PALAK PANEER

Palak Paneer is a healthy curry of spinach (palak), fragrant Indian spices and cottage cheese (paneer). It was traditionally a North Indian winter dish but now all year through it is available in most parts of the country's restaurant menu card, and we also cook this at home not only during winter, but almost through out the year. It is so easy to cook and a favorite dish to many of us. 

Ingredients:

1. Spinach 350 grams 
2. Paneer - 200 gram
3. Garlic cloves finely chopped - 3
4. Ginger - 1" finely chopped
5. Green chilli - 2-3 as per your taste
6. Oil or Ghee - 2 tsp
7. Onion - 1 large (finely chopped)
8. Tomato - 1 (finely chopped)
9. Salt to taste
10. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
11. Garam masala powder - 1/2 tsp
12. Cumin seeds - 1/2 tea spoon
13. Red dry chilli - 1 
14. Red chilli powder - 1/2 tsp or as per taste

Process: 

1. To a pot of boiling water, add little salt and then spinach leaves to it for about 2 to 3 minutes until wilted. Take them out and put them in ice cold water. In a blender, add the spinach and make a smooth paste and set aside.

2. Heat a pan on medium heat. Once hot, add oil or ghee, add the dry red chilli and then add the cumin seeds, green chili, chopped garlic and chopped ginger. Sauté for few minutes until it starts changing color, Then add the chopped onions and tomatoes. Cook the onion for 2 to 3 minutes until soft and translucent.

3. Add in the prepared spinach puree and mix. Also add around 1/2 cup water at the point. Once the spinach is cooked, add the garam masala, turmeric powder, red chilli powder and salt. Mix and cook for 1 minute. If you like you can add 1/2 tea spoon sugar also and at last 1/2 tea spoon ghee (optional). Then add paneer pieces and mix well, let the curry simmer for 2-3 minutes. 

Note : You can make this on full vegetarian way as well, without garlic and onion. Same process to follow. 

PALAK PANEER KOFTA

This Palak Paneer Kofta recipe has many flavors. This is a signature recipe of Celebrity chef Sanjeev Kapoor and also known as Sham Savera. This recipe has less oil and made without butter or cream, but you can use some fresh cream for garnishing if you wish to. My this recipe is roughly adapted from Sanjeev Kapoor's sham savera recipe, here the koftas are made little bit differently. Also you can use various types of gravies of your choice to dunk these koftas. 

Ingredients :

For Palak Koftas

1. Spinach - 200 gram

2. Green chilli - 2

3. Ginger - 1 tsp (finely chopped)

4. Cornflour - 2-3 tsp

5. Salt to taste

6. Garam masala powder - 1/2 tea spoon

For Paneer stuffing

1. Paneer - 100 gram

2. Rice flour / cornflour - 2 tsp

3. Cashew nuts - 1 tsp (roughly powdered)

4. Raisin - 1 tsp

5. Salt - a pinch

6. Sugar - 1/2 tea spoon

7. Garam masala - 1/3 tea spoon

8. Saffron strands -5-6 (optional)

For the Gravy

1. Tomato - 1 big

2. Onions - 2 big (you can skip this if you are a vegetarian, I have used onions)

3. Green chillies - 2 (finely chopped)

4. Bay leaf - 2

5. Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp

6. Green cardamom - 3-4

7. Cinnamon - 1/2 inch stick

8. Ginger (finely chopped) - 1/2 tsp

9. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tea spoon

10. Cumin powder  - 1/2 tea spoon

11. Coriander powder  - 1/2 tea spoon

12. Garam masala powder  - 1/2 tea spoon

13. Salt - to taste

14. Sugar - 1/2 tea spoon

15. Gloves - 3-4

16. Cashew - roughly chopped - 1 tsp

17. Kashmiri red chilli powder - 1/2 tea spoon

Process :

For making Palak Koftas

1. Wash and rinse spinach leaves very well in water using a colander. Roughly chop them and boil them with water for about 2 minutes. Once done, rinse transfer them to cold water adding some ice cubes, so that the color of spinach stays intact. Rinse them properly and put in a grinder jar along with chilli and ginger. Grind a smooth puree without adding any water.

2. Take the puree in a mixing bowl, and add salt and garam masala and mix well. Add cornflour to this mixture. If the mixture looks loose and not thick, then you can add some more cornflour until the dough becomes smooth. Let the mixture come to room temperature and then cover and refrigerate it for 20-30 minutes.

