Saag Paneer Curry Recipes

SAAG PANEER

Steps:

• Melt the ghee, whisk in with the turmeric and chilli powder, then add the cubed paneer and toss well. Set aside. If using frozen spinach, microwave for 3-5 mins, then place in a sieve and squeeze out most of the water. If using fresh spinach, place in a colander, pour over boiling water, drain and cool, then put in a tea towel and squeeze out most of the water. Roughly chop.
• Blitz the onion with the garlic, ginger and green chilli. Cook the paneer in a large non-stick frying pan over medium heat for around 8 mins, tossing the pan so they become golden all over. Remove and set aside on a plate, leaving spices behind in the pan. Tip the onion mix into the pan, add a pinch of salt and turn the heat down. Fry until caramel coloured, around 10 mins, adding a splash of water if it looks a little dry. Add the garam masala, stir to coat the onion mix, fry for 2 mins.
• Add the spinach and cook for a further 2-3 mins, adding 100ml water to release all the flavours from the bottom of the pan. Add the paneer and cook for 2-3 mins to heat through. Spoon into bowls and squeeze over a little lemon juice, to serve.

AUTHENTIC SAAG PANEER

Steps:

• Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. Cook spinach and fenugreek in the boiling water until wilted, about 3 minutes. Drain well and transfer to a food processor. Puree until finely chopped, about 5 pulses.
• Heat 1 tablespoon canola oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Fry paneer cubes, stirring constantly, until browned on all sides, about 5 minutes. Set aside.
• Heat 2 tablespoons canola oil in the skillet and fry the cumin seeds until lightly toasted and aromatic, about 3 minutes. Add onion; cook and stir until onion begins to soften, 4 to 5 minutes. Stir in ginger, garlic, tomato, garam masala, turmeric, and cayenne pepper; cook and stir until tomatoes break down and onions are translucent, about 10 minutes.
• Stir in spinach and fenugreek, cream, paneer cubes, and salt to taste. Cover and cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

SAAG PANEER | SPINACH CURRY

Steps:

• Place frozen spinach in a blender or food processor, drizzling it with the boiling water as you go so it wilts and you can fit it all in. Process until very finely chopped, but not pureed. Set aside.
• Heat ghee or butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add chopped onion and half the salt; cook, stirring often, until very soft and golden. Reduce the heat if onions are browning - low and slow is the goal.
• Add the ginger and garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the turmeric, cumin and fenugreek powder and cook 1 minute more. Stir in the spinach, bring to a simmer, then add cream or yogurt, lemon juice and remaining salt. Gently stir in paneer and heat through.

SAAG PANEER

Steps:

• Heat the ghee/butter/oil in a large heavy-based frying pan/skillet (that has a lid).
• Fry the onions, ginger & garlic on medium heat for 10 to 12 minutes.
• Stir in the turmeric, garam masala and chilli powder, followed by the paneer and fry for 2 to 3 minutes until the paneer is well coated with spices.
• Add the salt, spinach, green chilli and yoghurt. Put the lid on the pan and let the spinach wilt (a couple of minutes).
• Remove the lid and simmer for 3 to 4 minutes, or until reduced to a thick, creamy sauce.
• Sprinkle with the chopped coriander and serve.

PALAK PANEER CURRY - SPINACH PANEER RECIPE | HEALTHY PALAK PANEER | EASY SAAG PANEER RECIPE

Steps:

• To blanch spinach, heat water in a pot and add palak leaves. Take out after 2 minutes when spinach starts to wilt and add to ice cold water. Set this aside.
• To a pan, add in some oil. To this add cashew, ginger, garlic pods, green chillies and chopped onion. Sauté until the onions turn tanslucent. Now, add in chopped tomato. Add a little salt and sauté for a minute until they turn soft. Turn off the heat. Allow it to completely cool down and transfer to a blender.
• Now, drain out the spinach and add to the blender. To this add half a cup of water. Blend to a very smooth paste.
• Add oil/butter or ghee to a pan as per your preference. I'm using oil.
• To this add cumin seeds and a few dry red chillies.
• Once these get lightly toasted, add in some turmeric powder, red chilli powder, coriander powder and cumin powder.
• Give it all a nice mix for a few seconds so that they get lightly toasted in oil. Make sure not to burn them.
• Now, add the palak puree. Add in some water to adjust the consistency. Give it all a nice mix. Add in required salt to your taste.
• In a minute or 2 it starts to boil. Add in some powdered garam masala. Give it a mix.
• Add in the paneer cubes. Alternatively, you can also lightly shallow fry paneer in a little oil until light golden brown and then add.
• Gently fold in the gravy to cover the paneer and turn off the heat.
• At this stage, you can optionally add some cream or butter.
• Palak paneer curry is ready to be served with roti, naan, paratha or jeera rice.

