Palak Paneer is a popular Indian dish and a great way to include greens in our diet. It is made of soft Paneer cubes in a delicious spinach sauce without onion and garlic.
The recipe is straightforward and requires the ingredients readily available in our pantry. Palak Paneer is satisfying, wholesome, creamy, and very delicious.
About Palak Paneer
Spinach is my favorite among other greens. I especially love baby spinach, and so I try to add spinach to my recipes wherever and whenever possible.
So obviously, Palak Paneer is one of my favorite curry dishes. I still have a childhood memory of when I tasted Palak Paneer for the first time in a restaurant. And I was instantly in love with this dish.
My mom was not used to cooking spinach often (due to some religious reasons), so I learned to make Palak Paneer on my own.
Now, my son also loves Palak Paneer, and so I often make this dish. This is a great way to add greens to our menu and feed the family.
There are various versions of making the Palak Paneer recipe. Everyone has their own style of making it, and I even make it in several different ways, depending on what is available in my pantry.
But this recipe, which I am sharing here, is my family favorite and the most delicious one. I love this Palak Paneer without onion and garlic recipe, which is flavorful with a slightly prominent ginger taste.
Spinach does not have a strong taste; it has a mild herb-like earthy taste. After cooking, it will be slightly acidic and sometimes may tend to go a little bitter. So, we need to mask the spinach dish with other ingredients to make it tasty and flavorful.
The most common way is to use a lot of garlic with spinach. But since we don’t eat garlic and this is no onion, no garlic recipe, I have generously used ginger. Ginger doesn’t overpower the dish; instead, it makes the curry flavorful and enhances the earthy taste of spinach.
Ingredients
- Palak (Spinach): This is Palak Paneer, so Palak or spinach is the star ingredient of the dish. Always make sure to use fresh and tender spinach leaves for this recipe. Do not use wilted, hard, or very dark leaves; it may make the curry bitter and unpleasant. I always discard the stems, but if they are very tender and delicate, use them if you prefer.
- Paneer: In this recipe, you can add either less or more Paneer as you desire. To make it kids friendly, we can add more Paneer cubes. Use fresh and soft paneer to make Palak Paneer. Making Paneer at home is not difficult at all. You can check my Homemade Paneer recipe to make it at home.
- Green Chili: I wouldn’t say I like to use red chili powder in this dish. So I always use green chilis for spiciness. Two green chilis make the dish moderately spicy. Add less or more according to your taste.
- Ginger: Ginger is an essential ingredient for this recipe. It enhances the flavor of spinach and gives a vibrant taste to the dish. If you don’t like the ginger flavor, add a little less than mentioned in the recipe, but I will recommend not to skip it.
- Garam Masala: I have used this homemade Punjabi Garam Masala in this recipe, and it is moderately spicy. So 1 teaspoon of it doesn’t make the dish too spicy. But you can add it less or more as per your preference; however, avoid adding too much Garam Masala.
- Tomato: I have used only one large tomato to make Palak Paneer. Tomato balances the earthy taste of spinach as well as provides the necessary volume to the gravy. Using more tomatoes will change the color of the dish, and it will also make it tangier.
- Milk: I have added low-fat milk to the Palak Paneer. Generally, in this recipe, heavy cream is used to make the dish creamy and rich. But since I am using cashews, there is no need to use cream. Milk will thin the gravy; however, we can also use water instead of milk. But I will highly recommend using milk as it tastes much better than adding water. If you want to avoid milk, you can also use two tablespoon of whisked yogurt instead of milk. Or non-dairy milk like cashew or almond milk can also be used.
- Cashews: Cashews make the Palak Paneer creamy, rich and thick. After using cashews, we don’t need to use cream in this recipe. If you don’t want to use cashews, keep reading below to find out how to replace cashews in the recipe.
How To Substitute Cashews
For me, cashews are very important in some curries, where we want smooth, creamy, and rich texture. In most curry recipes, onions are used to provide flavor and give volume and thickness to the dish.
But when we make curries without onion and garlic, all we have left is tomatoes. If we use only tomatoes, the curry will be thin, tangy, and not as delicious as it should be.
And in that case, we can use cashews to provide the necessary volume and balance the tanginess of tomatoes. Also, it makes the dish creamy, rich, and thick.
