Simple Palak Paneer | Indian Paneer Recipe

Palak Paneer – Palak meaning spinach, paneer meaning cottage cheese, is a popular Indian vegetarian side dish made using paneer simmered in blanched and pureed spinach, together with ginger-garlic paste, yogurt, and spices. This one’s a people’s favorite, just like the paneer butter masala, and tastes delicious with Indian flatbreads such as naan, rotis, and chapatis.

Spinach is the star of this dish – not only does it elevate the flavor of the curry, but it also makes it nutritious. Preparing this recipe is super easy and takes about 30 minutes overall, making it a good option for weekday dinners for you and your family.

Ingredients:

Spinach – I prefer using baby spinach (used in salads) for this, but you can use the regular spinach too.

Sunflower oil – I generally prefer sunflower oil for making Indian food. Vegetable oil is a good option too.

Paneer – Any good quality store-bought or homemade paneer works well.

Spices (Cumin seeds, turmeric powder, cumin powder, garam masala) – I prefer using whole and powdered spices from the swad brand. You can essentially use any good-quality spices from your favorite brand.

Green chili – this one’s for the heat and I have used Indian green chili or hari mirch.

Onion – Any kind of onion work well in this, but I prefer the red onions (that are spicy.)

Ginger-garlic paste – I like to use a good quality, store-bought ginger-garlic paste. But an instant homemade ginger-garlic paste adds a lot of flavor.

Yogurt/Curd – Home set curd or plain yogurt works well in this. Just whisk it a little bit before adding.

Procedure:

• Fill a medium saucepan with water and bring it to a boil. Add rinsed spinach into it, blanch for 2 minutes, and immediately transfer the spinach into ice-cold water. Drain and make a fine paste of the spinach, and keep it aside.
• Heat oil in a separate medium pan with lid. Add cumin seeds, chopped green chilies, chopped onion, and sauté for 2-3 minutes on medium heat until onion turns golden brown. Add the ginger-garlic paste, and sauté until the raw smell goes away.
• Add salt, turmeric powder, and cumin powder, and sauté for 20 seconds on low heat. Stir in the freshly made spinach paste and cook for 2 minutes on low-medium heat. (Make sure not to overcook the spinach as it’s partially cooked already.)Add yogurt and garam masala and mix to incorporate them into the gravy.
• Finally, add the paneer cubes. Combine, cover (for approximately 4-5 minutes) on low heat until the paneer is soft.
• Serve it warm with naan, roti, chapati, paratha, or your favorite flavored rice. Enjoy!

Check out other paneer recipes here: Paneer butter masala, Mattar Paneer, Paneer Burji

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Palak Paneer

Swaadista

A healthy and delicious side dish made using paneer, spinach and spices.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 mins

Cook Time 20 mins

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Indian

Servings 3 people

Equipment

• Cooking pan with lid
• Mixer grinder

Ingredients

  

For making the spinach paste

• 250 gm baby spinach rinsed
• water

For making palak paneer

• 3 tbsp sunflower oil
• ½ tsp cumin seeds
• 150 gm paneer cut into ¾-inch cubes
• 2-3 green chilies finely chopped
• 1 medium onion finely chopped
• 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
• ¼ tsp turmeric powder
• ¾ tsp cumin powder
• 2 tbsp yogurt/curd
• ¼ tsp garam masala
• salt to taste

Instructions

 

• Fill a medium saucepan with water and bring it to a boil on medium heat.
  water
• Add rinsed spinach into the pan, blanch for 2 minutes, and immediately transfer the spinach into cold water(ice cold). Drain and make a fine paste of the spinach, and keep it aside until used.
  250 gm baby spinach
• Heat oil in a separate pan on medium heat.
  3 tbsp sunflower oil
• Add cumin seeds, chopped green chilies, chopped onion, and sauté for 2-3 minutes on medium heat until onion golden brown.
  ½ tsp cumin seeds, 2-3 green chilies, 1 medium onion
• Add the ginger-garlic paste, sauté until the raw smell goes away.
  1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
• Add salt, turmeric powder, and cumin powder, and sauté for 20 seconds.
  ¼ tsp turmeric powder, salt to taste, ¾ tsp cumin powder
• Stir in the freshly made spinach paste and cook for 2 minutes on low-medium heat. (Make sure to not overcook the spinach as it's already partially cooked.)
• Add yogurt and garam masala and mix to incorporate them into the gravy.
  2 tbsp yogurt/curd, ¼ tsp garam masala
• Finally, add the paneer cubes. Combine, cover (for approximately 4-5 minutes) on low heat until the paneer is soft.
  150 gm paneer
• Serve it warm with naan, roti, chapati, paratha, or your favorite flavored rice. Enjoy!

Notes

• Add salt and spices as per your taste and preference.
• Do not blanch spinach longer. It will lose its color, flavor, and nutrients.
• You can use either chopped green chilies directly while cooking or blend whole green chilies together with spinach.

Keyword Easy Paneer Recipe, Palak Paneer, Paneer, Paneer Curry, Spinach Recipes