Paneer is so easy to make once you try it you won't ever buy it again.
To make a small ball of paneer around 250 grams in weight (to feed 4-6 in a curry), you will need:
3 litres of full cream milk
1/3 a cup of vinegar (apple cider or white vinegar is fine, you can even use lemon juice)
1 teaspoon of salt
Heat the milk in a large pan on the stove until it boils, stirring well. To flavour the paneer, we added a teaspoon of red chilli flakes and a teaspoon of cumin seeds. When the milk is bubbling and rises, pour in the vinegar and keep stirring. The milk will start to curdle really quickly. Stir and stir until the whey has fully separated and is almost clear. Turn off the heat.
Place a piece of muslin or cheesecloth into a large strainer in the sink and quickly pour in the curdled milk. Drain away all the liquid, and squeeze the solids in the muslin into a small ball. Keeping it wrapped in the cloth, place it on a plate or in a bowl with another plate on top of it and a heavy weight to weigh it down. Keep it pressed for half an hour or so, then unwrap - you should be delighted to find a solid ball of cheese.
To make paneer and spinach curry for 3-4 people, you will need:
One portion of homemade paneer, cubed
2 tablespoons of ghee or oil
1 heaped teaspoon of my vindaloo masala (or any good curry powder)
1 large tomato, blended or finely chopped
1 tablespoon of tomato paste
1 large bag of washed spinach leaves
salt and a bit of sugar to taste
To make your curry, heat the oil in a heavy pan. Add the vindaloo masala powder, tomato and tomato paste and stir well until you have a glossy and shiny curry paste. Throw in the spinach leaves and stir for a minute or so, then gently add the paneer. From here on stir gently so as not to break up the paneer. Add salt to taste, and a bit of sugar if you need it. Add a bit more water to form as much gravy as you prefer - we eat it as quite a dry dish.