No-Fry Matar Paneer-can be vegan or vegetarian

A lower-fat version of the classic...

I was reading this brilliant post from Chandrani of Cuisine Delights about oven- baked samosas, and it struck me that many Indian favourites could be made healthier by reducing the fat content, not just the deep-fried ones. In this recipe the paneer is made with semi-skimmed milk, and there is no frying involved whatsoever; not even the spices. You can, of course, veganise this by subbing tofu for the paneer, which is what we most often do, so all the family can eat it. We didn't even notice these changes: there is no compromise on taste. The recipe fed 7 people, with brown rice and greens to accompany.  Thanks, Chandrani, for the inspiration! :)

Paneer made from 4 litres of semi-skimmed milk, cut into cubes or about 450g tofu

Some light olive oil/ ricebran oil (or any oil with a high smoke point) for baking

700g fresh tomatoes

200ml water/ whey from making the paneer

450g fresh or frozen peas

2tsps seasalt (or a little more if you wish)

1 tsp compound hing

2 tsps turmeric (haldi)

a piece of fresh ginger the size of the tip of your thumb, grated

a piece of fresh med- mild red chilli about the size of a fingertip (or more if you want it more spicy)

2 tabs cumin seeds

garam masala powder to taste -I actually forgot it when I cooked this, and it came out just fine without.

• Arrange the paneer cubes on an oiled baking sheet and brush with a minimal amount of oil. Bake in an oven preheated to 200C until just browning at the edges.
• Meanwhile, whizz up the tomatoes in you food processor or blender until liquid. (or chop into small pieces and cook down if you don't have a blender). Put them in a large saucepan, add the whey/ water, seasalt, hing, turmeric, ginger and chilli. 
• Cook down until beginning to thicken, then add the peas.
• Dry-roast the cumin seeds in a small. thick-bottomed pan until they release their aroma. (Do not overcook or they will taste scorched.) Stir in to the tomatoes and peas.
• When the tomatoes and peas have thickened somewhat, stir in the paneer, and garam masala if using.
• When the paneer is heated through, the matar paneer is ready.

Possible Tweak: Veganise this dish by using tofu instead of paneer.