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Palak Paneer Recipe

Name: Palak Paneer Recipe
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 250 grams spinach, or 5 to 6 cups roughly chopped spinach; 1 to 2 green chilies, or 1 Serrano pepper or 1 to 2 Anaheim peppers – chopped; 1 to 2 small to medium garlic cloves, – roughly chopped (optional); 1 inch ginger, – roughly chopped; 3 cups water, for blanching spinach; 3 cups water, for ice bath; 2 tablespoon oil, or ghee (clarified butter) or butter; ½ teaspoon cumin seeds; 1 small to medium tej patta, (Indian bay leaf); ⅓ cup finely chopped onions, or 1 small to medium sized onion; 1 teaspoon finely chopped garlic, or 4 to 5 small to medium garlic cloves; ⅓ cup finely chopped tomatoes, or 1 small to medium sized tomato; ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder, (ground turmeric); ½ teaspoon red chili powder, or cayenne pepper or paprika; 1 pinch asafoetida, (hing) – optional; ½ cup water, or add as required; ¼ or ½ teaspoon garam masala, – add more if required; 200 to 250 grams paneer, or tofu; 2 tablespoons low fat cream, or 1 tablespoon heavy whipping cream; 1 teaspoon kasuri methi leaves, (dry fenugreek leaves) – optional. kasuri methi is crushed and added right towards the end. just before adding cream.; salt as required; 1 to 2 teaspoons cream, (low fat or heavy cream or cooking cream) or butter for garnish – optional; ½ to 1 inch ginger, – julienne; lemon, or lime wedges or slices

Palak Paneer is a smooth and creamy North Indian dish made with paneer cooked in a fresh spinach gravy. This easy Palak Paneer recipe uses fresh spinach leaves, paneer, onions, tomatoes, ginger, garlic, herbs and spices. The gravy has a mild flavor with a natural green color from the spinach. It is one of the most popular vegetarian paneer dishes served with roti or rice.

Prep

30 min

Cook

10 min

Total

40 min

Serves

Ingredients

Spinach Puree

250 gramsspinachor 5 to 6 cups roughly chopped spinach
1 to 2green chiliesor 1 Serrano pepper or 1 to 2 Anaheim peppers – chopped
1 to 2small to medium garlic cloves– roughly chopped (optional)
1 inchginger– roughly chopped
3 cupswaterfor blanching spinach
3 cupswaterfor ice bath

Other Ingredients

2 tablespoonoilor ghee (clarified butter) or butter
½ teaspooncumin seeds
1small to medium tej patta(Indian bay leaf)
⅓ cupfinely chopped onionsor 1 small to medium sized onion
1 teaspoonfinely chopped garlicor 4 to 5 small to medium garlic cloves
⅓ cupfinely chopped tomatoesor 1 small to medium sized tomato
¼ teaspoonturmeric powder(ground turmeric)
½ teaspoonred chili powderor cayenne pepper or paprika
1 pinchasafoetida(hing) – optional
½ cupwateror add as required
¼ or ½ teaspoongaram masala– add more if required
200 to 250 gramspaneeror tofu
2 tablespoonslow fat creamor 1 tablespoon heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoonkasuri methi leaves(dry fenugreek leaves) – optional. kasuri methi is crushed and added right towards the end. just before adding cream.
·salt as required

Garnish

1 to 2 teaspoonscream(low fat or heavy cream or cooking cream) or butter for garnish – optional
½ to 1 inchginger– julienne
·lemonor lime wedges or slices

