Paneer Bhurji / Paneer Bhurji Dosa

Vegetarian substitute of Egg Bhurji ,this is a quick and easy dinner dish when teamed with hot Rotis or Parathas.You can also stuff it in between bread,toast them and have them as sandwich.

Paneer bhurji is generally a little dry and resembles a crumble ,but this slightly runny version of Paneer bhurji at a very popular Mumbai restaurant made me a huge fan of paneer bhurji .

The restaurant version had oodles of butter while serving, but we can definitely reduce the amount of butter and oil and make a healthy version at home.

Always use fresh and soft paneer to get a melt in mouth feel . If you use old paneer or frozen paneer it will give a rubbery texture to the bhurji which is a total turn off  . 

Always grating paneer versus crumbling makes a lot of difference, so make sure to grate the paneer just before you add it to the gravy .

If you have no choice, but to use frozen paneer then soak the paneer in warm water for 20 to 30 mins to soften it and then grate it . Before grating,ensure the water is all drained out well from the paneer block .

If you ask me ,can tofu be substituted in place of paneer to make it vegan,you can definitely try it and tweak based on your taste preferences,but this recipe is purely a paneer based recipe.

If you visit the variety dosa stalls of Bombay's famous khau gallis (street food lanes) , paneer bhurji dosa is a hot favorite among the patrons.  Needless to say,it is my hubby's favorite too as he is a paneer as well as a big time dosa lover . So paneer bhurji at home gets stuffed into dosas for him while I relish it with fulkas ! 

I finally got to refurbish this 13 year old recipe today in 2026 with new set of pictures and write up but the recipe remains unchanged .

Preparation Time : 15 mins
Cooking Time : 15 mins
Serves : 2

Jain / No onion no garlic variant - Skip onions and ginger garlic paste 

Ingredients

150 gms Cottage cheese / Paneer grated

1 big onion finely chopped
2 tomatoes pureed 
1.5 tsp ginger garlic paste
1 tsp cumin seeds
Small piece cinnamon
2 to 3 cloves 
2-3 green chillies finely chopped

1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp red chilli powder
2 tsp corriander powder 
1/2 tsp Kashmiri red  chilli powder
1 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp kasuri methi
1/2 tsp amchur powder/ dry Mango powder 
Finely chopped corriander 
Salt to taste.
1 tsp sugar

1 tsp cooking oil

Small blob of butter 

Method

• Blend the tomatoes into a fine puree.
• Heat oil in a wok /kadai, crackle the cumin seeds followed by the whole spices (cinnamon and cloves) till you experience a fragrant aroma.
• Saute the onions and green chillies till the onions turn soft and pink.
• Add in the ginger garlic paste and fry till the raw flavor of the paste is gone. 
• Slowly, add in all the dry spice powders one by one and fry it on low flame without burning. 
• Pour in the tomato puree ,add salt and garam masala and continue cooking on medium flame till the oil separates from the gravy .
• Keep stirring occasionally to prevent the gravy from sticking to the bottom of the pan. 
• Continue cooking till the tomato onion gravy thickens up .
• Now add the grated paneer, mix gently. 
• Add  the blob of butter ,sugar and Kashmiri red chilli powder and cook for a minute.
• Donot cook too much after adding the paneer ,else the paneer may turn rubbery and hard.
• Lastly garnish with fresh corriander and kasuri methi and serve hot with rotis , toasted bread or toasted paav.
• You can also stuff into dosa and make a delicious paneer bhurji dosa - a popular street side delicacy at the dosa stalls in Bombay .