Palak Paneer
Spinach simmered, blitzed silky, and finished with seared paneer cubes and a hot tadka.
Ingredients
- 500 g Spinach
- 250 g Paneer
- 1 Onion
- 1 Tomato
- 20 g Ginger
- 4 cloves Garlic
- 2 Green chili
- 1 tsp Cumin seeds
- 1 tsp Kashmiri chili powder
- 1 tsp Ground coriander
- ½ tsp Garam masala
- 60 ml Heavy cream
- 2 tbsp Ghee
- 1 tbsp Neutral oil
- 1 tsp Salt
- 240 g Basmati rice
- 1 tsp Kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves) (optional)
- ½ Lime (optional)
Method
- Rinse the basmati rice until the water runs clear, then cook it in twice its volume of water, covered, until tender and the water is absorbed, about 15 minutes.
- Bring a saucepan of water to a boil. Blanch the spinach 90 seconds until vibrant, then plunge into ice water.
- Drain the spinach hard, then blitz in the blender with 1 slit green chili until smooth (a few flecks OK).
- Cube the paneer into 2 cm pieces. Mince the onion, ginger, garlic. Slit the remaining chili. Chop the tomato fine.
- Heat the oil in the skillet over medium-high. Sear the paneer cubes 90 seconds per side until golden. Lift onto a plate.
- In the same pan, melt a little ghee over medium heat. Toss in the cumin seeds and let them crackle, about 15 seconds.
- Add onion and cook 8 minutes until golden. Stir in ginger, garlic, and slit chili and cook 2 minutes more.
- Stir in kashmiri chili, coriander powder, and a splash of water. Add tomato and salt. Cook 5 minutes until soft and oil splits.
- Pour in the spinach purée with a splash of water. Simmer gently 5 minutes (lid ajar — splatters everywhere).
- Slide in the paneer. Warm 2 minutes only (longer turns it rubbery).
- Off heat, stir in cream and garam masala. Crush the kasuri methi between your palms over the pot.
- Squeeze over the lime. Serve with roti or rice.
Tap “Start cooking” for live timers that flag what to get ahead on while something simmers.
About Palak Paneer
Palak paneer is a North Indian curry of pureed spinach studded with cubes of paneer, the fresh, unaged cheese that holds its shape in the sauce and gives the dish its heft. It is one of the most beloved vegetarian dishes of Punjabi cooking, and a well-made version is silky and deep green rather than dull or bitter, with the spinach tasting bright and fresh instead of overcooked. The gravy is warmed with cumin, ground coriander, Kashmiri chili for color over heat, and garam masala, then rounded out with cream and a crushed pinch of kasuri methi, whose dried-fenugreek aroma is one of the flavors that makes the dish smell unmistakably like itself. It is savory, gently spiced, and comforting rather than fiery.
The technique here is what keeps the green vivid: the spinach is blanched for just ninety seconds and shocked in ice water before being blitzed, which locks in its color and stops it stewing into something drab. The paneer is seared golden on its own first so it has a little browned edge and doesn't disappear into the sauce, and a hot tadka of cumin crackled in ghee is used to bloom the aromatics and spices. Marked here as vegan-adaptable, it swaps easily by using oil and a plant cream in place of ghee and dairy. Serve it with warm roti, naan, or plain rice and a squeeze of lime, which brightens the whole plate.
Palak Paneer: frequently asked questions
How many calories are in Palak Paneer?
A serving has about 625 calories — 21.4g protein, 64.1g carbs, 32.5g fat, 6g fiber. Figures are estimated from the ingredient amounts and will shift with your portions and brands.
Is Palak Paneer gluten-free?
Based on its ingredients, Palak Paneer has no gluten-containing components, so it's naturally gluten-free — as always, check that any packaged ingredients you use are certified gluten-free to be safe.
Is Palak Paneer dairy-free?
Not as written — it uses Paneer, Heavy cream, Ghee. Swapping those for a plant-based alternative makes it dairy-free.
How long does Palak Paneer take to make?
About 40 minutes start to finish, but only around 32 of those are hands-on — the rest is largely unattended cooking time you can step away from. In the Homecooked app the timers and parallel steps are sequenced for you so the hands-on part feels even shorter.
Do I need every ingredient to make Palak Paneer?
The core ingredients are essential, but you can leave out kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves), lime — they're optional and mainly there for extra flavor or finish.
How many servings does Palak Paneer make?
This recipe makes 4 servings. In the app you can scale it up or down and the ingredient amounts adjust automatically.