SAAG PANEER

Steps:

• With a fork, make a few holes in each paneer cube and then mix well with the marinade ingredients. You can fry these immediately but the paneer does benefit from a longer marinating time.
• Fry the paneer in about 3 tablespoons of the oil in a frying pan set over a medium-high heat until nicely browned. Set aside while you cook the spinach.
• If using frozen spinach, there is no need to cook it. Pour 285ml (generous 1 cup) of water into a large saucepan and bring to the boil. Add the fresh spinach and simmer until the water has evaporated. Allow the spinach to cool, then blitz to a thick paste in a food processor. Set aside.
• Now heat the remaining oil in a large frying pan over a medium-high heat. When visibly hot, add the cumin seeds and stir them around in the oil for about 30 seconds, then add the chilli powder and turmeric.
• Stir in the garlic and fry until it turns a light golden brown. Be careful not to burn the garlic or it will turn bitter.
• Add the blended spinach to the pan and stir in the yoghurt, 1 tablespoon at a time. Stir in the fried paneer and heat through.
• Season with salt and serve immediately. I like to stir in about 3 tablespoons of single (light) cream to finish the dish off. This is optional but very nice.

SAAG PANEER CURRY

Steps:

• Put the spinach in a lidded saucepan with the chopped chilli and pour over the 300ml boiled water. Cover and cook on a medium heat for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and leave to cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then whizz to a purée in a mini food processor or blender.
• Heat the oil in a large lidded pan over a medium heat. Add the cumin seeds and, once they sizzle, add the garlic, then cook for 1 minute. Add the spinach purée, bring to the boil, then cover and cook for 15 minutes.Œ
• Add the paneer, a good pinch of sea salt and chilli powder to the pan, then cover and cook for 5-7 minutes. Stir in the cream and cook for 2 minutes, then add the lemon juice. Mix well, sprinkle over more chilli powder and serve with lemon wedges.

VEGAN TOFU SAAG PANEER

Steps:

• Heat pan on medium with oil until hot and add tofu, season with a pinch of salt and do not stir or move for 5 minutes
• Move tofu to the side and add the garlic, ginger and onions and do not move for 5 minutes again and then stir or flip to combine, Keep cooking this way for an additional 10 minutes, only stirring or flipping every 2-3 minutes so that the tofu gets some beautiful golden color and the onions and garlic are fragrant and toasty.
• Add the coconut and almond milk, tomato paste, curry powder, garam masala, crushed red pepper and paprika and bring to a boil then add the baby spinach.
• turn down to a simmer for 5 minutes and stir often as the spinach wilts and becomes one with the curry gravy, taste for salt, adjust if needed.

SAAG PANEER

Steps:

• In a large bowl, whisk together the turmeric, cayenne, 1 teaspoon salt and 3 tablespoons oil. Gently, drop in the cubes of paneer and gently toss, taking care not to break the cubes if you're using the homemade kind. Let the cubes marinate while you get the rest of your ingredients together and prepped.
• Thaw the spinach in the microwave in a microwave-safe dish, 5 minutes on high, then puree in a food processor until smooth. Alternatively, you can chop it up very finely with your knife.
• Place a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, and add the paneer as the pan warms. In a couple of minutes give the pan a toss; each piece of paneer should be browned on one side. Fry another minute or so, and then remove the paneer from the pan onto a plate.
• Add the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons oil to the pan. Add the onions, ginger, garlic and chile. Now here's the important part: saute the mixture until it's evenly toffee-coloured, which should take about 15 minutes. Don't skip this step - this is the foundation of the dish! If you feel like the mixture is drying out and burning, add a couple of tablespoons of water.
• Add the garam masala, coriander and cumin. If you haven't already, sprinkle a little water to keep the spices from burning. Cook, stirring often, until the raw scent of the spices cook out, and it all smells a bit more melodious, 3 to 5 minutes.
• Add the spinach and stir well, incorporating the spiced onion mixture into the spinach. Add a little salt and 1/2 cup of water, stir, and cook about 5 minutes with the lid off.
• Turn the heat off. Add the yogurt, a little at a time to keep it from curdling. Once the yogurt is well mixed into the spinach, add the paneer. Turn the heat back on, cover and cook until everything is warmed through, about 5 minutes. Serve.
• Line a large colander with a large double layer of cheesecloth, and set it in your sink.
• In a large wide pot, bring the milk to a gentle boil over medium heat, stirring frequently to avoid burning the bottom (a nonstick pot works really well for this purpose). This will take a little while so be patient!
• Add the lemon juice and turn the heat down to low. Stirring gently, you should almost immediately see the curds (white milk solids) and whey (the greenish liquid) separate. Don't fret, this is perfect!
• Remove the pot from the heat and carefully pour the contents into the cheesecloth-lined colander. Gently rinse with cool water to get rid of the lemon flavor. At this point, you could squeeze out some of the liquid, and serve with some honey and some nuts, almost like a fresh ricotta!
• Grab the ends of the cheesecloth and twist the ball of cheese to squeeze out the excess whey. Tie the cheesecloth to your kitchen faucet and allow the cheese to drain for about 5 minutes.
• Twisting the ball to compact the cheese into a block, place it on a plate with the twisted part of the cheesecloth on the side (this will ensure your block of cheese is nice and smooth!) and set another plate on top. Weigh the second plate down with cans of beans or a heavy pot. Move to the refrigerator and let it sit about 20 minutes.
• Combine the cinnamon sticks, cloves, green cardamom seeds, black cardamom seeds, if using into a spice grinder or coffee grinder and grind until fine. Store the spice mix in an airtight container away from direct sunlight.