A restaurant classic, made easy! Palak Paneer is possibly the most requested order in my family. It’s almost a rite of passage for every South Asian child to order a big bowl of palak paneer at restaurant – and I completely understand why
What is Palak Paneer?
A classic Indian restaurant meal that can be enjoyed just as easily at home – my recipe is incredibly simple and so flavourful. You won’t be heading out for takeaway again after making your own Palak Paneer at home! Traditional to Northern India, Palak Paneer is a beautiful curry made with spinach that is cooked down with some spices, onion and tomato. The gravy is then mixed through with some delicious Paneer (Indian cottage cheese made from yogurt) and served usually with a tempering of oil, garlic, dried red chilli and sometime thin strips of ginger.
Growing up this was sort of a special treat in my house and a staple at every single Indian restaurant. For my friends, this recipe has one of the most requested over the years with them always asking for “that spinach and cheese curry”. My recipe in particular takes elements from a few versions I have tasted over the years and plays homage to the delicious flavours of this curry in restaurants, with all the right homely feels. This version is so easy and is absolutely perfect for entertaining and can easily be made in bulk.
How do I Prepare the Paneer?
The real star in the recipe is actually the paneer, and preparing the paneer is what really makes the biggest difference. I personally prefer my paneer to have a little bit of crunch on the outside and a beautifully smooth soft center. When using store bought paneer you need to cut the paneer into small cubes and place the cubes to soak in warm, salted water for at least 10 minutes. This will remove that sticky film of preservative that forms around the paneer and soften it down nicely. By doing this, the paneer will also readily absorb any flavours and marinade.
For my version of palak paneer, I use a simple marinade of ground turmeric, cumin seeds, ground cumin and ground coriander. The seeds are not absolutely essential however give a beautiful effect on the paneer when cooked. All you need to do is drain as much of the salted water as you can after the paneer has soaked for 10 minutes, and then add in the spices. Gently toss these through – avoid using a spoon and instead use the bowl to toss the paneer to avoid any of it breaking up. Let the paneer marinade for at least 10 minutes before heating up some vegetable oil in a pan then lightly fry the paneer till each side is beautifully golden brown.
How do I make the Gravy?
For the curry base we start by heating up some oil and frying up some of the kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves) and cumin seeds till the they start to sputter. Follow this with the onions and a pinch of salt and let these cook until translucent. If the pot is too hot, add a tablespoon of water to prevent any burning of ingredients – this is super important to prevent the onion from burning. Once the onions are cooked down, you can add in the ginger garlic paste, and spices and Sautee everything for about 5 minutes until beautifully fragrant. Then come in the tomatoes and the tomato paste, along with a pinch of salt to help the cooking. Cook the tomatoes till the raw smell has cooked off, then add in the spinach puree OR the chopped spinach (I’ll touch on the difference in a moment) and cook everything through really well. Season to your taste and that is how you make the Palak base.
Spinach Puree or Blend afterward?
Using spinach puree from the start means that you don’t need to blend everything later, however if you use chopped spinach you need to do the extra step of blending everything using either a stick blender or a separate machine to get a luxurious smooth gravy. Either way you will have a really delicious palak gravy to mix through the prepared paneer and temper with your choice of garlic, ginger and/or red chillies. Personally I prefer using the stick blender to puree everything after using chopped spinach such that I have a lightly coarse gravy – I really like a bit of texture to the palak paneer, but it is totally up to you how smooth you wish to puree the ingredients.
So, How do I make Palak Paneer?
So here is my recipe! It’s so simple and so delicious and has become a staple in our home. If you are making the palak paneer ahead I recommend preparing both the paneer and palak gravy separately, and then with 10 minutes to go till serving time, mix through the paneer and heat everything till it just reaches a rolling boil. Serve the palak paneer with roti, naan or your favourite rice.
Palak Paneer
Ingredients
- 300 g Spinach Leaves
- 2 Medium tomatoes
- 1 medium white onion
- 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste
- 2 tsp tomato paste
- 1/2 tsp garam masala
- 1/2 tsp kashmiri chilli powder
- pinch of kasuri methi
- 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
- 250 g paneer
- ¼ tsp ground tumeric
- ⅛ tsp ground cumin
- ⅛ tsp ground corinader
- vegetable oil
- Optional for tempering: garlic, chilli, dried red chilli
Instructions
- Cut the paneer into small 1 to 2 cm sized cubes and soak the paneer in warm water with a large pinch of salt
- Drain as much of the water as possible then add the turmeric, 1/4 tsp of cumin seeds, ground cumin and ground coriander. Set the paneer aside for 10 minutes
- Heat a teaspoon of vegetable in a fry pan and fry the paneer till golden brown on each side
- Remove the paneer from the pan and set aside. Heat a tablespoon of vegetable oil in the same pan. Add the kasuri methi and cumin seeds and cook for 1 minute
- Add the finely chopped onion and saute with a pinch of salt until translucent
- Add the ginger garlic paste and cook until the raw smell has gone. Add all the spices and stir through
- Add the chopped tomatoes and a pinch of salt to the pan. Cook the tomatoes for at least 5 minutes until they are cooked through
- Add in the tomato paste followed by the spinach. If using fresh spinach, add 1/2 cup of water. If using frozen, there is no need to add any water
- Continue to cook the spinach for roughly 10-15 minutes until fully cooked through
- Once the spinach is all cooked through, set the pot aside to cool for 10 minutes before using a stick mixer or blender to make a smooth mixture
- Return the mixture to the pot and heat through. Add the paneer and let the palak paneer simmer for 2 minutes
- Transfer the palak paneer into a serving bowl, casserole, or leave in the pot if you plan of serving the palak paneer in it
- Prepare the tempering by heating up 2 tbsp of vegetable oil, with your choice of garlic slices, julliene ginger, fresh green chilli, and/or dried red chilli. Heat this until the ingredients heat through, lightly bubble and release their strong aromas. Very quickly, and carefully pour the tempering oil and ingredients over the palak paneer in your serving dish – do this extremely carefully!
- Serve hot with some fresh rice or flatbreads
And there you have it! One of my favourite recipes ever made easy. As always, share your recipe attempts with me @theminiaturelife on Instagram (be sure to DM me the photo as well).
Happy cooking everyone!
Minal
