Make delicious, authentic Indian Matki Ussal easily at home right in your Instant Pot! It’s healthy, easy to cook vegan dish and only takes 4 minutes to cook. This recipe can be used to make any kind of sprouts that you want.
Matki Ussal | Indian Sprouted Beans
Although it’s impossible to believe this now, I was a very fussy eater as a child. I’d eat all the Indian junk food you could lay my hands on–anything spicy and savory, and I was right there.
But vegetables were a whole different ball of wax. This vegan Matki Ussal however, was a different matter all together. The way it works is that you get a specific time of bean called Moth beans, and then you soak and sprout them, much as you’d do for this Ussal .
Cooking it after that was just a matter of a few minutes in the pressure cooker. This is a very traditional Maharashtrian dish, which means it typically involves coconut and cilantro, and a tad bit of sugar.
Since fresh coconut is hard to come by here, I’ve used dried, unsweetened coconut flakes in this recipe. They reconstitute rather well under pressure, reducing a step.
If you can find moth beans use those, but if not, substitute any bean you want and just adjust cook times.
If you want to sprout your own beans, here’s what you do:
- Soak beans overnight.
- In the morning, drain and set into a jar, bowl, or whatever you have lying around. You really don’t need a fancy jar/kit to do this. I sprouted mine in a disposable plastic container.
- Let them sit near a kitchen window with some natural light.
- Wash and drain twice a day if you can, so they stay moist.
- That’s it. You know they’re done when they have tails sprouting, and when you’re hungry. See my picture to get a feel for it.
And that’s it. Sprouting the beans is pretty easy and cooking them is even easier. This is an absolutely delicious Indian recipe that is painless to make and delightful to eat. Now go try it for yourself!
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Instant Pot Vegan Matki Ussal Indian Sprouted Beans
Ingredients
- ▢ 1 cup ( 172 g ) sprouted beans , (about 1/2 cup dry beans sprouted as explained above)
- ▢ 1 tablespoon ( 1 tablespoon ) Oil
- ▢ 1 teaspoon ( 1 teaspoon ) Cumin seeds
- ▢ 1/2 cup ( 80 g ) Onion , , chopped
- ▢ 1/2 cup ( 74.5 g ) Tomatoes , , chopped
- ▢ 3 cloves ( 3 cloves ) Garlic
- ▢ 1 teaspoon ( 1 teaspoon ) Minced Ginger
- ▢ 1/4 cup ( 20 g ) Unsweetened Shredded Coconut
- ▢ 1 teaspoon ( 1 teaspoon ) Kosher Salt
- ▢ ½ teaspoon ( 0.5 teaspoon ) Turmeric
- ▢ ¼ -½ teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
- ▢ 1 teaspoon ( 1 teaspoon ) Ground Coriander
- ▢ ½ teaspoon ( 0.5 teaspoon ) Ground Cumin
- ▢ 1/2 cup ( 125 g ) Water
For Finishing
- ▢ 1/4 cup ( 4 g ) Cilantro , , chopped
- ▢ 1/4 cup ( 20 g ) fresh grated coconut , (optional)
Instructions
- Turn your Instant Pot to Sauté (high) and heat the oil. When it’s hot, add the cumin or mustard seeds and let them sputter like popcorn.
- Add in onions, ginger and garlic and sauté for 2 minutes, until the onion is soft and translucent.
- Add all the other ingredients (except cilantro and coconut) and cook under High Pressure for 4 minutes, and quickly release remaining pressure.
- Garnish with cilantro and fresh coconut if you are using.
Stovetop
- In a saucepan on the stovetop, add and heat the oil. When it’s hot, add the cumin or mustard seeds and let them sputter like popcorn.
- Add in onions, ginger and garlic and sauté for 2 minutes, until the onion is soft and translucent.
- Add all the other ingredients (except cilantro and coconut), add 1/2 cup of water and turn down the heat to medium. Cook 10-15 minutes until the beans are cooked through.
- Garnish with cilantro and fresh coconut if you are using.
Watch The Video
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Instant Pot Vegan Matki Ussal Indian Sprouted Beans
Ingredients
- 1 cup sprouted beans (about 1/2 cup dry beans sprouted as explained above)
- 1 tablespoon Oil
- 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds
- 1/2 cup Onion , chopped
- 1/2 cup Tomatoes , chopped
- 3 cloves Garlic
- 1 teaspoon Minced Ginger
- 1/4 cup Unsweetened Shredded Coconut
- 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
- ½ teaspoon Turmeric
- ¼ -½ teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
- 1 teaspoon Ground Coriander
- ½ teaspoon Ground Cumin
- 1/2 cup Water
For Finishing
- 1/4 cup Cilantro , chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh grated coconut (optional)
Instructions
- Turn your Instant Pot to Sauté (high) and heat the oil. When it’s hot, add the cumin or mustard seeds and let them sputter like popcorn.
