Paneer Pizza

Homemade Pizza crust layered with a Special sauce, paneer, bell pepper, onions, and cheese, this Paneer Pizza is a must-have for pizza night!

It’s a kid-friendly recipe that is easy to make, flavorsome, and perfect for everyone in the family!

No oven? No problem! You can make this Indian fusion pizza right on a pan/griddle too! You can also swap out the pizza base with Naan or pita bread to make this pizza.

Jump to:

• About this recipe
• Why do I love paneer pizza?
• Some Important points to keep in mind while working on yeast recipes –
• Ingredients required to make paneer pizza
• Step-by-step process
• Tips, Notes, and Quick FAQs
• More Paneer recipes
• Paneer Pizza
• Video

What’s not to love about pizza made with a homemade pizza crust and a delicious paneer tikka topping? This paneer pizza has now become our family’s favorite meal.

About this recipe

Paneer pizza is a delicious Indian-style pizza and is a tasty spin on pizza night. The pizza has the main topping of Indian cottage cheese (paneer) and has both Indian and Italian flavors.

It is a fusion recipe in which Indian cottage cheese and vegetables are first marinated with Indian spices.

The second hero of this recipe is its sauce. The flavors are inspired by Indian Makhani sauce. It’s creamy, Spicy, tangy, and sweet – The sauce has a little bit of everything.

This pizza has unique Indian-inspired flavors that will bring you back for seconds.

The spicy touch comes from the marinade and the sauce, and the refreshing bursts from the vegetables balance out this pizza flawlessly.

Once you back this vegetarian pizza at home, you will never buy it from a restaurant. It’s a complete GAME CHANGER recipe.

To make pizza, the most important part is the Crust.

The pizza crust is the foundation and every great pizza begins with a great pizza crust.

This homemade pizza crust has soft & chewy with a delicious crisp and AWESOME flavor.

Why do I love paneer pizza?

• Made with a homemade pizza base and loaded with flavors
• It’s Super customizable
• Made with vegetarian pizza toppings (can easily be made vegan)
• Its filling and minimal prep are required
• It Works best on busy weeknights
• It can be served at parties, potlucks, or movie nights.
• It is a perfect appetizer or snack to please a crowd.

Some Important points to keep in mind while working on yeast recipes –

• The first and most important thing to check is the expiration of yeast. Expired yeast is often the reason for “not rising” the dough.
• Always read and follow the instructions given on the package.
• Water should be warm, not hot. Hot water will kill the yeast.
• The water temperature should be 110F to 120F.
• Check the water temperature with a thermometer. If you don’t have a thermometer, check with your clean fingers. Insert your clean finger in the water and count from 1 to 15. You should be able to leave your finger in the water.

Ingredients required to make paneer pizza

Below is the ingredients list and possible substitutions. The exact ingredient amounts are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.

Pizza dough 

• Flour – I have used bread flour. If you’d like, you can use all-purpose flour or half of the wheat flour and half of the all-purpose flour, too. To save time, you can use store-bought pizza dough instead of making it from scratch.
• Yeast: Look for Instant yeast. However, active dry yeast will work, too, but that needs to be activated in warm water first.
• Salt – to season the pizza base.
• Sugar: to activate the yeast.
• Water: Use lukewarm water as it will allow the yeast to bloom.
• Olive Oil: For beautiful crust.

Paneer Marinade

• Paneer – the star ingredient. Use firm paneer cut into cubes.
• Ginger and garlic paste – a must-have.
• Herbs and seasonings – kasoori methi, Kashmiri chili powder, salt, turmeric, garam masala, and coriander powder.
• Olive oil – to keep the paneer soft.

For sauce

• Marinara sauce – I used Rao’s Marinara Sauce. Feel free to use your choice of marinara sauce. Homemade Marinara works perfectly fine, too.
• Spices – I have used Indian-inspired spices such as Garam Masala, Kasuri methi, and Italian seasoning. For the spicy kick, I have added a few crushed pepper flakes. But it’s completely optional.
• Butter – For the creamy and buttery flavors. You can use oil instead of butter.
• Onion – any onions will work here.
• Garlic: Use grated or minced. But make sure to use fresh garlic for the best flavors.
• Cashew – To make the sauce creamy and to give the nutty flavors.
• Honey/Maple syrup – To balance the tang from the marinara sauce. Use your choice of sweetener.

Other ingredients

• Grated cheese: I have used Grated Mozzarella cheese. It melts well and is gooey and stretchy. You can use any other cheese with a good melting point if you like.

