Hearty, spicy and absolutely delicious Paneer and white bean curry. It’s great to serve with any Indian bread or rice.
So for the second day of this week’s ‘BM – MasterChef’, I made this delicious Paneer and White bean curry. This recipe is packed with beans, cheese, spinach, spices and lots of flavor. I served it with yogurt flatbread and rice. It tasted great either way.My plan wasn’t to cook Indian dishes from MasterChef series but there were only a few vegetarian dishes to choose from. I didn’t want to make any sweet preparations after baking for the bake-a-thon series last month.
This curry is literally packed with protein – as written this recipe had 3 types of beans, halloumi cheese and lentils. I thought that was a little too much, so I ended up using only cannellini beans and paneer. I liked this combo quite a bit.This Paneer and white bean curry is made with a tomato base and is spiced with the usual spices – cumin, coriander and garam masala. I added a splash of heavy cream to make the curry nice and creamy. Leftovers tasted even better the next day. This is a great recipe to make for a party.
Lets check out what my fellow marathoners have cooked today for BM# 96.

Paneer & White Beans Curry
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp Oil
- 1 tsp Mustard seeds
- 2 Green Chilies
- 6~8 curry leaves
- 1 Medium Onion, finely chopped
- 1 tsp Ginger+garlic paste
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 cup Tomato puree
- 1 tsp Ground Coriander
- 1 tsp Ground Cumin
- ½~1 tsp Red Chili powder
- ½~1 tsp garam masala
- 4 cups Baby Spinach, chopped
- 1 15oz. can of White Beans (like Cannellini or Navy beans), rinsed & drained About 1½cups cooked beans
- 1½ cups Paneer cubes
- ¼ cup Heavy Cream (optional)
- To taste salt
Instructions
- Heat oil in a pan; add mustard seeds and once they pop add green chilies, curry leaves and onions. Cook on medium heat until the onions turn translucent, about 4~5 minutes.
- Add ginger+garlic paste and cook for another 1 minute.
- Next add in the tomato paste and tomato puree. Stir in the spices and cook till the mixture starts to simmer.
- Add the chopped spinach and cook till wilted. Stir in the beans and paneer. Add enough water to get to desired consistency. Season with salt and cook covered for the flavors to mingle, about 6~8 minutes.
- Finally add heavy cream, if using, and cook till heated through, about 1~2 minutes. Turn off the heat, cover and set aside for at least 10 minutes before serving.
- Serve with roti or rice.
Varada
The platter looks great. The gravy looks so creamy. White beans and paneer is a very interesting combination.
Usha
Curry is creamy, hearty and wholesome. Perfect for parties and special occasions.
Srivalli Jetti
The curry looks fantastic Pavani, so creamy and inviting…the whole combination looks so good!
Vaishali Sabnani
The beans and paneer combo is unique , full of protein . A lovely flavourful curry which is so rich !
Rajani
The sauce looks silky and smooth. I guess it’s the Puréed tomato and cream that does it. Perfect with paneer!
Sushma
I love white beans, beans and paneer gravy looks so nice and creamy.
harini
OMG! This curry looks so inviting and creamy. I am sure this will be an ideal for everyday or party menu
Suma Gandlur
That sounds like one rich curry even without the cheese addition. Beans and paneer in that creamy base sounds wonderful.
Gayathri Kumar
That is a wonderful protein packed side dish for soft rotis. Any curry with paneer is a winner for me. The platter looks absolutely inviting.
Kalyani
Indian dish in a masterchef series – now I regret not having chosen this theme .. next time perhaps.. :_ this curry looks protein packed and full of flavour.. .
Renu
I just want to enjoy this straight away. It looks so so yummy and flavourful.