Palak Paneer (Spinach and Cheese Curry)

Yesterday, I had a really good spinach and corn sandwich from one of the coffee shops. It reminded me that spinach is a delicious, leafy vegetable that I do not cook enough of. Bhavnesh asked me to make Palak Paneer a while ago, but it just never made the top of my list. Also, it's difficult to find good spinach at the market sometimes. I finally got my hands on a good bunch of spinach, so I made palak paneer for dinner tonight. Here's the recipe:

1 bunch of fresh spinach leaves (bag of baby spinach would work too!)
1 block of paneer (cottage cheese)
1 onion, minced
2 medium tomatoes, pureed
3-4 green chilies
1" piece ginger
4-5 garlic cloves
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp coriander powder
1/2 tsp red chili powder
1/4 tsp garam masala
1 tbsp oil
Pinch of asafoetida powder
1 tsp cumin seeds
Salt to taste
Sugar per taste


1. Chop the tomatoes. Then grind it along with the shredded ginger, garlic, and green chilies. Keep aside.
2. Roughly chop the spinach. Then process the spinach. This stage turned out to be a bit difficult. (I think it would be easier to boil the spinach in hot water for about 5 minutes. Drain and then process the boiled spinach. I will try that next time.)
3. Heat 1 tbsp oil in pot. Add cumin seeds and when they begin to sizzle, add the onions. I also added a little sugar to help the onions caramelize. Sautee until onions turn a nice golden brown.
4. Mix in the tomato paste along with salt, coriander powder, turmeric powder, garam masala and red chili powder. Add a little water and let tomatoes cook until they reduce down in volume.
5. Next, add the spinach paste and about 1 cup water. Let cook on low flame for about ten minutes.
6. While the spinach is cooking, chop the paneer into half inch cubes. Shallow fry the paneer pieces in pan until golden brown on both sides. Remove onto paper towel to drain out any excess oil.
7. Add the fried paneer to the spinach gravy. Mix well and cook for another 5 minutes.
8. Serve hot with any Indian bread of your choice. I also chopped up some tomatoes and onions for garnish.

It's a pretty simple recipe. You can also take any leftover palak paneer and use as filling for sandwiches or wraps! Served with methi paratha (frozen version of course), this dish ended up being a hit with Josh and Bhavnesh.