PALAK PANEER

Paneer is a popular cheese used in traditional South Asian cuisines. It's use is pretty common in Nepal, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

It's versatility may be the reason for my love for it. There are a variety of dishes we can prepare  with it..... in curries, pakoras, kheer, sandesh, vegetarian kebabs and the list goes on.

To prepare paneer, food acid (lemon juice or vinegar or citric acid ) is added to the hot milk to separate the curd from the whey. The curd is then drained through a clean white cloth and the excess water is pressed out. The cottage cheese /  paneer is dipped in chilled water for 2-3 hours to give it a good texture and appearance. Today, I used a store bought paneer.

I and the son are hardcore paneer lovers, it is a must have almost every week. The husband does not love it but has it with roti / parathas! Many recipes are being done with it which are both healthy and tasty, This  self proclaimed cook who is lazy, uses store bought paneer for most of her dishes with it. Hi folks, instead of scolding me, please consider my time management skills.

Jokes apart, I believe, on Mondays we should go easy on our stomach and honour the variety of vegetables available or just have a vegetarian dish. What can be a better alternative for fish and meat other than Paneer for a desi?

I wished to share the Palak Paneer recipe today, a popular North Indian cuisine. I followed Masterchef Sanjeev Kapoor's Palak Panner recipe.

INGREDIENTS :

Paneer : 200 gm
Spinach ( Palak ) : 250 gm
Chopped Onion : 1/2 coffee mug

Chopped Garlic : 1 tsp
Chopped Garlic #cGarlic paste : 1 tsp
Garam Masala powder : 1/4 th tsp
Green Chillies : 2
Cumin Seeds: 2 pinches.
Oil : 2 table spoon

Butter : 1 tbsp
Salt : As per requirement
Garnish with fresh cream.... I did not!

PROCEDURE : 

Roughly chop the spinach discarding the roots. Blanch them. In your blender, put the spinach and green chillies together and get a smooth paste. Chop the onion & garlic, wash and keep aside.

Cut paneer into cubes and marinate with salt. 

Heat oil in a wok. Add the cumin seeds. When the seeds splutter, add the chopped onion and garlic, stir fry until the raw smell goes. 

Pour the spinach paste. Saute well at low heat because we need to retain the green colour of the spinach. 

Add a small cup of water, salt as required and the garam masala powder. Mix well. Add the paneer pieces. Stir very carefully for a minute. See that the paneer pieces do not break. Add the butter and stir.

Switch off the gas stove. It is done.

If you wish, you can add 1 table spoon of fresh cream to it. It enhances the taste of the dish.

Serve hot with jeera rice , naan, paratha, chapati.