Paneer (fresh Cheese) (this Amount, When Mixed with Vegetables, Will Serve 6)

Bring the milk to boil. As soon as it begins to bubble, put in the lemon juice, stir once, and take the pot off the heat. Leave it for 15 minutes. The milk will curdle and the curds will separate from the whey. Strain the curds through 3 layers of cheesecloth. Squeeze out as much whey as you can easily (do not discard the whey, refrigerate and use for cooking instead of water, if you like). Tie the curds in the cheesecloth, using twine to make a small, round bundle. Use sufficient twine, as you now need to hang up this bundle somewhere to drip overnight (hanging it on the tap over the sink works well). Next morning, remove the hanging bundle and untie it. Gently flatten it out to make a 4-inch/10 cm patty, keeping the cheese loosely wrapped in the cheesecloth. Put the cheesecloth-wrapped cheese patty on a sturdy plate and place a very heavy object on top of it. I use one of my very heavy, porcelain covered cast iron pots filled with water. If the pot seems to be in danger of tipping, I balance it by standing appropriately sized jars under its handles. Leave the weight on the cheese for 4 to 5 hours. After the cheese has been pressed, it should be cut into diamonds or rectangles, with a very sharp knife, about 1 inches/2 1/2 cm long each. Notes: Paneer, once made, is quite crumbly and breakable. Because of this, it is generally fried and lightly browned before it is cooked. It is a good idea to do this frying in a well-seasoned cast-iron or nonstick pan, as the cheese tends to stick a bit. There are some dishes where the cheese is not fried at all. Rather like bean curd, fresh paneer has very little taste of its own. It does have texture, and lots of protein. The taste comes from the flavours of the foods with which it is cooked. In a very traditional dish from the Punjab, paneer is combined with peas and tomatoes. It is frequently cooked with pureed spinach. It can also be crumbled and added to various grated vegetables to form "meatballs". It can be crumbled, layered with partially cooked rice, and baked.