Saag Paneer

How to use up some CSA spinach
1h indian vegetarian

We adapted this recipe from our CSA delivery. It claims to be from The Best of Lord Krishna’s Cuisuine by Yamuna Devi. It was originally for lamb, not paneer.

Ingredients

  • 1 lb. of paneer, cut into 1/4" cubes
  • 2 - 3 lbs. spinach
  • 1 onion, grated on a box grater (or just chopped)
  • 4 T ghee (or butter and oil mixed)
  • 1 t brown mustard seed
  • 1/8 t asafetida (I used granulated garlic)
  • 1/8 t cayenne
  • 1/2 t ground coriander
  • 1/4 t ground black pepper
  • 1/8 t grated nutmeg
  • 1/4 t turmeric
  • 1 t ground cumin
  • 3 T water
  • 3 T cream (or substitute sour cream or plain yogurt)
  • 2 t salt

Process

  1. Prepare Vegetables Wash spinach and strip leaves off stems. Chop coarsely. Grate onion.

  2. Prepare Spice Mixture Combine cayenne, coriander, black pepper, nutmeg, turmeric, and cumin in a small bowl, add water, and stir well.

  3. Melt the butter and oil (or ghee) in a 5-qt pan over moderate heat. Add mustard seed and cook until it starts to pop. Add asafetida and let it sizzle, then add spice mixure and onion. Fry for about 2 minutes.

  4. Add spinach to pan, sprinkle with 1 t salt. Cover and reduce heat. Stir occasionally until spinach is bright green and very wilted. Add water as necessary. Saag can now be removed from heat and sit, if necesary.

  5. Meanwhile develop a light brown crust on paneer by frying in a separate pan with a little bit of oil on medium heat. Turn occasionally to brown a couple sides on each cube.

  6. Process spinach mixture in food processor. Return to pan with chopped, browned paneer. Stir in cream and warm until heated through. Season to taste with salt. Serve over rice.

Impressions

This was very good. Maybe the best saag we’ve made at home. I used yogurt the first time and don’t particularly like the tang. It would be nice to try with cream or sour cream in the future.