By Monish Gujral | Restaurateur, Chef and Custodian of Indian Culinary Heritage

A dish that brings together royalty, refinement and the magic of Indian cooking

There are some dishes that do more than satisfy our appetite. They tell stories of an era when cooking was an expression of hospitality, creativity and royal indulgence. Paneer Pasanda is one such dish.

As someone who has grown up immersed in the rich culinary traditions of India, and who carries forward the legacy of my grandfather, Kundan Lal Gujral, the founder of Moti Mahal, I have always believed that every dish has a story worth discovering. Food is not merely about ingredients; it is about the people, places and traditions that bring those ingredients together.

Paneer Pasanda has always fascinated me because of its delicate balance of textures and flavours. Soft Indian cottage cheese, a delicious stuffing of nuts and herbs, and a rich, aromatic gravy come together to create a dish that feels indulgent without relying on excessive heat or overpowering spices.

But how did this much-loved dish come into existence?

The historical roots of Pasanda

To understand Paneer Pasanda, we must first look at the culinary traditions of the Indian subcontinent, particularly the refined cooking associated with royal and aristocratic kitchens.

The word pasanda is commonly associated with a preparation of tender meat, traditionally sliced, flattened or pounded to make it delicate, and then cooked with aromatic spices. The term is often linked to the idea of choosing a preferred or particularly fine cut.

Pasanda-style preparations became associated with the sophisticated cooking traditions influenced by Mughal and Persianate culinary culture, where cooks prized tenderness, fragrant spices, nuts, yoghurt and carefully balanced gravies. These kitchens developed elaborate dishes that combined richness with subtlety rather than relying entirely on chilli heat.

Over time, the pasanda tradition evolved. As Indian regional cuisines adapted royal cooking techniques to local ingredients and changing tastes, vegetarian interpretations emerged.

Paneer, or Indian cottage cheese, proved to be an ideal ingredient for this transformation. Its mild flavour and firm texture allowed chefs to create a vegetarian dish that could be stuffed, layered, shallow-fried and served in a luxurious gravy.

The precise inventor and date of invention of Paneer Pasanda are not reliably documented. It is therefore more accurate to understand it as an evolution of the broader pasanda tradition rather than attribute it to one particular Mughal emperor or chef.

How Paneer Pasanda became a vegetarian delicacy

What I particularly admire about Indian cuisine is its ability to reinterpret an established idea without losing its essential character.

Traditional meat pasanda depended on the tenderness of the meat and the flavour of its accompanying sauce. In the vegetarian version, paneer takes centre stage.

Chefs commonly sandwich a filling of chopped nuts, herbs and sometimes raisins between slices of paneer. The stuffed pieces are then coated lightly and fried until golden. They are served in a smooth gravy made with onions, tomatoes, cashews, cream and selected spices.

The result is a dish in which every element has a purpose: the paneer provides softness, the filling adds texture, and the gravy brings everything together.

The exact recipe varies from kitchen to kitchen. Some versions use a white, nut-based gravy, while others feature the familiar golden-orange or reddish gravy of contemporary North Indian restaurant cooking.

This diversity is what makes Indian cuisine so remarkable. A culinary idea travels from one kitchen to another, meets new ingredients and techniques, and gradually becomes part of a wider food culture.

My connection with the culinary heritage of India

My own journey in food has been shaped by the lessons I inherited from my grandfather, Kundan Lal Gujral, who established Moti Mahal in Peshawar in 1920 and brought its culinary legacy to Delhi after Partition in 1947.

At Moti Mahal, our story is closely associated with dishes such as Tandoori Chicken, Butter Chicken and Dal Makhani. These preparations remind me that great food is not simply about following a recipe. It is about understanding ingredients, respecting technique and achieving consistency without sacrificing character.

That philosophy has influenced the way I look at dishes from across India’s culinary landscape, including Paneer Pasanda.

I believe that a chef must understand the roots of a dish before attempting to reinterpret it. One must know why a particular ingredient is used, how a technique affects texture, and how spices should complement rather than overwhelm the main ingredient.

In our kitchens at Moti Mahal, we place great importance on carefully selected spices and consistent flavour. We produce our own spice blends for dishes across our restaurant network because we believe that customers should experience the same characteristic taste and quality wherever they dine with us.

Paneer Pasanda offers a different but equally valuable lesson: refinement does not necessarily mean complexity. Sometimes, it comes from the thoughtful combination of a few good ingredients and the patience to prepare them well.

My version of Paneer Pasanda

For my version, I like the paneer to remain soft, the stuffing to provide a gentle crunch, and the gravy to have a velvety consistency.

The spices should be fragrant rather than aggressive. A little cardamom, a touch of garam masala and the natural sweetness of cashews can create a wonderful balance.

Here is a restaurant-style recipe that you can prepare at home.

