Palak Paneer is one of the most popular paneer dishes.
Paneer (Indian cottage cheese) is cooked with spinach and spices in this creamy and flavorful curry. It pairs well with naan, paratha or jeera rice.
When we were kids, the only way my brothers would eat spinach was if it was cooked with paneer in palak paneer.
It was such a great way to sneak in the greens. They wouldn’t touch spinach otherwise but if there was paneer with it, they would happily gulp down bowls of it.
Palak Paneer is such a staple in north India. It’s one of the most commonly made paneer dishes in Indian homes.
I would say it was made much more frequently in my home than say paneer butter masala or shahi paneer.
Maybe because it was considered healthier than the other creamy versions of paneer. Whatever the reason was, we would always be very happy when mom made it!
Ingredients
350 grams spinach
1 medium tomato
5 large garlic cloves divided, 3 whole and 2 finely chopped
1 inch ginger
1 green chili or more to taste
1 tablespoon oil 15 ml, I used avocado oil
1 large onion finely chopped
1/2 cup water or as needed
3/4-1 teaspoon garam masala
1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
1/4 teaspoon red chili powder or to taste
salt to taste
2-3 tablespoons heavy cream or adjust to taste
225 grams paneer cut into cubes
1/2 tablespoon kasuri methi crushed, dried fenugreek leaves
lemon juice to taste
Method* To a pot of boiling water, add little salt and then spinach leaves to it. Blanch the spinach leaves for 2 to 3 minutes until wilted.
* Take them out and put them in ice cold water. This helps the leaves in retaining their green color.
* To a blender, add the blanched spinach along with tomato, 3 cloves of garlic, ginger and green chili. Puree to a smooth paste and set aside.
* Heat a pan on medium heat. Once hot, add the oil and then add the remaining 2 cloves of chopped garlic. Sauté for few minutes until it starts changing color.
* Then add the chopped onions. Cook the onion for 2 to 3 minutes until soft and translucent.
* Add in the prepared spinach puree and mix. Also add around 1/2 cup water at the point.
* Cover the pan and let it cook for 10 minutes on medium heat. The spinach will bubble a lot. Stir at regular intervals to avoid sticking at the bottom.
* Once the spinach is cooked, add the garam masala, turmeric powder, red chilli powder and salt. Mix and cook for 1 minute.
* You may also add ½ teaspoon of sugar at this point if you like.
* Then add the heavy cream and mix.
* Stir in the paneer and mix. Let the curry simmer for 3 to 4 minutes.
* Switch off the flame, add lemon juice and kasuri methi and mix.
* Serve palak paneer hot with naan or roti or rice.