Baked paneer in pumpkin sauce

⏲ ~35 min total · prep 18 · cook 17 · 4 servings

By the KFI Test Kitchen · Tested & approved by Jason Lieu, KFI recipe editor

Published Sep 15, 2026 · Updated Nov 2, 2026

Ingredients

• 14 oz paneer, cut into 3/4-inch cubes and patted very dry
• 2 tbsp ghee
• 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
• 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
• 1 tsp garam masala
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp Kashmiri chili powder (or sweet paprika)
• 3/4 cup unsweetened pumpkin puree
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/3 cup water
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp chopped cilantro

Instructions

1. Heat the ghee in a 10-inch oven-safe skillet over medium heat and sear the paneer cubes about 2 minutes per side, turning once, until each face shows golden blisters. Move them to a plate.
2. Drop the heat to low, add the ginger-garlic paste, and stir for 30 seconds, then add the turmeric, garam masala, cumin, and Kashmiri chili and fry 30 seconds more, until the spices smell toasty and turn glossy.
3. Stir in the pumpkin puree, cream, water, and salt, scraping the pan bottom, and simmer 3-4 minutes until the sauce is thick enough to coat a spoon.
4. Return the paneer and any collected juices to the pan and spoon the sauce over the cubes.
5. Slide the skillet into a 400°F oven and bake 12-15 minutes, until the sauce bubbles at the edges and the top takes on darker orange patches.
6. Let it stand 5 minutes — the sauce tightens as it cools — then scatter the cilantro over and serve straight from the pan.

Why this recipe works

• Searing builds the sauce's base Two minutes per side in hot ghee gives each paneer cube golden blisters and leaves browned bits in the pan. Those bits dissolve into the pumpkin sauce and taste like the paneer worked for them.
• Spices bloomed, not dumped The ginger-garlic paste and ground spices fry for a minute total on low until glossy and toasty. Raw turmeric reads dusty; bloomed turmeric melts into the sauce.
• The oven finishes what the stove starts Twelve to fifteen minutes at 400°F bakes moisture off and drives the sauce into the cubes. Darker orange patches at the edges are the signal.

Tips for making this recipe well

Pat the paneer bone dry

Wet cubes spit when they hit the ghee and steam instead of browning. Press each cube with a towel until nothing transfers, then sear.

Keep the spice stage on low

Turmeric scorches fast, and scorched turmeric turns the whole sauce bitter. If the pan smells sharp instead of toasty, pull it off the heat and add the pumpkin right away.

Judge the sauce by a spoon

After the 3-4 minute simmer it should coat the back of a spoon. Thin sauce goes into the oven and stays thin, so give it another 2 minutes on the stove if it runs.

Check your handle

The recipe sends a 10-inch skillet into a 400°F oven. If yours is not oven-safe, scrape everything into a baking dish and bake it there instead.

Rest the full 5 minutes

The sauce tightens as it cools and clings to the cubes instead of pooling. Cilantro goes on after the rest so it stays green.

Serving suggestions

Paneer turns rubbery when it waits in a thin sauce, and that is the problem this pan solves. The sauce tightens around the cubes during the rest, so bring the skillet straight to the table on a trivet and let people spoon it out themselves. Scatter the cilantro at the last second. At 1.6 net carbs a serving, ladle generously, and keep any side plain enough that the spices stay in charge.

Storage and meal prep

Leftovers cool, then go into a covered container for 3 to 4 days in the fridge. The sauce keeps thickening overnight, so loosen it with a spoonful of water when you reheat on low. You can freeze the pan for 2 to 3 months, though expect the cream to look slightly split after thawing; a slow reheat with steady stirring pulls it back together. The cilantro never survives storage, so add it fresh.

Variations worth trying

• Stovetop finish If your skillet is not oven-safe, cover the pan on low for 10 minutes instead of baking; the sauce bubbles and tightens the same way.
• Greens stirred in Fold a few handfuls of baby spinach into the sauce after the bake and let the residual heat wilt them.
• Extra heat Double the Kashmiri chili powder for a pan that runs warmer, and leave the sweet paprika out.
• Lemon at the end A squeeze of fresh lemon over the rested pan brightens the pumpkin and wakes up the garam masala.

Frequently asked questions

Can I use pumpkin pie filling instead of puree?

No. Pie filling is already sweetened and spiced, and it will make the sauce taste like dessert. The recipe needs unsweetened pumpkin puree.

What if I cannot find Kashmiri chili powder?

Sweet paprika is the written substitute, and it brings the same red color with almost no heat. Regular chili powder will taste different, so read the label before you reach for it.

Why did my paneer not brown?

Wet cubes steam instead of searing, and crowded cubes drop the pan temperature. Dry them well and give them the full 2 minutes per face without moving them early.

Is this a sauce or a main dish?

It is a full pan of seared paneer in pumpkin sauce, so it eats as a main. The sauce itself also works spooned over roasted cauliflower if you want to stretch it.

My cream looked grainy at the end. What went wrong?

Cream splits when it boils hard, which happens if the simmer climbs past a bubble or two. Keep the pan at a bare simmer, and if it has already split, whisk in a spoonful of cold cream off the heat.

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