Cherry & Dennis Helper Habitat
Indian Palak Paneer
印度菠菜芝士咖喱
Recipe overview
Blanched spinach is blended bright green, then cooked with aromatic onion, tomato and paneer for a smooth, mild curry.
01
Ingredients
Main ingredients
- 800 g spinach
- 400 g paneer
- 200 g tomatoes
- 200 g onion
- 20 g ginger
- 20 g garlic
- 200 ml water
- 80 ml single cream
Cooking oil
- 2 tbsp cooking oil
Curry seasoning
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 0.5 tsp ground turmeric
- 0.25 tsp chilli powder
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1 tsp salt (adjust to taste at the end)
02
Tools
- large pot
- large bowl
- sieve
- deep frying pan
- blender
- chef's knife
- cutting board
- wooden spoon
- food thermometer
03
Steps
Step 1
Wash the spinach
Separate spinach and rinse leaves and stems repeatedly until no grit remains.
Step 2
Blanch the spinach
Bring a large pot of water to a boil and blanch spinach in batches for 60 to 90 seconds until wilted and bright green.
Step 3
Cool in ice water
Transfer spinach immediately to ice water for 1 minute, then drain in a sieve.
Step 4
Blend the spinach
Gently squeeze out excess water and blend spinach with 100 ml of the measured water until smooth.
Step 5
Cut the ingredients
Cut paneer into 2 cm cubes, dice onion and tomatoes, and mince ginger and garlic.
Step 6
Brown the paneer
Heat 1 tbsp oil over medium heat and brown paneer lightly on each side; remove from the pan.
Step 7
Fry cumin and onion
Add remaining oil and cumin for 20 seconds, then onion and cook 5 minutes until soft and pale gold.
Step 8
Add ginger, garlic and tomato
Cook ginger and garlic for 30 seconds, then add tomatoes and cook 5 minutes until soft.
Step 9
Toast the ground spices
Add turmeric, chilli powder and garam masala and stir over low heat for 30 seconds without burning.
Step 10
Cook the spinach curry
Add spinach puree and remaining 100 ml water; simmer over medium-low heat for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Step 11
Heat the paneer through
Return paneer and cook 3 to 4 minutes until the curry simmers and paneer centres reach at least 74°C.
Step 12
Add cream and season
Reduce heat, stir in cream and salt, heat gently for 1 minute without a hard boil, taste and serve.
Common mistakes
- Poorly washed spinach leaves grit in the curry.
- Over-blanching dulls the green colour and fresh flavour.
- Ground spices burn and turn bitter over high heat.
- Boiling hard after adding cream can split the sauce.
Tips
Chill spinach immediately and squeeze only lightly to retain colour and fluidity; add cream over low heat and heat paneer centres to 74°C.