- Add in onions, ginger and garlic and sauté for 2 minutes, until the onion is soft and translucent.
- Add all the other ingredients (except cilantro and coconut) and cook under High Pressure for 4 minutes, and quickly release remaining pressure.
- Garnish with cilantro and fresh coconut if you are using.
Stovetop
- In a saucepan on the stovetop, add and heat the oil. When it’s hot, add the cumin or mustard seeds and let them sputter like popcorn.
- Add in onions, ginger and garlic and sauté for 2 minutes, until the onion is soft and translucent.
- Add all the other ingredients (except cilantro and coconut), add 1/2 cup of water and turn down the heat to medium. Cook 10-15 minutes until the beans are cooked through.
- Garnish with cilantro and fresh coconut if you are using.
Instant Pot Vegan Matki Ussal Indian Sprouted Beans https://twosleevers.com/matki-ussal-indian-sprouted-beans/
Instant Pot paneer is a homemade Indian soft cheese made with half-and-half (or whole milk/cream) and white vinegar, then pressed into a block. It’s quick and works well for easy vegetarian, high-protein (and keto-friendly) meal prep you can use in dishes like curries and sautés. Unlike traditional stovetop paneer recipes that require babysitting boiling milk, this version uses the Instant Pot to cook the milk under low pressure, reducing boil-overs and scorching while still separating clean curds and whey.
Well guess what? You can make Paneer in your Instant Pot, and under pressure at that.
The beauty of that of course, is no baby-siting that boiling milk that’s just waiting sneakily for you to get distracted so it can go burn itself, leaving the whole house smelling of burned milk forever.
If only you knew how often that has happened to me. It’s pitiful.
Okay, I have a confession. When I started out trying to make the paneer, I started like any sensible person would, on the Yogurt mode. Never mind that I never boil milk for making yogurt , I was sure that this way would not burn the half and half I was going to use.
But I got impatient. I am not sure how long it’s meant to take to boil the milk on the Yogurt setting but I decided I’d had enough of staring at the half and half I was using and thought, “Oh to heck with it! I’m just going to pressure cook it and we’ll see what happens.”
To get the most paneer out of your milk, you really need to stir well and boil so that the milk separates properly and completely. Clearly, if it heats up well and boils, that process is hastened.
So logically, it made sense that pressure cooking would work. I just wasn’t sure if you could make paneer under pressure without burning the half and half or milk.
And of course, as the pictures show, you can indeed. Now here’s an important note . Please do not use skim or 2% milk. Use either whole milk, half and half, or cream. I use half and half and it is a good in-between from regular doodh (milk) paneer and malai (cream) paneer.
So if you’re looking for an easy paneer recipe, this is the one you need. It’s so simple, it’s crazy.
Watch A video to learn how to make homemade Paneer cubes
Step by Step Instant Pot Paneer Indian Soft Cheese Recipe
- Add half and half and vinegar to the Instant pot or electric pressure cooker.
- Cook the milk and vinegar under LOW pressure for 4 minutes. If you do not have a low-pressure setting, cook at high pressure for 2 minutes.
- Allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes. Release remaining pressure. This step is important as the milk continues to separate during this time, so do not rush it.
- When you open the pot, you should see the half and half has separated. See the tips section below if your milk is giving you trouble.
- Line a tofu press with cheesecloth. Pour the whey and curds into a tofu press. If you do not have one, just line a colander with the cheesecloth. Once you pour in the whey and curds, you can make a ball out of the cheesecloth to shape your paneer into a lovely round sphere.
- Place a heavy weight of some kindf on this. The photo shows one can, but feel free to use 2-3 cans. Let the paneer rest for an hour or so to compress down into a creamy, delicious block of cheese.
- Remove the paneer, peel away the cheesecloth and try not to finish it all before you use it in a recipe!
You can certainly drain and compress the paneer without fancy schmancy gadgets, but I happen to like schmancy gadgets so I got myself this handy little tofu maker . It was so cute and adorable! I put it on a trivet in the sink and placed a can of beans on it to help it drain.
You can use a cheesecloth or a coffee filter in a strainer or colander, and place a weight on it as I did.
Tips and Tricks for Making Instant Pot Paneer at home
Here are some easy but important tips for all of us who want to make cheese in the Instant Pot.
- DO NOT USE UHT MILK. DO NOT USE MILK WITH CARRAGEENAN ADDED. Yes I know I’m yelling, but I cannot emphasize this enough. Your milk will just not separate as it should. At all. I
- Please do not use skim or 2% milk. Use either whole milk, half and half, or cream. I use half and half and it is a good in-between from regular doodh (milk) paneer and malai (cream) paneer.