For making Paneer stuffing for Palak Koftas

1. Grate the paneer in a bowl, add rice floor or cornflour whichever you are using (I have used rice flour), add garam masala, roughly powdered cashew, raisins, salt, sugar and saffron strands (if you are using) and mix well.

2. Now take some portion of the paneer in your palms and make small balls of the same. Cover them and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

3. Take out the spinach mixture from the fridge. From this mixture, make the same number of balls you have made with the paneer stuffing. Flatten them and keep aside. 

4. Take each spinach mixture balls and flatten it more, then place the paneer ball in the center, bring the edges on top, join the edges and roll gently to a smooth kofta ball. Make all the paneer palak koftas this way.

5. Sprinkle some rice flour in a plate, coat each kofta evenly with the flour and dust off the excess flour. Place little oil on your palms, coat the koftas with the oil and place them in a plate, cover them and refrigerate for 25-30 minutes.

For Frying the Palak Koftas

1. Add oil in a pan for deep frying, use oil as required. Let the oil become medium hot, then gently place the kofta in the medium hot oil.  Do not fry more than 3 koftas at a time. Turn each kofta gently when the base is light golden and crisp. Turn over again and continue to fry till the outer crust looks crisp and golden. Fry all the koftas for 4-5 minutes on medium flame. 

2. Remove them from flame and this way fry remaining batches of palak kofta. Place on kitchen paper towels. You can simple serve them as a snack with evening tea also.

For making the Gravy

1. In a pan, heat 2 tsp oil, add bay leaf, cinnamon, cardamoms, cloves, cumin seeds and fry till the spices splutter and become aromatic. Add chopped onions and saute onions till they become translucent. Then add ginger, chopped green chillies, chopped tomatoes. Mix and saute for 2 minutes. 

2. Add the cashew and kashmiri red chilli powder and all other powder spices, mix very well adding a half cup of water. Mix and simmer on medium-low flame till the tomatoes soften. Then switch off the flame and let the mixture cool down. Once the mixture comes to room temperature, put it on a grinder jar, dont forget to remove the bay leaf before grinding. Blend to a smooth paste. Do not add any water while grinding. 

3. In the same frying pan, add 1/2 spoon oil and transfer this mixture paste along with 1/2 cup of water. If you need medium consistency gravy, you can add more water. Add salt, sugar as per your taste. Mix everything well and on a low flame allow the gravy to get cooked properly. Stir at intervals. Once the gravy is done, switch off the flame.

While serving the Palak Paneer kofta, pour the hot gravy in a serving bowl. Slice the kofta balls into two halves and gently place them in the gravy. You can garnish the bowl with some fresh cream or coriander leaves, if you want to.

PALAK EGG CURRY

This is a recipe I want to eat every day, inspired by Palak Paneer, a rich, addictive Indian dish made with any number of greens, usually spinach, smudged with spices, and dotted with paneer. I have taken the idea, choosing eggs over paneer. This egg curry recipe is wholesome, nutritious and finger-licking good. You can also add fresh cream to change the color of the gravy or to garnish.

Do you need more reason to cook this?

Ingredients:

For palak paste:

1. Palak / Spinach - 1 bunch
2. Water - 2 cup
3. Ginger - 1 inch
4. Garlic 1 clove
5. Green chilli - 2-3
Other ingredients:

1. Oil - 3 tsp
2. Egg - 4
3. Butter - 1 tsp
4. Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
5. Cinnamon - 1 stick
6. Cloves - 3
7. Cardamom - 2 pod
8. Bay leaf - 1
9. Onion - 1 finely chopped
10. Tomato - 1 finely chopped
11. Water - 1/2 cup
12. Salt to taste
13. Garam masala powder - 1/2 tsp
14. Cream - 1 tsp (optional)

Process:

1. Take all the ingredients for making the palak paste and blend to smooth paste without adding water.
2. In a frying pan, heat oil and fry the boiled eggs, you can also use them without frying as per your choice. Fry them till golden and keep aside.
3. In the same pan, heat oil and butter and roast the spices till it turns aromatic. Add onion and saute till it turns golden brown. Additionally, add tomato and saute till the tomatoes turn soft and mushy. 
4. Now add the prepared palak paste, little water and salt. Mix well adjusting the consistency as required.
5. Add fried eggs and mix well, simmer for 5 minutes. Add garam masala powder before turning off the gas. Garnish with fresh cream.

Serve hot Palak Egg curry with roti or naan.

Try it now and share your feedback