Leftover organic curd? Use it to make organic paneer!

Gone are the days when ‘home-made’ was the norm and ‘store-bought’ had a sense of novelty. Grandmothers often insisted that we make everything – from curd to besan laddoos- at home. Throwing out things was unheard of in times bygone. From old t-shirts becoming potholders to empty bottles being repainted to delightful vases, everything was ‘upcycled’.

And the same outlook was applied to food as well. Sadly, most of this is not true anymore. According to a survey by the United Nations Environment Programme, the food wastage in India amounts to almost 50kg per person.

Let’s do our bit to ensure that no food goes waste – starting with one versatile ingredient that is found in all our homes – curd.

From buttermilk to ‘mor kadhi’, curd can be made into a variety of tasty dishes. Curd too sour to eat can be made into delicious and healthy in a few simple steps:

1. Soft organic paneer is a combination of organic milk and curd. First things first, find out how much organic curd you have. This will indicate how much organic milk you need to use. If you have 3 cups of organic curd, you need 6 cups of organic milk. (x cups paneer = 2x cups milk)

2. Measure and heat Akshayakalpa Organic milk till it boils. Remember to stir the organic milk occasionally so that it does not stick to the sides or the bottom of the pan.

3. While the organic milk is heating, take Akshayakalpa Organic curd in a bowl and whisk it till it is very smooth.

4. Once the organic milk boils, lower the heat and add the organic curd to the milk.

5. Stir the organic milk and organic curd mixture. The organic milk will curdle.

6. After a few minutes, the organic milk will be completely curdled and the water will separate.

7. Line a strainer with a muslin cloth or any other soft cloth and place the strainer over a large vessel.

8. Pour the curdled organic milk and water into the strainer. The curdled organic milk will remain in the cloth and the water will be collected in the vessel.

9. Squeeze the cloth to remove excess water. Shape the curdled organic milk into a rectangle and place a heavy object over the cloth for a few hours.

10. Remove from the cloth and cut the organic paneer into cubes.

Your melt-in-the-mouth soft and tasty paneer is not ready for use. Whip up a delightful dish of palak paneer or add to your salads and enjoy the goodness of organic curd in a new avatar.

To store the organic paneer, immerse it in water and place in refrigerator. Remember to change the water every 8 hours. The organic paneer will remain fresh for 3 to 4 days.

Whether you make your own paneer using Akshayakalpa’s organic milk and curd or buy Akshayakalpa organic paneer, you cannot go wrong. Made from 100% organic milk from our farms and malai curd, Akshayakalpa paneer is handcrafted to perfection that has authentic flavour, texture and freshness in each bite. Our paneer has no added vinegar, citric acid, chemicals, and zero lemons!