CCE
(Keyrock the unfrozen caveman lawyer; your world frightens & confuses me)
21
Agree. I make paneer every couple of months. I like it best with half of the liquid being whole milk, the other half cream.
All the recipes I’ve read say not to use the ultra high temperature pasteurized cream, but that’s all I can get around here. I don’t think it makes much of a difference, but haven’t had a chance to test side-by-side.
I’m not sure why the BBC recipe says it only keeps a few days in the fridge, and why they say to submerge it in water. Once dry, any unused is just wrapped in cheesecloth and bagged, and I get a week or more out of it before it starts to get that slick feeling that tells me it’s got to go.
I don’t ever use ricotta in lasagna as it is tasteless, no matter what the “dish” calls for. Instead a bechamel with parm… sometimes provolone, jack, gorgonzola, fontina… often with spinach combined.
My OP was where do you get it (nowhere around here), how do you make it (too much trouble for a once in a while made dish), and substitutions.
Substitution is the only viable option at this point. BTW, you brought up the tasteless ricotta… not me.
It is ok if all you want to do is follow dish recipes verbatim (your choice), but that’s not me. I will replace unavailable and esoteric ingredients anytime I think I can bring better (even if different) results.
Hmmm… maybe your search link is bringing up different results for you than me. I see nothing here that is anything but ridiculous in price and quantity.
i make palak paneer quite a bit and i’ve never had to make a substitution. if forced to, i might go with a less salty version of halloumi. feta would be a disaster, imo. firm (frozen, thawed and firmly pressed) tofu isn’t offensive to me, it would add texture, but only serves as a sponge for the sauce, not offering much of a flavor note in it’s own right.
side note: i adore ricotta and don’t find quality versions tasteless, in the same way i wouldn’t call heavy cream tasteless. i would challenge anyone with that notion to pick up a tub of this (below) and proclaim it anything other than delicious:
I live in a small mountain town, and unfortunately I have to cook with what dairy/fresh foods I can buy. The best we have up here is Galbani (which is garbage).
Ditto–it’s really not difficult and makes a world of difference because you get a nice soft texture instead of the rubbery store bought texture. The rest of the dish is so easy, it balances out, especially if you make the cheese the day before.
Tomato tomatto. Sag paneer and palak paneer are interchangeable on Toronto menus, and typically, it’ll be spinach used regardless of the word used. For whatever reason, the term Sag Aloo is more common than than Palak Aloo where I live, so I googled Sag Aloo recipes.
This stuff is like crack. Unbelievably good. Hard to source, though, unless you have a great Italian market or Restaurant Depot around.
That said, @ScottinPollock, you might change your mind on the blandness of ricotta (and paneer) if you make some yourself. Homemade versions really are vastly superior to anything but the very best commercial products (i.e. Calabro), and you can tweak the final product to your taste. For instance, when I make ricotta I drain the curds until they are much drier than commercial products, then stir in cream to get the consistency I desire. For paneer I add cream to milk before the curdling process and then salt the curds well - this gives me a luxurious texture and tons of flavor. Btw, the process of making these cheeses is less time consuming and labor intensive than most Indian dishes, by a long shot.
Feel free to create a dish with spinach and feta if you like, but don’t call it saag paneer, because it won’t be.
I love saag/palak paneer! I can find paneer at a few local Indian markets, and I do believe I saw this at my local Costco too. I will have to try making a batch on my own. At least making it on your own, you can make a smaller batch.
I take why that mild taste to it; it lets the spices in the spinach and vegetables come through. Ricotta though… yuck, you can keep that.
