Palak paneer recipe – Indian cottage cheese in smooth creamy delicious spinach gravy. Palak paneer is one of the most loved North Indian dishes that’s eaten with roti, paratha, naan, Jeera rice, Ghee rice or even with plain rice. It is very easy to prepare and can be made in so many ways. This is an easy and healthy palak paneer recipe which I finally arrived at after trying so many other recipes.
In this palak paneer recipe, I have not blanched the spinach to prevent loss of nutrients. In most Indian recipes spinach is not blanched and used directly to make dal palak, spinach paratha, palak rice, spinach omelette, aloo palak and many other recipes as the nutrients are lost when blanched.
Tips to make best palak paneer
This palak paneer is the best I have made in the years. Not blanching the spinach and frying it for a short time is what makes this delicious. However this recipe also works with blanched spinach. I would recommend blanching, if you have been on a low oxalate diet and do not consume spinach without blanching in any other foods like dal palak.
To make palak paneer, always spinach is blanched prior to making a puree. But if you are trying to make the best palak paneer, give it a try without blanching. I am sure you will wonder how good this tastes and completely different from the one made with blanched spinach.
To get the best color, keep garam masala to minimum in this recipe and also prevent overcooking which darkens the dish. You can check more palak recipes here which I have shared on the blog.
How to choose palak to make palak paneer
- Always choose tender palak that is light to medium green in color. Dark leaves are usually less tasty.
- Do not use the stalks or stems of palak as it makes the palak paneer bitter. It also leads to metallic taste.
- Do not use frozen spinach for this recipe.
- This recipe has been tested only with Indian spinach . i.e palak and I have no idea if any other similar greens would go well here.
More Paneer recipes
Paneer butter masala
Malai kofta
Paneer makhani
Easy paneer bhurji
Shahi paneer
Paneer tikka masala
Palak paneer recipe
Palak paneer
Ingredients (1 cup = 240ml )
Ingredients for palak paneer recipe
- 1¼ cup paneer or 150 grams Indian cottage cheese
- 2 cups palak or indian spinach, tightly packed (100 grams)
- 2 tbsp Oil or butter as needed
- 2 to 3 green chilies deseeded
- ¾ cup onions fine chopped or ½ cup paste (2 medium)
- 1 tsp ginger garlic paste or garlic paste
- ½ cup tomatoes (deseeded & chopped) or puree (2 small)
- salt as needed
- 8 to 10 cashewnuts or 3 tbsps cream
- ½ tsp garam masala
- ½ tsp kasuri methi or dried fenugreek leaves
Dry spices for palak paneer
- 1/8 tsp cumin or jeera
- 2 green cardamoms or elaichi
- 1 inch cinnamon or dalchini
- 2 cloves or laung
How to make the recipe
Preparation for palak paneer
- Pluck only the young & tender palak leaves and discard the stems as they may leave a bitter taste.
- Add them to a large pot of water. Rinse them well few times & drain to a colander.
- Allow the water to drain completely otherwise it will let out lot of moisture while cooking.
- Heat 1 tsp oil in a pan. Fry green chilies and spinach for 3 to 4 mins until the leaves wilt off thoroughly & raw smell of spinach has gone away.
- OR another option is to blanch the palak in 4 cups of hot water with ¼ tsp salt for 2 mins. Then immerse in ice cold water. Drain completely.
- Cool this completely. Blend this along with cashews to a smooth puree.
- Optional: If using store bought paneer, then cube them and add to 2 cups hot water. Keep these immersed for 20 mins. Drain and use. Or you can also fry the paneer in 1 tsp oil for 2 mins and then add it to the hot water.
How to make palak paneer
- Heat 1.5 tbsp oil in a pan and fry cinnamon, cardamoms, cloves & cumin until sizzle.
- Then add onions and fry till they turn transparent to golden.
- Next fry ginger garlic paste until the raw smell goes away.