Instructions

01
Rinse the palak or spinach leaves very well in running water. Tender stem are fine. If the stems are stringy, then discard the stems.
02
Boil 3 cups water in a pan or microwave or electric heater. Add ¼ teaspoon salt to the hot water and stir.
03
When the water comes to a rolling boil, turn off the heat. Add the spinach leaves in the hot water.
04
Let the spinach leaves sit in the water for about 1 minute. After 1 minute, using a pasta tong, take the leaves.
05
Immediately add the palak or spinach leaves in a pan or bowl containing ice cold water. This method helps in preserving the green color of the spinach.
06
Just add 8 to 10 ice cubes to 3 cups water to get cold water. Allow the spinach leaves to be in the cold water for a minute.
07
Then drain the ice cold water. Add the spinach in a blender or grinder jar with chopped ginger, garlic and green chilies.
08
Make a smooth palak puree. No need to add water while making the puree. Keep the spinach puree aside.
09
Heat oil or ghee or butter in a pan or kadai. If using butter, melt it a low heat making sure that the butter does not brown.
10
Add the cumin and let them splutter.
11
Then add the tej patta or Indian bay leaf.
12
Add the finely chopped onions. Saute till the onions become golden.
13
Then add the finely chopped garlic. Saute till the raw aroma of garlic goes away. No need to brown the garlic.
14
Add the chopped tomatoes. Stir and saute the tomatoes till they soften.
15
Once the tomatoes are softened and you see fat releasing from the sides of the mixture.
16
Then add the turmeric powder, red chili powder and asafoetida/hing and mix very well.
17
Then add the palak puree and mix well.
18
Add about ½ cup water or as required. Mix again.
19
Simmer for 6 to 7 minutes or more till the palak or spinach is cooked. Season with salt. The gravy or sauce will also thicken by now.
20
Stir and add garam masala powder.
21
Stir again and then add the paneer (Indian cottage cheese) cubes.
22
Mix very well and turn off the heat. Be quick as we don't want heat the paneer for more 30 seconds to 1 minute. Overcooking paneer will make them chewy and dense.
23
Lastly, add 2 tablespoons of low-fat cream. If using heavy whipping cream, then add 1 tablespoon of it.
24
Stir and mix gently again so that the cream gets incorporated in the gravy uniformly.
25
Pour the palak paneer in serving bowls. While serving you can top it with some butter or cream.
26
You can also drizzle a few drops of lime or lemon juice on top along with ginger julienne on the palak paneer.
27
Stir and serve palak paneer hot with some roti. It also goes very well with Indian breads like tandoori roti, phulka, paratha or naan.
28
Being a versatile dish, it also accompanies rice dishes from the Indian cuisine like cumin rice, vegetable pulao, ghee rice, saffron rice and even a simple steamed rice very well.

Nutrition

per serving · 1 serving

Calories: 265
Protein: 10g
Carbs: 8g
Fat: 23g

Fiber: 2g
Sugar: 2g
Sat. fat: 10g
Sodium: 419mg
Cholesterol: 43mg

Variations & swaps

Helpful Tips & Variations

Spinach: Use fresh, tender spinach leaves for the best flavor and texture. Remove any thick or stringy stems, but tender stems can be used. You can also use frozen spinach. Since it has already been blanched, simply thaw it and squeeze out all the excess water before blending.
Blanching: I recommend blanching the spinach for this recipe. It takes only a few extra minutes and helps preserve the bright green color while reducing the raw taste, bitterness, and metallic flavor of the spinach. It also helps clean the leaves before they are pureed.
Paneer: For the homestyle version, you can lightly pan-fry the paneer cubes before adding them to the spinach gravy if you prefer a richer flavor. Homemade paneer is the best choice, but packaged or frozen paneer also works well. If using packaged or frozen paneer, follow the instructions on the package before using it.
Special Ingredients: Kasuri methi (dry fenugreek leaves) and hing (asafoetida) add some flavor, but you can skip them if you don’t have them.
Vegan options: Replace the paneer with tofu to make a delicious Palak Tofu. You can also use cashew cream or coconut cream instead of dairy cream, or simply omit the cream.
Restaurant style flavors: You can give the homestyle Palak Paneer a gentle smoky aroma by using the charcoal smoking technique (dhungar) shown in the restaurant-style version.

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Instructions

Nutrition

Variations & swaps

Helpful Tips & Variations

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