Grilled Garlic Basil Paneer Recipe
Pan grilled paneer recipe – Garlic and basil flavor filled
This pan grilled paneer recipe is one of my favorites and I enjoy the Indian fusion dish. I especially love it during summer time when heirloom tomatoes are at their finest. There are many ways to serve it. So you can do a variety of dishes with grilled garlic basil paneer. I enjoy serving it in the same way a caprese salad would be served. Instead of mozzarella I use paneer that has been soaked in a marinade and grilled.
Paneer absorbs flavor well so I enjoy using it to provide a flavorful punch to this summer fresh dish. I’ve used it many times for another Indian fusion dish, Jalapeno Corn Paneer Tacos.
What is paneer?
Paneer is a type of cheese used very often in North Indian dishes. It is made by curdling milk with lemon. The thing that is great about paneer is that it doesn not melt the way other cheese do. As it retains texture, it can be grilled and used in cube form. Paneer also does absorbs flavor really well. As this recipe does, you can soak paneer in a marinade allowing it to absorb the flavors. For this recipe, I recommend letting paneer soak atleast for 2 hours and up to overnight.
Grilled Garlic Basil Paneer Recipe Ingredients
- Paneer
- Yogurt
- Pesto
- Garlic cloves
- Salt
- Tomatoes
- Fresh Basil
- Balsamic vinegar
- Chilli flakes/black pepper (optional)
How to grill paneer at home?
Either use a grill or I often use the Lodge Cast Iron grill indoors. Heat the pan. Brush the grill with oil and add paneer. Grill on both sides about 3-4 minutes. Adding oil on top before flipping. Press down lightly to get the sear grilled marks.
The grill pan is linked here on Amazon.
Process Steps for Grilled Garlic Basil Paneer
Cut paneer block into 4 pieces Mix marinade ingredients in a bowl. Coat paneer slice in marinade Grill Grill Serve with tomatoes, fresh basil and balsamic reduction
Making the Balsamic Reduction
Balsamic reduction is balsamic vinegar cooked down until it thickens. Cooking it down turns the vinegary, almost harsh taste of balsamic into a sweet, tangy delicious syrup. It only takes about 10 minutes to make and really can add a delicious element to your dish. Best part is it only takes 1 ingredient, balsalmic vinegar! I will add a separate post of its own on making balsamic reduction and link it here shortly.
Until then, all you really need to know and do is boil some balsamic vinegar until it reduces to half!
When it is ready it will coat the spoon like below:
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Grilled Garlic Basil Paneer Recipe
Equipment
- Grill or grill pan
Ingredients
- 8 oz paneer
- 2 tbsp yogurt
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 4 tbsp pesto
- 1-2 tomatoes sliced
- 1 cup fresh basil
- 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- black pepper or chili flakes optional
Instructions
Grilled Paneer
- Mix yogurt, pesto, garlic and salt in a bowl to make marinade
- Slice paneer lengthwise into 4 pieces
- Coat all paneer slices on both sides with marinade. Add any remaining marinade to bowl of paneer slices and cover to soak. Atleast 2 hours and up to overnight.
- Heat grill or pan. Brush with oil.
- Add paneer slice to grill. Cook on both sides about 3-4 minutes adding a little oil when you flip each piece. Pressing down lightly to get sear marks.
Balsamic Reduction
- Bring balsamic vinegar to a boil. Let simmer for 10 minutes on low.
- It will thicken and be able to coat a spoon when ready.
Assemble Grilled Paneer To Serve
- Layer with tomato slices, plenty of fresh basil leaves and paneer. Drizzle balsamic reduction and serve!
