Methi Matar Malai

Methi Matar Malai is one dish that my younger sis wants to order every time we go to any North Indian restaurant. I remember, I had never heard about this dish untill I moved to Bangalore. We had this dish first time Tandoor@M.G. road. While di-secting recipe ingredients, I was able to make out that this recipe is creme based but still I was missing one special flavor.

So, yesterday I had fresh methi in fridge, but I was not interested in cooking Aaloo Methi, ya..ya I know aaloo is the commonly used vegetable, whenever some kind of pairing is required by another vegetable, like aaloo gobhi, aaloo matar, aaloo gajar, aaloo methi etc...aaloo is ready to jump in any dish happily .. :) while going through my other options in fridge, I found fresh matar/green peas and fresh malai waiting for me. :)  At that time I decided lets try Tinny's favourite Methi Matar Malai. 

I searched few recipes and finally settled on two recipes, one from Dassana and other one from Master Chef Sanjeev Kapoor. I prepared this dish after taking best inputs from both sites and result was awsome, I was able to get Tandoor flavor, which made me happy :)

Ingredients:

• 2 cup chopped methi/ fenugreek leaves
• 1 cup green peas
• 1 large onion
• 1 green chilli
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon powder
• 1/2 tsp dry mango powder
• 3-4 cloves garlic chopped 
• 1/2 inch ginger chopped
• 1/2 cup cashewnuts.
• 1 cup fresh creme/ malai
• 3 tsp oil
• Salt to taste

Step by Step guide to prepare Methi Matar Malai.

• Clean and wash Methi/ fenugreek leaves.
• Boil  green peas in a separate pan until they become soft.
• Grind onion,green chilli, cumin seeds and cashewnuts with 2-3 tsp water in a mixer and keep it aside. 
• Heat oil in a pan and add grounded paste and cook for 7-8 minutes until raw smell of onion goes off.
• Add methi/ fenugreek leaves and 1/4 cup of water. 
• Add salt, dry mango powder.
• Cook for another 10 minutes on low-medium heat.
• Add boiled green peas and mix well . 
• Cook for another 2-3 minutes.
• Add cinnamon powder, malai or fresh creme and mix well. Cook it for another 3-4 minutes on medium-low heat
• Methi matar malai is ready to serve.
• You can have it with phulka/chapati or basmati rice.

My Notes:

• Boil green peas before hand, otherwise they will not get cooked properly .
• Cinnamon enhances flavor with cashewnuts.

This is a creme based recipe so it's not at all spicy, but not completely sweet as well. Hope you like it.