Adding leafy green vegetables to our diet is the easiest way to add vitamins and minerals to our body. Here is an easy way to prepare palak paneer. Palak means Spinach and paneer means cottage cheese. Fresh spinach is used here which is really healthy. I had never heard of this dish in my childhood days. Thanks to the internet, we learn a lot from each other, and so this North Indian dish made its way to South Indian homes. I make it in a different way, use just few ingredients for a nice and smooth spinach gravy with paneer and peas.
Ingredients:
1bunch Palak leaves
½ cup frozen green peas
½ tsp cumin or jeera
2-3 small garlic cloves
small onion chopped
1″ ginger
1or 2 green chilli
salt to taste
2 tsp oil
A small bunch of coriander leaves
½ tsp garam masala
200 gms paneer
Wash the palak well in a big bowl of water and rinse it many times. Remove the water from the leaves, cut finely and keep aside.
Heat a sauce pan with 2 tsp oil. Add jeera, when it splutters add garlic, onion, ginger, green chilli and fry for a minute.
Next add the chopped palak and stir fry it for a minute, close the lid and let it cook just until its leaves are wilted or softened.
Allow this to cool. Once cold blend this to a smooth paste along with coriander leaves.
Wash the blender twice, each time with quarter cup water and pour it into the Palak purée.
Meanwhile heat a frying pan with 1 tsp oil. Fry the paneer lightly on both sides. Once cool cut them into small cubes. Fry the peas in the same pan for two minutes.
Pour the spinach puree back into the sauce pan, add peas, salt and let it cook for two minutes, add paneer cubes and let it boil for a minute. Mix garam masala and put off the flame.
Palak Paneer is ready. You can have this with chapati
Lyn's Kitchen 