Step-by-step process

For pizza crust

• Take flour, salt, sugar, instant yeast, and olive oil in a big mixing bowl. Mix everything well.
• Add Luke warm water and start kneading the dough using a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook or paddle attachment. Knead the dough for 5 to 7 minutes on speed 2.
• Note: If you don’t have a stand mixer, knead the dough with your hands for 8 to 10 minutes.
• The dough should be very soft and smooth.
• Lightly grease a large bowl with oil or nonstick spray – use the same bowl you used for the dough.
• Place the dough in the bowl, turning it to coat all sides in the oil. Cover the bowl with aluminum foil, plastic wrap, or a clean kitchen towel.
• Allow the dough to rise at room temperature for an hour or until it doubles in size In a warm place.
• Meanwhile, let’s make sauce and marinade the paneer.

Paneer marination

• Take paneer, bell pepper, and onion in a bowl.
• Add red chili powder, turmeric powder, garam masala, cumin powder, coriander powder, kasuri methi, ginger, garlic, and oil. Mix everything well. Cover it and let it sit for 30 minutes.

For sauce

• Heat butter in a pan. Add garlic and onions—Saute for 2 to 3 minutes or until onions are translucent. Stir in between.
• Add marinara sauce, garam masala, Kasuri methi, Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, and salt. Mix everything well. Cover the pan and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Now add cashews. Mix everything well.
• Please switch off the flame and let it cool down.
• Take it into a blender jar and make a smooth sauce. Keep it aside.

Now, let’s assemble.

• Preheat the oven to @425 degrees F.
• Line a bigger than 14-inch round baking sheet with parchment paper and keep it aside.
• When the dough is ready, punch it to release air bubbles.
• Divide the dough in half. (If not making two pizzas, place half of the dough for another time in the fridge.)
• Using a rolling pin on a lightly floured work surface, gently flatten the dough into a disc into a 14-inch circle, about ⅓-inch thick.

• Place rolled pizza crust on a pizza stone or parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
• Form a rim by pinching the edge of the dough.
• Spread with ½ of the sauce.
• Sprinkle ½ of the cheese and top with ½ Paneer tikka toppings. Drizzle 1 ½ tablespoon of olive oil on top.

• Place the baking sheet into the oven and Bake at @425 degrees F. on the middle rack for 15-20 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly and the crust is browned.
• Take it out from the oven and cut the Paneer Pizza into desired pieces. Enjoy hot.
• Make the second paneer pizza the same way.

Tips, Notes, and Quick FAQs

• Use fresh yeast for the dough.
• The dough needs to rise until it doubles in size. In winter, I like to place the dough bowl in the oven with lights on to aid in the rising time.
• For consistent results to make a soft and smooth dough, weighing the flour instead of measuring it by cups is best.
• When using paneer in a pizza, it is better to marinate and add. It absorbs the flavors of the marinade ingredients.
• When the mozzarella cheese has melted and you see some brown spots on the pizza, it is a good sign that it is done.
• You can use a store-bought pizza base instead of making it at home. Or use your favorite flatbread for the pizza base. Feel free to try plain Naan, garlic naan, whole wheat naan, pita bread, lavash bread, flatbread, white bread, or tortilla.
• Pick your favorite toppings. Onions and peppers are our favorites, but you can use any ingredient you would put on a pizza.
• Mozzarella and paneer are the best combos! But feel free to use any shredded cheese you have on hand. Add more or less, depending on your preference.
• Instead of instant yeast, active dry yeast can be used. Mix it in water and sugar and rest for 10 minutes before kneading the dough.
• To make it spicy, sprinkle chili pepper flakes while serving or add jalapenos as a topping.
• Make this paneer pizza on a skillet/griddle/tawa if you want to use something other than the oven. Grease the skillet and place the pizza on top. Cover and cook till the cheese melts.
• You can even bake this pizza in the air fryer.
• Bake the pizza on the middle rack, closer to the heating element. The heat from the bottom will produce a golden crust.
• You can also use leftover paneer makhani (paneer butter masala) for the topping instead of using paneer tikka.
• This pizza can be made with whole wheat flour instead of bread flour or all-purpose flour. Replace the flour with whole wheat flour and follow the instructions.
• You can refrigerate or freeze the leftover dough and use it later.

More Paneer recipes

• Tandoori paneer pinwheels
• Shahi Paneer Kofta
• Paneer puff
• Paneer Lababdar
• Paneer pulao

Warm Regards,

Dhwani.