything elaborate. At Pick N Save, we stock nine different paneer options (any of which works perfectly for this recipe — even the softer, less expensive blocks) and frozen peas are always in stock. The spice list is nothing more than the basics you already have from making any of our other recipes: cumin, coriander, turmeric, chilli, and garam masala. This is comfort food at its most efficient.

Step-by-Step Method

Step 1: Make the Onion-Tomato Base (8 Minutes)

Heat 2 tablespoons of sunflower oil (KTC Pure Sunflower Oil 5 Litres) in a wide pan over medium heat. Add 1 teaspoon of cumin seeds (Fudco Cumin Seeds 300g) and let them crackle for 5 seconds. Add 1 large onion, finely diced (White Onions Prepack 4Kg), and cook for 4–5 minutes until soft and light golden. Add 1 tablespoon of ginger garlic paste (Fudco Ginger Garlic Paste 300g) and 1 green chilli, finely chopped (Indian Chilli 400g). Cook for 1 minute.

Add 2 medium tomatoes, finely chopped (Fresh Vine Tomato 500g), or 200g of KTC Chopped Tomatoes. Cook for 3–4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes break down completely into a thick paste and the oil separates at the edges. This is the standard North Indian onion-tomato masala base — the same foundation used in hundreds of Indian curries, and one you'll make instinctively once you've cooked a few of our recipes.

Step 2: Add Spices (1 Minute)

Add 1 teaspoon of ground coriander (TFS Dhana Coriander Powder 100g), ½ teaspoon of turmeric (TFS Haldi Powder Rajapuri 100g), ½ teaspoon of Kashmiri chilli powder (TFS Kashmiri Mild Chilli Powder 100g), ½ teaspoon of garam masala (TFS Garam Masala 100g), and salt to taste. Stir for 1 minute until the spices are fragrant and fully incorporated into the tomato base. The simplicity of the spice list is deliberate — Matar Paneer is meant to taste clean and comforting, not complex and overwhelming.

Step 3: Add Paneer, Peas, and Simmer (7 Minutes)

Cut 300g of paneer (Homeville Paneer Block 1kg — use just under a third) into 2cm cubes. If you want slightly firmer paneer with golden edges, pan-fry the cubes in 1 tablespoon of oil for 1 minute per side before adding — but this is entirely optional. For everyday Matar Paneer, adding raw paneer cubes directly to the sauce is the traditional home-cooking approach and saves time and washing-up.

Add the paneer cubes and 1 cup of frozen peas (no need to thaw — they cook perfectly from frozen in the hot sauce) to the pan. Add 200ml of warm water and stir gently — be careful not to break the paneer cubes. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook on medium-low heat for 5–7 minutes. The peas will turn bright green and tender, the paneer will warm through and absorb the sauce flavour, and the gravy will thicken to a consistency that coats the paneer and peas without pooling on the plate.

The sauce should be thin enough to flow but thick enough to cling — thinner than Butter Chicken gravy but thicker than Dal Tadka. If too thick, add a splash of water. If too thin, simmer uncovered for 2 more minutes to reduce.

Step 4: Finish and Serve

Add 1 tablespoon of butter (Anchor Butter Salted 500g) — optional but traditional. The butter stirred through at the end adds a gloss and richness that rounds out the everyday spices. Add 1 teaspoon of dried fenugreek leaves / kasuri methi (TFS Dried Fenugreek Leaves 100g) crushed between your palms — the same finishing touch from our Butter Chicken, Palak Paneer, and Shahi Paneer recipes. Scatter chopped fresh coriander (Fresh Coriander Bunch) on top.

Serve with basmati rice (Tilda Basmati Rice 5kg) for the classic Matar Paneer Chawal, or with roti (Shana Chapatti Multi Pack 20s) or Garlic Naan. A side of Dal Tadka and Cucumber Raita completes the most common North Indian vegetarian thali. Matar Paneer also pairs beautifully with Aloo Paratha as a side for a Punjabi weekend brunch.