- Then fry tomatoes with some salt until they break down and turn mushy.
- Add kasuri methi & garam masala. Saute until the mixture leaves the sides of the pan.
- Pour half cup water and cook until the mixture thickens.
- Simmer the flame, add the pureed spinach. Mix well and cook until it begins to bubble for about 2 to 3 mins.
- Avoid overcooking. Add paneer & mix well. If using cream pour it now. Switch off. Serve palak paneer with naan, roti or rice.
NUTRITION
Notes
- Avoid using stalks & stems of spinach as they may lend a bitter taste. Cut off each stem from the leaves.Overcooking palak can leave a bitter taste.
Serving suggestions: palak paneer goes well with
Indian flat breads like roti, naan or plain paratha.
Plain or flavoured rice like jeera rice, biryani rice or ghee rice or veg pulao.
Preparation
1. Avoid using stems or stalks of palak as they make the gravy bitter. Use only young and fresh spinach. Wash cleaned palak thoroughly in a large pot filled with water. I also sprinkle vinegar and salt to remove the pesticide residue. Rinse a few times more. Drain off the water completely.
If you are on a low oxalate diet then you can blanch the spinach by following the steps mentioned in the recipe card above.
2. This step is optional. Heat a pan with 1 tsp oil and saute paneer just for 2 to 3 mins. You can add them to warm water and leave for 10 to 15 mins to keep them soft. Drain and set aside. I do not add to water.
3. To the same pan add another tsp oil, then saute green chilies and palak on a medium heat.
4. Switch off when the leaves wilt off. This takes only 2 to 3 minutes. Do not overcook, spinach takes only 2 to 3 mins to cook. If there is any stock of spinach left, you can use up. You need not evaporate it.
5. Cool it completely. Add to a blender with green chilies. We are not going to use red chilli powder, so the heat comes only from green chilies. Mine were not hot, so I used 3. You can also add 8 to 10 cashews at this stage to make creamy palak paneer.
6. Make a smooth paste. Set aside.
Make gravy
7. Heat oil in a pan or pot. Add cardamom, cinnamon, cloves and jeera as well. Do not skip the dry spices as we are not going to use much garam masala in powder form which helps to retain a good color.
8. Add onions or onion paste. Fry until golden.
9. Add ginger garlic paste or garlic paste alone. Fry until the raw smell goes off.
10. Add deseeded tomatoes or tomato puree and salt.
11. When the tomatoes turn fully mushy, add crushed kasuri methi and garam masala. You can also add kasuri methi later along with pureed palak.
12. Saute until the masala smells good for 2 to 3 mins or until it begins to leave the sides of the pan.
13. Add half cup water and cook on a medium heat.
14. When the gravy thickens, lower the flame completely. Next add the puree.
15. Mix it well and cook until it begins to bubble just for about 2 mins. I do not suggest cooking for long at this stage as it discolors the gravy.
How to make palak paneer
16. Add the paneer. Mix well. Switch off the stove.
17. If using cream pour it now. You can skip cream is you have used cashews while pureeing the spinach.
Serve palak paneer with rice, roti or paratha.
Jess says
Palak paneer is one of my favourite things in the world. This was my first time making it myself and the result was yummy – even my spinach-hating daughter liked it and said I should make it again. But… prep time of 10 minutes? Really? I will concede that I’m probably not the fastest in the kitchen, but honestly it takes more time than that just to chop the onions and tomatoes and wash the spinach. I need realistic prep times, so I don’t end up in the kitchen for two hours when the recipe promises 35 minutes! 😉
swasthi says
Hi Jess,
Glad your palak paneer turned out good. I understand your concern. I usually multitask while I cook which saves a lot of time. Ex: Firstly I rinse spinach.Then while the spinach gets drained & sauteed, I chop the onions and tomatoes. By the time I am done with cooking the onion and tomatoes, Cooling & pureeing the spinach is also done. But surely this recipe does not take 2 hours. It will maximum take up to 45 to 50 minutes even if you follow the steps one after the other. I will update the recipe cook time. Thanks for rating the recipe.
