Palak Paneer or Cottage Cheese in Spinach is a winter special dish. It is a very tasty and healthy dish very popular in North India.
Ingredients
- Spinach – 1/2 kilogram
- cottage cheese – 250 grams
- Tomato – 2 piece
- Ginger – 1 inch
- Green chili – 1 piece
- Asafoetida – ¼ teaspoon
- Cumin seeds – ¼ teaspoon
- Whole red chili – 1 piece
- Cumin Powder – 1/2 teaspoon
- Red chili Powder – 1/4 teaspoon
- Turmeric Powder- ¼ teaspoon
- Chat Masala – 1/2 teaspoon
- Garam Masala – 1/2 teaspoon
- Kasuri Methi – 1/4teaspoon
- Salt – To taste
- Ghee – 2 teaspoon
- Oil – 2 teaspoon
Procedure
Palak preparation
- Cut palak into medium sized pieces and do not skip the shoots.
- Wash the cut palak very carefully till it is absolutely clean.
- This is a very important step and not to be missed.
- Boil water in a open large vessel and put the cut Palak into it and cover and cook for 15 minutes and remove from flame.
- Spread the palak after taking it out from water into a large plate so that it cools down quickly.
- Make a smooth paste of it when it eventually cools down after 10-15 minutes.
- Make a paste of tomatoes and ginger and green chili and keep aside.
Paneer Preparation
- Cut the paneer into small cubes and put it into a kadhai.
- Let the water seep out of it when you add salt to it.
- Slowly tumble it around softly so that it does not break.
- To it add ghee, chat masala and red chili powder.
- Take it out of kadhai and keep aside.
Curry Preparation
- Now add oil to the kadhai and temper with asafetida, cumin seeds and whole red chili.
- Add the tomato, ginger and green chili paste.
- Sauté till oil seeps out.
- Now add coriander powder, turmeric powder and red chili powder.
- Cook well.
- Add Kasuri methi.
- To this mixture well cooked add palak paste.
- Cook it well for 10 minutes. Now add the fried paneer cubes.
- Mix well and adjust the water and salt content.
- Continue cooking and add chat masala and Garam masala on top.
- Switch off the flame after cooking it covered for 5- 10 more minute.
- This allows the flavour to enter the paneer cubes.
Palak Paneer is ready to eat with Roti, Parantha, Puri or Rice.
Happy Cooking!!