Saag usually refers to mixed greens, mainly spinach (palak), mustard greens, fenugreek leaves, bathua, kale leaves, etc. Some leaves are bitter in taste, like fenugreek leaves and mustard leaves, so use them with a good amount of spinach leaves. Spinach has a mild flavour, so we use it to balance this dish. Saag paneer is a dish consisting of palak ( spinach), mustard leaves, Fenugreek leaves and paneer (cottage cheese) cooked in thick cream base gravy. This dish is so delicious and easy to make. Everyone has their own way of making this dish; I also make it differently every time I cook it.
Table of Contents:
1. About the recipe
2. Ingredients
3. Step-by-step method
4. Tips
1. About the recipe
As winter approaches, green leafy vegetables are all over the vegetable section in stores. Varieties of greens are available with lots of nutrients. Today, I was planning to make palak paneer, but after seeing these greens in store, my mood changed, and now I am going to make Saag Paneer. I bought spinach with little mustard leaves and fenugreek leaves. Spinach should always be in more significant amounts because it is mild in flavour.
Saag paneer is a bright green curry with blanched green leaves and pureed as its base and paneer cubes cooked with tomatoes and spices. Adding cream at the end makes this dish richer and more tempting. You can replace cream with yoghurt or butter. This delicious Saag paneer goes very well with Paratha, Naan or Roti; You can also serve it with plain rice. Here, I am sharing a straightforward recipe with step-by-step photos.
Let’s Start Cooking!
Serving Suggestions: 3
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
2. Ingredients
- 300 gm fresh spinach leaves
- 200 gm mustard leaves
- 100 gm fenugreek leaves
- 200 gm paneer ( cottage cheese)
- 2 tomatoes roughly chopped
- 1 Onion sliced
- 1 tablespoon of ginger garlic paste
- 1 teaspoon of red chilli powder
- ½ teaspoon of turmeric powder
- ½ teaspoon of cumin powder
- ½ teaspoon of garam masala powder
- 1 teaspoon of coriander powder
- 1 teaspoon of carrom seeds
- 1 teaspoon of Fenugreek leaves (kasoori methi)
- 2 to 3 dry red chilli
- 2 tablespoons of fresh cream
- Oil + Butter
- Salt
3. Step by Step method:
BLANCH LEAVES
- Rinse leaves very well in running water 3 to 4 times.
- Boil 3 cups of water in a deep bottom pan, add ¼ teaspoon of salt to boiling water and switch off the flame. Now add leaves and leave for 2 minutes.
- After one minute, drain all the hot water and immediately add cold or iced water to the green leaves. This method helps in maintaining the green colour of the leaves. Allow the leaves to be in cold water for one minute.
- Now drain the cold water and transfer the leaves to a blender.
- Heat a pan or kadhai and put 1 tablespoon of oil.
- Now add sliced onions and saute for one minute.
- Now add chopped tomatoes and green chillies.
- Stir and saute tomatoes until they soften.
- Switch off the flame at this stage.
- In a blender, add this mixture to the blanched green leaves.
- Blend this mixture into a fine, puree-like texture.
Making Gravy
- In a kadhai or pan, put butter and oil mix. You can use only butter or only oil option too.
- Now add carrom seeds and dry red chilli in medium hot oil.
- Fry spices for a few seconds.
- Add ginger garlic paste at this stage and all the dry spices except Fenugreek leaves or kasoori methi.
- Mix well.
- Add the green puree to the pan.
- Mix well.
- If you want a thinner consistency, you can add a little water at this stage.
- Simmer the gravy for 5 to 6 minutes or until gravy is cooked.
- Add salt as required. The gravy will thicken by now.
- Stir again and add paneer cubes to the gravy.
- You can also opt to fry the paneer in a bit of oil before adding it to the gravy.
- Mix gently and cook on low flame for 3 to 4 minutes.
- Add cream and Fenugreek leaves ( kasoori methi).
Note: Before adding Fenugreek leaves, crush them between your palms. This process will release more flavour to the gravy.
- While serving, you can add cream or butter on top of it.
- Stir and serve hot Saag paneer with Roti, Naan, Paratha or Tandoori roti. It also goes very well with Rice, Zeera rice, Ghee rice or Pulao.
- While serving, you can add cream or butter on top of it. Enjoy 🙂
4. Tips
- Use fresh green leaves. Remove the stem from the leaves if they are ropy. If you don’t have a variety of leaves, use only spinach.
- Blanching of leaves is recommended for this recipe. It will remove the raw taste and bitterness of spinach mustard and fenugreek leaves. Blanching also helps in maintaining the green colour of the leaves.
- For the best gravy colour, use garam masala in small quantities and prevent overcooking of the leaves.
- Use fresh and good-quality paneer for this recipe, as it is the key ingredient of the dish.
- If you use frozen paneer, soak it in warm water for 10 minutes before cooking. Drain and use. This helps to keep it soft.
- You can use tofu or corn instead of paneer for this dish.