🙂
Aswathy Nair says
Swasthiji, Can’t thank you enough. What a wonderful recipe! My husband being a hard core non- vegetarian and me being a vegetarian, was having a tough time finding a good recipe for both us.
Thanking you a million where I used paneer for myself and substituted it with chicken for my husband. He just loved it!
swasthi says
Hi Aswathy
You are welcome. So glad you both loved it.Thanks a lot.
Sabi says
Yummy
Lov it
swasthi says
Thank you
Swapna says
I tried palakpaneer it really tastes good earlier i didnt like to make palak paneer as i was not satisfied after making it but now everyone at home appreciates for swathyas recipe,thankyou for sharing.
swasthi says
Hi Swapna,
You are welcome. Thank you so much for the comment. Very glad to know your palak paneer turned out good.
Aswathy says
Tried it out! Tastes awesome! Recope has retained the taste, colour and nutritive value of the dish. Definitely a keeper. Loved the alternative of adding cashews instead of cream. Thanks!
swasthi says
Hi Aswathy,
You are welcome. So happy to know your palak paneer turned out good. Thanks a lot for the comment!
🙂
Nikeeta says
Loved the recipe
swasthi says
Thanks Nikeeta
Sandhya says
My palak paneer always used to turn bitter. Tried many recipes. But this is the best one. Came out yummmmmmm.
swasthi says
Hi Sandhya
Glad to know it turned out good. Thanks for rating the recipe
Ria says
Awesome recipe to make palak paneer. Never thought my palak paneer can turn out so fabulous. I had a small group of friends home for a dinner. Tried your jeera rice, palak paneer with your kheer. My guests were so surprised at the awesome food. Absolutely in love with your blog. Thank you. Keep posting.
swasthi says
Hi Ria,
You are welcome. So happy to know your dishes turned out good. Thanks a lot. Will surely keep posting.
🙂
Nira Biswas says
I tried it out today.. followed the exact recipe but forgot to put the onion, and added a bit sugar.it turned out awesome. Thanks
swasthi says
Hi Nira,
You are welcome. Happy to know your palak paneer was awesome. Thank you.
Rose says
Tried Palak paneer today. It came out really good. Your tips helped me to get there. Simply amazing. Thank you !
swasthi says
Hi Rose
You are welcome. Happy to know your palak paneer turned out good. Thanks for the comment.
David says
Hi Swasthi, Your recipe is the best by far. I made some today and it was delicious.
thanks
David
swasthi says
Hi David,
You are welcome. Glad it turned out good. Thank you so much!
Anonymus says
My Palak paneer is tasting bitter despite removing the stalk… and smell of Palak is raw not cooked… i followed exactly how you have mentioned except dint add garam masala and chillies as I made it for children… why is it tasting bitter and smelling of raw Palak ?
swasthi says
Hi Sumitra,
I am not sure why? But was it palak or any other similar leaves. Because here in singapore I have seen there are other greens that look exactly like palak but the taste is totally different. These are thinner than the regular palak leaves. Not sure why it happens.I guess the palak needs a bit more of sauteing before pureeing.
Nibha says
It is really tasty and easy to make
swasthi says
Thanks Nibha
Neelima says
Turned out very nice and tasty!
Dhanu says
Hi Swasthi, I made Palak paneer yesterday.my hubby just loved it!Thank you so much for recipe.
Sanika says
Amazing recipe.. my earlier tried out versions not palak paneer were not good.. But this one was amazing…. Thank you so much..
Mahi says
Delicious
Shenba says
Simply superb.No parallel, more than a restaurant style.Tried it for first time.kids loved it like anything.
swasthi says
Hi Shenba,
Thank you so much for the comment. Very happy to know the kids loved it.
🙂