Pro Tips from Our Store

• Frozen peas are better than fresh for this recipe: Frozen peas are picked and flash-frozen at peak sweetness, giving consistent bright green colour and sweet flavour every time. Fresh peas vary wildly — they can be starchy and bland if not perfectly in season. Add frozen peas directly from the bag — they thaw and cook in the hot sauce within 3 minutes. This is one dish where frozen is genuinely the superior choice.
• Don't overcook the paneer: The same rule as every paneer recipe in our collection — 5–7 minutes of gentle simmering is the maximum. Longer cooking turns paneer from soft and yielding to dense and rubbery. If you've pan-fried the paneer first, add it in the last 3 minutes. If adding raw cubes, 5–7 minutes is enough to warm through and absorb flavour.
• Any paneer works — this is the everyday recipe: Unlike Paneer Tikka or Malai Kofta where firm paneer matters, Matar Paneer is forgiving. Softer paneer, crumbly paneer, day-old paneer from the fridge — all work fine. The sauce does the heavy lifting. Homeville Paneer Cubes 500g save prep time. Dairy Valley Paneer 250g is the right amount for a smaller batch. Even Everest Paneer 200g works for a single-serve portion.
• Keep the spicing simple — that's the point: Matar Paneer should taste of cumin, coriander, tomato, and green peas — clean, warm, comforting. Don't add cashew paste, cream, coconut, saffron, or complex masala blends. Save those for Shahi Paneer and Malai Kofta. The beauty of Matar Paneer is its honest simplicity — it's the dish that proves you don't need 20 ingredients to make something delicious.
• Kasuri methi ties every paneer recipe together: TFS Dried Fenugreek Leaves 100g appears in Matar Paneer, Butter Chicken, Palak Paneer, Shahi Paneer, Tikka Masala, Dal Makhani, and Malai Kofta — it's the single most versatile finishing spice in your entire Indian kitchen. One 100g bag services all seven recipes for months. If you haven't bought it yet, this is your sign.
• This is the ultimate meal prep curry: Matar Paneer reheats perfectly in the microwave (2 minutes, stir, 1 minute more), keeps in the fridge for 3 days, and freezes for 2 months. Make a double batch on Sunday and you've got weeknight dinners sorted. The frozen peas don't deteriorate when frozen-then-thawed-then-frozen again because they're already a frozen product.

Variations to Try

• Matar Mushroom (No Paneer — Budget): Replace paneer with 250g of sliced button mushrooms. Sauté the mushrooms in butter for 2 minutes until golden before adding to the sauce. Mushrooms absorb the masala beautifully and cost a fraction of paneer. A popular weeknight variation when paneer isn't available.
• Matar Paneer Dry (Sukha — No Gravy): Skip the water entirely. Cook the paneer and peas with the masala base using just the tomato moisture. The result is a dry, coated, stir-fry-style dish — excellent as a filling for wraps, parathas, and kathi rolls, or as a side dish alongside dal and rice.
• Matar Paneer with Cream (Restaurant Style): Add 3 tablespoons of cream (Elmlee Double Creamy Taste 270ml) at the end for a richer, restaurant-style gravy. This bridges the gap between everyday home-style and the creamier restaurant presentation. Also works with a splash of coconut cream for a slightly different richness.
• Tofu Matar (Vegan): Replace paneer with 300g of firm tofu (pressed and cubed). Replace butter with oil. The technique is identical. Tofu absorbs the masala excellently and provides similar protein to paneer. For extra texture, pan-fry the tofu cubes until golden before adding.
• Matar Keema (Non-Veg Version): Replace paneer with 300g of lamb or chicken mince. Brown the mince first (like our Lamb Keema recipe), then build the masala around it and add peas. Matar Keema is the non-vegetarian brother of Matar Paneer — same peas, same gravy, different protein.

Shop This Recipe at Pick N Save

Every single ingredient for this recipe is available at picknsave.co.uk with home delivery across London and the UK, or click and collect from our store in Harrow. Here's your shopping list:

• Paneer: Homeville Paneer Block 1kg | Home Ville Paneer Slab 800g | Home Ville Paneer Slab 450g | Dairy Valley Paneer 1kg | Dairy Valley Paneer 250g | Masti Paneer 900g | Everest Paneer 200g | Paneer Block 2kg | Home Ville Paneer Cubes 500g
• Spices: Fudco Cumin Seeds 300g | TFS Dhana Coriander Powder 100g | TFS Haldi Powder Rajapuri 100g | TFS Kashmiri Mild Chilli Powder 100g | TFS Garam Masala 100g | TFS Dried Fenugreek Leaves (Kasuri Methi) 100g
• Pastes: Fudco Ginger Garlic Paste 300g | Taj Ginger Garlic Crushed 400g
• Tomatoes: Fresh Vine Tomato 500g | KTC Chopped Tomatoes 400g
• Fresh Produce: White Onions Prepack 4Kg | Indian Chilli 400g | Fresh Coriander Bunch 1Pc
• Butter: Anchor Butter Salted 500g
• Oil: KTC Pure Sunflower Oil 5 Litres
• Rice & Bread: Tilda Basmati Rice 5kg | Tilda Basmati Rice 2kg | Shana Chapatti Multi Pack 20s | Shana Naan Garlic 300g
• Cream (For Restaurant Variation): Elmlee Double Creamy Taste 270ml
• Accompaniments: Desi Natural Yogurt 1kg (for raita) | Patak Mixed Pickle 283g | Lijjat Plain Papad 200g