Still, if you do not want to use cashews, there are other options to substitute them, as mentioned below.
Heavy or Low-Fat Cream: Skip the cashews in the gravy. Instead, add cream in the final stage of making Palak Paneer before adding crushed fenugreek leaves. Add 3-4 tablespoon of cream to make the curry rich and creamy.
Plain Yogurt: Use full-fat or Greek yogurt in the recipe instead of cashews. Whisk the yogurt before adding it to the dish. Add ¼ cups of whisked yogurt before adding crushed fenugreek leaves. Make sure to mix well after adding yogurt.
Almonds: Instead of cashews, we can use blanched almonds in the recipe. Simply take the same quantity of almonds and use them in the recipe in place of cashews.
Blanching The Spinach
- Blanching is the perfect technique to cook spinach. Do not pressure cook the spinach, or do not boil it for a more extended period of time.
- Cooking the spinach for longer will result in the loss of nutrients and color. So in blanching, we add spinach leaves into boiling water and blanch it for 45 seconds to a minute only.
- Then, immediately remove it from the boiling water and place it into a bowl of ice cubes or ice water. Putting it into ice-cold water will retain the color of spinach and will also prevent further cooking.
- Blanching the spinach to make this dish is essential, and make sure not to overcook the spinach.
Step by Step Directions
For The Spinach Puree
- Remove the stems from the spinach. If the stems are very tender, and if you prefer, you can keep them.
- I always discard the stems and use only spinach leaves.
- Rinse the spinach thoroughly with running water, and make sure to remove any dirt or sand from the leaves.
- Bring 4 cups of water to boil in a large pot. Once the water starts boiling, add spinach leaves and cook for a minute. Then turn off the heat.
- Take ice cubes (or cold water with some ice cubes) in a medium bowl. Remove spinach from the pot and place it immediately in the bowl of ice.
- Placing the spinach into an ice bowl will retain the color and will stop further cooking of spinach.
- Allow the spinach to cool down for a few minutes, and then remove the ice water.
- Take spinach leaves (no need to squeeze the spinach leaves) into a blender jar and add fresh coriander leaves. There is no need to add water while grinding.
- Blend the spinach and coriander leaves into a smooth spinach or Palak puree and set aside.
For The Gravy
- Heat oil in a pan and add green chilis and ginger. Saute for a minute.
- Add asafoetida and cashews, cook for a minute or until cashews are lightly golden.
- Then, add tomatoes and mix well. Continue cooking the mixture until the tomatoes are soft and pulpy.
- Turn off the heat and let the mixture cool down a bit.
- Take it into a blender jar and blend it into a smooth puree.
For The Palak Paneer
- Pour the prepared tomato and cashew puree into the same pan. Turn on the heat and bring the gravy to a boil.
- Add a prepared spinach puree and mix well. Continue cooking for two minutes.
- Now add turmeric powder, coriander powder, cumin powder, and Garam Masala powder. Mix well and cook for two minutes.
- Add paneer cubes, milk, and salt to taste.
- Mix thoroughly, turn the heat on low and cover the pan with a lid.
- Cook Palak Paneer for 5 minutes, and then remove the lid.
- Add dried fenugreek leaves and lime juice. Mix well and turn off the heat.
- Transfer the Palak Paneer into a serving bowl.
Garnishing Suggestions
- Garnish the bowl of Palak Paneer with butter or a tablespoon of cream.
- We can also garnish it with some chopped ginger and lime wedges.
Serving Suggestions
- We love Palak Paneer with Naan. And it also goes well with Roti or Paratha.
- You can serve Palak Paneer with Whole Wheat Kulcha (No Yeast) / Kulcha On Tawa.
- The other best way is to serve it with steamed Basmati Rice or Jeera Rice.