Recipe: Shahi Paneer Pasanda

Serves: 4

Preparation time: 25 minutes

Cooking time: 35 minutes

Ingredients

For the paneer

• 400 g fresh paneer, cut into thick slices
• 2 tbsp finely chopped cashews
• 2 tbsp finely chopped almonds
• 1 tbsp raisins, chopped
• 2 tbsp finely chopped coriander leaves
• 1 green chilli, finely chopped, optional
• ½ tsp roasted cumin powder
• Salt to taste
• 3 tbsp cornflour
• Water, as required, to make a light coating batter
• Oil or ghee for shallow-frying

For the royal gravy

• 2 medium onions, sliced
• 2 medium tomatoes, chopped
• 12–15 cashews, soaked in warm water
• 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
• 2 tbsp ghee
• 1 tbsp oil
• 1 small cinnamon stick
• 2 green cardamoms
• 2 cloves
• ½ tsp cumin seeds
• ½ tsp Kashmiri red chilli powder
• ½ tsp coriander powder
• ¼ tsp turmeric powder
• ½ tsp garam masala
• 3 tbsp fresh cream
• ½ tsp crushed kasuri methi
• ½–1 cup warm water, as required
• Salt to taste

For garnish

• Slivered almonds and pistachios
• A little fresh cream
• Finely chopped coriander

Method

Step 1: Prepare the stuffing

Combine the chopped cashews, almonds, raisins, coriander leaves, green chilli if using, roasted cumin powder and a pinch of salt in a bowl.

Mix well and keep aside. The stuffing should be finely chopped so that it sits neatly inside the paneer without spilling out.

Step 2: Stuff the paneer

Take a thick slice of paneer and carefully make a horizontal slit to form a pocket. Fill it with a little of the prepared mixture.

Alternatively, place the stuffing between two thin slices of paneer and press gently to form a sandwich.

Repeat with the remaining paneer.

Step 3: Coat and fry

Mix the cornflour with enough water to make a thin, smooth batter.

Dip each stuffed paneer piece into the batter, ensuring that the edges are lightly coated. Shallow-fry in medium-hot oil or ghee until lightly golden on both sides.

Remove and drain on absorbent paper. Avoid over-frying, as paneer can become firm and lose its delicate texture.

Step 4: Prepare the gravy base

Heat a little oil in a pan and add the sliced onions. Cook until softened and lightly golden.

Add the ginger-garlic paste and cook for a minute. Add the tomatoes, Kashmiri chilli powder, coriander powder, turmeric and salt.

Cook until the tomatoes soften and the mixture begins to release oil.

Allow it to cool slightly, then blend until smooth.

Separately, blend the soaked cashews with a little water to make a fine paste.

Step 5: Build the royal flavour

Heat the ghee in a clean pan. Add cumin seeds, cinnamon, cardamom and cloves. Allow them to release their fragrance.

Add the onion-tomato puree and cook for a few minutes. Stir in the cashew paste and cook gently, adding warm water until the gravy reaches a smooth, creamy consistency.

Simmer for 8–10 minutes, stirring regularly. Add the garam masala and crushed kasuri methi.

Reduce the heat and stir in the fresh cream. Taste and adjust the salt and seasoning.

Step 6: Bring the dish together

Arrange the fried paneer pieces in the gravy shortly before serving. Simmer gently for 2–3 minutes so that they absorb some of the flavour without becoming soggy.

Garnish with slivered almonds, pistachios, a little cream and fresh coriander.

My chef’s tips

• Choose good paneer: Fresh, soft paneer makes all the difference.
• Keep the stuffing restrained: Too much filling can make the pieces difficult to handle.
• Cook the gravy patiently: A well-cooked onion-tomato base prevents the sauce from tasting raw.
• Balance the richness: Cashews and cream should create a silky texture, not an excessively heavy sauce.
• Add paneer at the end: This helps preserve its texture and prevents the stuffing from breaking apart.

How to serve Paneer Pasanda

Paneer Pasanda pairs beautifully with butter naan, roomali roti, tandoori roti or fragrant basmati rice.

For a special dinner, I would serve it alongside a fresh green salad, a simple raita and a crisp Indian accompaniment. The idea is to let the richness of the paneer remain the star of the meal.

Preserving India’s culinary stories

Whenever I explore a traditional Indian dish, I am reminded that our cuisine is a living heritage. Recipes change as they move across regions, generations and professional kitchens. Some dishes have well-documented origins; others have developed gradually, with their beginnings lost in time.

As a restaurateur, chef and food writer, I feel that our responsibility is to preserve these traditions while continuing to explore them. We should celebrate a dish’s history without inventing facts about its origins, and we should respect the techniques that have allowed Indian cuisine to evolve over centuries.

Paneer Pasanda is a fine example of that evolution: a vegetarian interpretation of a preparation associated with tender meat, transformed into a dish that celebrates paneer, nuts, aromatic spices and the art of a carefully made gravy.

For me, that is the enduring beauty of Indian food. It carries memories of the past while leaving room for every new generation of cooks to contribute something of its own.

Until next time, keep exploring India’s culinary heritage, one dish and one story at a time.

— Monish Gujral
Restaurateur, Chef, Author and Custodian of Indian Culinary Heritage