- If you open up the Instant pot and your paneer hasn’t separated, your milk had some kind of personal issues. In this case, try putting the pot on Sauté and cooking it some more. You may need to add some more vinegar in this case.
- If your pressure cooker does not have a low-pressure setting, cook on high pressure for 2 minutes.
- This paneer is great with the leftover butter chicken sauce.
- Here’s that link once again to the Paneer Maker on Amazon that I used to make Paneer.
For firm Instant Pot paneer cubes that hold their shape in curries and pan-frying, press the curds for about 30–60 minutes. Around 30 minutes gives you a solid but slightly tender Indian soft cheese, while 45–60 minutes creates sturdier, firm paneer that cubes cleanly and won’t crumble as easily. The exact time depends on how much whey you drained, how heavy your weight/press is (a paneer press or tofu press works great), and whether you used whole milk vs half-and-half (higher fat can stay softer). If you want extra-compact cubes for skewers like paneer tikka, press closer to an hour, then chill before cutting for the neatest edges.
Rubbery Instant Pot paneer usually happens when the curds get overcooked or overheated, you add too much acid (vinegar/lemon/citric acid) too aggressively, or you press the paneer too long/too hard, squeezing out too much moisture and making the Indian soft cheese turn “squeaky.” It can also happen if you use some ultra-pasteurized milk, which can form tighter, less tender curds. For softer, non-rubbery homemade paneer, use whole milk or half-and-half, add the acid gradually just until the whey turns pale and the curds separate, stop heating once it curdles, rinse the curds to remove excess acid, and press only to your needed firmness (often 30–60 minutes for firm cubes).
If your paneer is crumbly, it’s a sign you didn’t press it either long enough, or with a heavy enough weight. If in doubt, place 2-3 cans on top of it so it compresses down beautifully.
No, paneer isn’t the same as cottage cheese, even though both are made from curdled milk. Paneer (Indian soft cheese) is made by heating milk and adding an acid like vinegar or lemon juice, then draining and pressing the curds into a firm block you can cube, fry, or simmer in curries. It doesn’t melt, and it holds its shape. Cottage cheese is typically a looser, fresh cheese with small curds (often with added cream and a cultured/tangy flavor), meant to be eaten as-is rather than pressed into firm paneer cubes. So, in most recipes, they’re not interchangeable unless you’re using a pressed “dry curd” style as a substitute.
Instant Pot Paneer Indian Soft Cheese
Equipment
- Instant Pot
- TOFU PRESS PANEER PRESS
Ingredients
- ▢ 1 quart ( 1 quart ) Half and Half
- ▢ 1/4 cup ( 63.75 g ) White Vinegar
Instructions
- Pour half and half and vinegar into the Instant pot and cook at low pressure for 4 minutes. Allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes. Release remaining pressure.
- When you open the pot, the milk will have separated into curds and a watery whey. Stir this well.
- Pour the mixture through cheesecloth (saving the whey for other uses).
- Gather up the cheesecloth and put a heavy weight on it to let the whey drain and for the paneer to form a cohesive block or ball.
- I used this handy dandy tofu maker to form a nice square block and weighted it down with a can of beans to help the whey drain. This will take about 1-2 hours.
Watch The Video
- DO NOT USE UHT MILK. DO NOT USE MILK WITH CARRAGEENAN ADDED. Yes I know I’m yelling, but I cannot emphasize this enough. Your milk will just not separate as it should. At all.
- Please do not use skim or 2% milk . Use either whole milk, half and half, or cream. I use half and half and it is a good in-between from regular doodh (milk) paneer and malai (cream) paneer.
- If your paneer is crumbly , it’s a sign you didn’t press it either long enough, or with a heavy enough weight. If in doubt, place 2-3 cans on top of it so it compresses down beautifully.
- Tips for making the paneer in a pressure cooker If you open up the Instant pot and your paneer hasn’t separated, your milk had some kind of personal issues. In this case, try putting the pot on Sauté and cooking it some more. You may need to add some more vinegar in this case. If your pressure cooker does not have a low-pressure setting, cook on high pressure for 2 minutes.
- Tips for making the paneer on the stovetop Please read the post for detailed instructions on making stovetop paneer. To speed up the process of bringing the milk to a boil, you can place a lid on the pot. Be sure to keep your eye on it though as it can easily boil over and leave a mess on your hob. Make sure that the milk is boiling before you add the vinegar. Adding it too early can cause the paneer to be crumbly. Boil the milk in a heavy-bottomed pan or dutch oven . It will distribute the heat more evenly and you will be less likely to scorch the milk.
- Here’s that link once again to the Paneer Maker on Amazon that I used to make Paneer.
- I don’t trust the nutrtitional info becuase I don’t really know how to calculate calories for the whey that goes down thedrain, or ito your bread or whatever.
