Methi malai matar is an absolute winter’s delight. As the name suggests the dish has fresh fenugreek leaves, peas, and cream or malai as its main ingredients. The beauty of methi malai matar is the combination of contrasting flavors and its beautiful texture. Fenugreek leaves give sharpness to it which is balanced with the sweetness of peas and malai or cream. The dish gets its texture from cream. Methi malai matar can be served with butter naan or lacha paratha.
Methi: As in fenugreek leaves is obviously one of the most important ingredients for this preparation. Along with the fresh fenugreek leaves, dried ones have also been added i.e. kasuri methi. It gives more flavor to methi malai matar.
Matar: Peas, certainly the fresh ones are the best for this. But you can also make methi malai matar using frozen peas.
Malai: I have used heavy creamy for a smooth and creamier texture. You can use malai instead but the texture of the dish might differ.
Onion, garlic, ginger: These combine to form the base for methi malai matar. The interesting part about this recipe is that no souring agent has been used. 
If you are a fan of fenugreek, like me, you will like the methi muthiya, methi paratha, and more recipes using methi right here. And if you are a fan of peas instead you might like aloo matar, matar pulao etc.
Serve it for weekend dinner along with some butter naan and vinegar onion.
PREP TIME 20 minutes
COOK TIME 20 minutes
TOTAL TIME 40 minutes
1. Boil the peas. For that take sufficient water in a pan and little salt. Hey, add 1/4 tsp sugar. Sugar helps the peas to retain its green colour.
2. Add peas to it and boil till soft.
3. Strain. Well I never understand whether in this case we strain water or peas. Anyways keep the boiled peas aside.
4. Take 2 medium size onions (I know in the picture there are not 2 onions because when I clicked I thought 1 should be sufficient but after grinding I thought that no, we need some more of it, so I had added the another ne later), 5-6 garlic (don’t over-do the garlic, we just need a hint of it. There should be an argument on the table whether the dish has garlic or not… you know just that much), 1 green chilli, 1/2” piece of ginger, 15-16 soaked cashews.
5. Grind them to a fine and smooth paste.
6. Heat 2 tsp ghee. (I preferred ghee because this dish has a touch of sweetness). Hey, use a non stick pan.
7. Add the paste.
8. Cook on low flame till the ghee separates. Hey, do not brown the paste.
9. Add 2 cups chopped fenugreek leaves.
10. Cook for 2 minutes.
11. Add the boiled peas.
12. Add handful of dried fenugreek leaves. Yes we are making a dish where fenugreek leaves i.e. methi is the main ingredient then why dried fenugreek leaves? Because it gives an awesome flavour. And if you ask me… I love kasuri methi and when someone says add kasuri methi I don’t ask why? I add.
13. Cook for another 2 minutes.
14. Add 1/2 cup water. Nothing should be wasted, so the water goes into the grinder jar and brings along the remaining paste.
15. Add 1/2 cup milk.
16. Add 3 tbsp fresh cream. Well, we can have a debate session on the topic “malai vs. fresh cream”. My mom used to add malai to this dish. But if you read this recipe on the internet you will see everyone is using fresh cream. Fresh cream certainly adds to the smoothness but if you don’t have it all you need to do is chill some malai and then whip it using a fork or whisk. You will be sorted. Of course you are welcome.
17. Mix everything well. Add salt to taste. Take a spoonful and taste. Add sugar as per your taste. If you are happy with the level of sweetness of the dish, omit adding sugar. I added 1/2 tsp sugar. Mix salt and sugar.
18. Serve methi malai matar with lachchha parantha or butter naan. Bon appétit.
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