Introduction: Simple Curry Paneer Pizza

About: I'm currently working on studying Mycology the scientific study of mushrooms and mycelium, you can see my blog about that at ~ mandythemycologist.blogspot.com ~
Thanks to the Indian Cuisine Contest for inspiring me to create one of the tastiest dishes I have ever made! This easy but unique and mouth-watering pizza is a Naan flat bread on bottom, a layer of chicken curry, and  paneer cheese on top. Paneer is a plain tasting cheese that was first made in India, and it pairs perfectly with the spicy curry sauce. If you can't find paneer at the grocery store I included a link to a recipe at the end of step one. Only one word can describe this pizza recipe... Yummm!!! 

Step 1: Ingredients

If your in a hurry this recipe can be done with just 5 ingredients: chicken, oil, curry sauce from a jar, naan flat bread, and some paneer if you can find it. I got Paneer for $4 at Sprouts Farmers Market, along with the Naan bread on clearance for $2 and the Madras Curry sauce for $4. The chicken was also on sale :) it was the strip kind for stir fry which saved me a little cutting.

             Simple Curry and Paneer Pizza Recipe:
  • About 1 1/2 lbs. chicken strips
  • 1 Tablespoon vegetable or canola oil
  • 1 Jar of premade curry of your choice; I used Madras Curry Indian Simmer Sauce by Maya Kaimal
  • 2-4 pieces of Tandoori Naan 
  • 4 oz. Paneer cheese, or you can substitute with crumbled plain goat cheese
  • *Optional- fresh cilantro garnish or chop it up and spread over the pizzas
  • **Will also need a skillet, spatula or wooden spoon to stir chicken, cheese grater *optional, and a baking sheet for softer crust or right on the rack in the oven for crispier crust

Feeling adventurous and have the time to make Naan, Curry, and Paneer from scratch! Here are some links to recipes if your in such a mood...
Naan- http://www.manjulaskitchen.com/2007/05/22/naan-bread/
Curry- http://allrecipes.com/recipe/indian-chicken-curry-murgh-kari/
Paneer- www.wikihow.com/Make-Paneer-(Indian-Cheese)



Step 2: Cooking Chicken and Shredding It Up

Cook the chicken strips at medium-high for about 20 minutes or until lightly browned. If your using a whole chicken breast it will need longer to cook the middle. Then after you have taken the chicken off the heat for a few minutes to cool, use a fork and knife to shred the chicken into small pieces.

Step 3: Add Sauce and Spread on Naan

Put the shredded chicken back in the skillet and add your curry sauce of choice. I simmered the mixture for about ten minutes to really cook the sauce into the chicken, but you could probably skip that and add the mix right onto the Naan because it will heat up in the oven. Then spread the curry sauce and chicken over two Naan flat breads, or you could make it work for 4 since I had leftover curry mix and used lots of chicken on my two. 

Step 4: Add Paneer and Bake

Shred paneer cheese or crumble chunks over the pizzas, and put them in the oven at 450o for about 8-10 minutes till the cheese melts. 

Step 5: Enjoy (*^.^)

I can't express in words how delicious this curry pizza was... but I'm also a huge fan of curry so try it out for yourself and tell me what you think! Feel free to add ideas on other toppings in the comments or pics of your own Indian style pizza. The possibilities are endless (*>.<)