Fast Food Paneer Curry
Medically reviewed by Christiana George Updated Date: June 8, 2023
Nope, there are no pomegranates in this recipe. In fact, if there are any stray arils lying around, they are going straight into my mouth, no recipe involved, because it is unimaginable for me to eat them any other way. That being said, this pomegranate did get the chance to do a little modeling—flashing its resplendent seedlings at the camera—before disappearing promptly. Into my mouth.
How exactly does one dress up curry anyway? It’s remarkably… drab. And lumpy, and unappealing-looking, much like those people in the world who don’t give any thought to how they appear. And then you talk to them and discover that they’re Fields medal-winning mathematicians (one of Chris’s professors in college dressed like a teenage gamer), and world-class cardiologists (my friend’s brother-in-law who received a huge makeover when he started dating his now-wife), and brilliant writers (I suspect our neighbor across the street is one of these. He’s always just returning from the liquor store, wearing a rumpled blazer, one hand in his pocket and the other giddily clutching his goods.)
Curries like these are the Louis CK’s of the world.
So elaborate analogies aside, what I’m trying to say is that this recipe is really really good. Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing complex about it at all. It relies heavily on curry powder, an admission which I realize puts me squarely in the Blue Box Mac & Cheese camp. But I certainly have no compunctions about using it if it gets the job done. And it does! It does.
As for its name, this recipe comes from Nigel Slater’s Real Fast Food (although he calls it ‘Chicken with spices and cream,’ heh), a collection of recipes that are all supposed to come together in 30 minutes or less. Plus, it’s got a fast food quality to it, with its commercially-blended seasoning powder and all. I imagine that the Curry Up Now food truck uses a very similar recipe for its famous curry burrito that it serves to the masses in the streets of San Francisco’s Financial District.
Oh! And one last thing I should mention, I like my curry thick and hearty so I halved the amount of stock. But if you adhere to the amount the recipe calls for, you should end up with plenty of sauce.
FAST FOOD PANEER CURRY
Adapted from Nigel Slater’s Real Fast Food via The Wednesday Chef
Serves 4
Ingredients
1/2 lb. paneer
Salt & pepper
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 Tbsp butter
2 medium onions, roughly chopped
4 large cloves of garlic, minced
2 Tbsp curry powder
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 14-ounce can of diced tomatoes
1 cup chicken stock (I only used 1/2 cup)
1/2 cup heavy cream
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Directions
Before prepping the onions and garlic, marinade the paneer in the oil and season with salt and pepper to taste.
When ready to begin, in a shallow, preferably non-stick pan, place the paneer in a single layer and turn on the stove to medium. In a minute or so, flip them over to let the other side brown. Remove the paneer from the pan and set aside.
In the same pan, cleaned of residue, melt the butter and add the onions and garlic, cooking over medium heat until soft, about 7 minutes. Stir every once in a while. Stir in the curry powder and cinnamon and cook for an additional few minutes, until the spices are cooked. You may want to add a couple tablespoons of water to the pan to keep the spices from burning. Add the tomatoes, chicken broth, and paneer, and cook until everything is hot, about 5 minutes. Stir in the heavy cream, season with salt to taste, and squeeze in the lemon juice. Simmer another minute or so, then turn off the stove and serve.
Naan (or pita in my case, haha) makes the best accompaniment in my opinion, but you probably already have your favorite way of eating curry.
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Broccoli Rabe & Egg Pizza
Unbeknownst to all of you, a lot of pizza is made in this apartment. Usually I half-ass it, using Trader Joe’s pre-made pizza dough which needs about 20 minutes of sitting on the counter before it’s ready. And as far as toppings go, we’re not very experimental—bacon, spinach or arugula, and yellow bell pepper all the way, with the occasional mushroom and tomato thrown in. But sometimes, I get it together enough to make my own dough, which, I know I know, is supremely easy to make, so there’s really no good excuse why I don’t.
This time, my impetus was this:
The season’s first broccoli rabe.
And these:
The most velvety, gorgeous-tinted eggs ever. Swoon.
Both reaffirming that the Union Square Greenmarket is my happy place in this city.
Have you had pizza with an egg on it? Since I think eggs make everything taste about a million times better, there’s nothing I love more than topping pizzas with them, baking them until they’re only just set, and taking a sharp implement to them:
All the yolk oozes out. Sweet, fresh yolk.
This pizza was inspired by a gorgeous spinach, runny egg, and Parmesan pizza featured in Polpo, that cookbook I raved about not so long ago. It was a departure from our usual tomato sauce-based pizzas, but I didn’t miss the stuff at all. It was delicious. We demolished it in about five minutes.
I just want to point out, broccoli rabe is not as easy a pleaser as spinach. Its bitterness can be offputting. But the garlic and red pepper flakes transform the bitterness into something else, something toothsome and with bite, so don’t skip the saute! And enjoy!
BROCCOLI RABE & EGG PIZZA
Adapted from Polpo: A Venetian Cookbook (Of Sorts)
Serves 1 to 2
Since I don’t have a pizza stone, I used the back of a large heavy-duty baking pan. Just make sure to crank up your oven all the way, and preheat the baking pan while you’re preheating the oven.
Ingredients:
- A small ball of pizza dough (1/2 of this recipe)
- 1 large handful of broccoli rabe, ends trimmed
- 2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- 1 Tbsp plain yogurt
- a sprinkle of red pepper flakes
- A few Tbsp grated Parmesan
- A handful of mozzarella
- Salt & pepper
- 1 egg
Directions:
Preheat your oven to its highest temperature (mine is 500 degrees F) and place your pizza stone/baking pan inside to heat up. You want your oven to be nice and hot, so plan to preheat for at least half an hour.
Blanch the broccoli rabe for about 30 seconds in boiling water, then immediately plunge it into cold water to stop its cooking. Squeeze it out thoroughly, and chop it up. Turn your stove onto medium and pour in a glug of olive oil. When it’s hot, add the garlic and saute for 15 seconds, then add the chopped broccoli rabe and red pepper flakes. Saute for a few minutes, seasoning with salt and pepper, then turn off the stove. Stir in the Parmesan and yogurt.
Roll out your pizza dough to about 10 inches in diameter. At this point, because I don’t have a pizza stone, I usually par-bake the dough for a little while, 3 to 4 minutes, so it’s partially cooked before I bake it again with the toppings. I find that this results in a crisper pizza, and I like not having to worry about whether or not the pizza will be baked through, especially since I tend to load mine down with toppings. Feel free to do so. Spread the broccoli rabe mixture evenly across the pizza (minus the border, of course), leaving a little well in the middle. Crack the egg over the well. Sprinkle the mozzarella over the top, as well as some extra Parmesan, and season with salt and pepper.
Bake until the crust is blistered and lightly brown and the egg is cooked but still runny. My pizza took about 9 minutes.
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