Palak Paneer with green spinach sauce, fried paneer and spices
Indian Recipe

Palak Paneer

This Palak Paneer recipe uses fresh or frozen spinach, paneer, onion, garlic, ginger, cumin, garam masala and some cream. The paneer is fried and then placed in the spinach sauce.

No ratings yet
Jump to recipe View ingredients
Share
Total time 45 min
Calories 480 kcal
Servings 4 servings
Difficulty Medium
By the Published Updated Editorially approved

Why this recipe works

Palak Paneer with Spinach and Fried Paneer

Palak paneer is supposed to taste green and creamy. It is only blanched or warmed for a short time and then pureed. Paneer is added to the sauce only at the end to keep it soft and not break.

Vegetarian Dinners Lunch One-Pot Recipes Dinner

Recipe

Palak Paneer

Palak Paneer is an Indian spinach dish with paneer, ginger, garlic, onion and spices. The spinach is blanched briefly and not boiled to death.

Ingredients

4 servings

Method

  1. 1

    Prepare spinach

    Blanch fresh spinach briefly and refresh under cold water or defrost frozen spinach. Then puree coarsely.

  2. 2

    Fry the paneer

    Brown the paneer cubes in a little ghee or oil until golden brown and remove.

  3. 3

    Cooking spice base

    Sauté onion, garlic, ginger and chilli. Fry cumin and garam masala briefly.

  4. 4

    Finish spinach sauce

    Add mashed spinach and simmer gently for 5 minutes. Stir in the cream and season with salt.

  5. 5

    Paneer

    Place the paneer in the sauce and heat only briefly. Finish with lemon juice.

Kitchen know-how

Tips for Palak Paneer

Cook spinach briefly

Spinach cooked too long loses colour and tastes dull. Blanching is enough.

Paneer gently fry

Brown the paneer until golden brown and add to the sauce at the end to keep it soft.

Fresh finish

A little lemon juice makes the creamy spinach sauce lighter and more balanced.

Variations

How to adapt this recipe

Tofu can replace paneer. Brown beforehand for more flavour and salt more vigorously.

Replace paneer with tofu and cream with coconut milk or cashew cream.

Nutrition per serving

480kcal
18.0 gCarbohydrates
25.0 gProtein
34.0 gFat

Values are estimates and may vary depending on the ingredients, brands, portion size and preparation method used.

Frequently asked questions

FAQ about Palak Paneer

Yes, frozen spinach works well. Defrost, squeeze and heat only briefly in the sauce.

Paneer is a mild Indian cream cheese that does not melt when heated and is easy to fry.

The spinach was cooked too long or not refreshed in cold water. Short blanching keeps the colour better.

Yes, with tofu instead of paneer and coconut milk or cashew cream instead of cream.

Keep cooking

Related recipes and topics

Similar recipes

55 min · Indian Paneer Butter Masala Paneer Butter Masala combines soft paneer with a mild, smooth sauce of tomatoes, cashew seeds, butter, cream and kasuri methi. 40 min · Italian Lemon risotto with peas and basil Creamy risotto gets a light summer note from lemon, peas and basil. Parmesan and cold butter only bind the rice grains after cooking. 45 min · Spring Wild garlic risotto with peas Onion and risotto rice are sweated through and cooked little by little with hot vegetable broth; peas, finely chopped wild garlic, butter and Parmesan cheese complete the rice. Stir in wild garlic only after cooking and let the risotto rest briefly away from the heat to preserve colour, fragrance and creamy bite. 45 min · Winter Beetroot risotto Cook the beetroot and risotto rice until creamy with onion and hot stock, before parmesan, balsamic vinegar and thyme round off the rice. Add the stock in portions and chop the beetroot finely or puree it in part to ensure a balanced colour and bite. 45 min · Halloween Pumpkin risotto with sage Roast the pumpkin cubes, then cook the risotto rice with onion and hot stock until creamy, and finish with sage, butter and Parmesan. Add the stock in portions only and mash part of the pumpkin so that the risotto binds without becoming mushy. 45 min · Autumn Mushroom risotto with Parmesan Mushrooms are roasted separately, while risotto rice with onion, white wine and hot stock is cooked gradually until creamy. Finally, the mushrooms are returned to the rice to remain browned; Parmesan is stirred away from the heat.