More Spinach Recipes
You May Like More Curries
- Palak Corn (No Onion No Garlic) / Spinach and Corn Curry
- Matar Paneer No Onion No Garlic
- Rajma Masala (No Onion No Garlic) / Kidney Bean Curry
- Sweet Corn Curry (No Onion No Garlic)
- Methi Malai Paneer (No Onion No Garlic)
Recipe Card
Palak Paneer No Onion No Garlic / Palak Paneer Recipe
Ingredients
For Spinach Puree:
- 2 medium bunches of spinach or 300gms of spinach leaves
- ½ Cup fresh coriander leaves
For Gravy:
- 1 tablespoon oil or butter
- 2 Green chilis roughly chopped
- 1 – 1½ inch ginger peeled and roughly chopped
- ¼ teaspoon asafoetida / Hing ((Hing))
- 10 Cashews
- 1 Large tomato
For Palak Paneer:
Instructions
For Spinach Puree:
- Remove the stems from the spinach. If the stems are very tender, and if you prefer, you can keep them. I always discard the stems and use only spinach leaves.
- Rinse the spinach thoroughly with running water, and make sure to remove any dirt or sand from the leaves.
- Bring 4 cups of water to boil in a large pot. Once the water starts boiling, add spinach leaves and cook for a minute. Then turn off the heat.
- Take ice cubes (or cold water with some ice cubes) in a medium bowl. Remove spinach with the tong or a slotted spoon from the pot and place it immediately in the bowl of ice. Placing the spinach into an ice bowl will retain the color and will stop further cooking of spinach.
- Allow the spinach to cool down for a few minutes, and then remove the ice water. Take spinach leaves (no need to squeeze the spinach leaves) into a blender jar and add fresh coriander leaves.
- Blend the spinach and coriander leaves into a smooth spinach or Palak puree, set aside.
For The Gravy:
- Heat oil in a pan and add green chilis and ginger. Saute for a minute.
- Add asafoetida and cashews, cook for a minute or until cashews are lightly golden.
- Add tomatoes and mix well. Continue cooking the mixture until tomatoes are soft and pulpy.
- Turn off the heat and let the mixture cool down a bit.
- Take it into a blender jar and blend it into a smooth puree.
For Palak Paneer:
- Take a prepared tomato and cashew puree into the same pan. Turn on the heat and bring the gravy to a boil.
- Add a prepared spinach puree and mix well. Continue cooking for two minutes.
- Now add turmeric powder, coriander powder, cumin powder, and Garam Masala powder. Mix well and cook for two minutes.
- Add paneer cubes, milk, and salt to taste. Mix thoroughly, turn the heat on low and, cover the pan with a lid.
- Cook Palak Paneer for 5 minutes, and remove the lid.
- Add dried fenugreek leaves and lime juice. Mix well and turn off the heat.
- Transfer the Palak Paneer into a serving bowl.
Garnishing Suggestions:
- Garnish the bowl of Palak Paneer with butter or a tablespoon of cream.
- We can also garnish it with some chopped ginger and lime wedges.
Serving Suggestions:
- We love Palak Paneer with Naan. And it also goes well with Roti or Paratha.
- The other best way is to serve with steamed Basmati Rice or Jeera Rice.
Notes
- Palak: Choose fresh and tender spinach leaves. If stems are very delicate, and if you prefer, you can keep them; otherwise, discard the stems and use only leaves.
- Paneer: Make sure that Paneer is also fresh and soft. If you have kept Paneer in the fridge, bring it to room temperature before adding it to the Palak puree. The other way to soften the Paneer is to place it in a Ziploc bag or container and place it in hot water for 10-15 minutes.
- Cashews: If you don’t want to use cashews, skip it from the recipe. But make sure to use 3-4 tablespoon of cream. Add cream just before adding the fenugreek leaves and mix well. The other options are to use yogurt or blanched almonds.
- Blanching: Blanching is very important to retain the color and nutrients of the spinach. Do not overcook or pressure cook the spinach leaves. If Palak is soft and tender, blanching for a minute is enough. But if your spinach is not too fresh and tender and leaves are very big, blanch them for 2-3 minutes.
Kumar om says
Lovely recipe Jigna. I have tried many many of your recipes and they all turn out lovely! My kids used to love only restaurant North Indian dishes. Being a South Indian, I could never capture that. But with your recipes, my kids are enjoying home food 😊 Thank you!!
Om Kumar
Jigna says
Hi, thank you so much for your feedback. I am glad that your kids are enjoying it.
My son also loves to have North Indian dishes more than Gujarati!😊
Namita says
Great recipe, thanks Jigna
Jigna says
Thank you so much, Namita!