Recipe 7
Spinach panir (Palek Paneer)
For 2 persons
The basis of this delicious, very simple dish is spinach. Spinach itself is a very low calorie vegetable with over 100 healthy ingredients. It is characterized by many B vitamins, lots of vitamin C and other antioxidants (natural beta-carotene). It is thus a good supplier of provitamin A, from which our body can eventually produce vitamin A. The balanced amount and composition of potassium, calcium, magnesium and traces of iron make spinach all the healthier. Spinach is and has always been appreciated as a medicinal plant. Of particular note from a health perspective is that spinach is an excellent source of nitric oxide, which can protect the cardiovascular system and help the body’s own power plants (our mitochondria) work better. Spinach is healthy all around- something that has always been known in Ayurvedic cooking.
For this recipe you will need
200 g paneer (see our basic recipe of panir)
4 tbsp. ghee or clarified butter
500g spinach
1 onion
1 clove of garlic
½ tsp. ginger freshly grated
¼ tsp. coriander ground
¼ tsp. turmeric ground
¼ tsp. cumin ground
¼ tsp. chili powder
1 pinch salt
75 ml coconut cream or whipped cream
Preparation
We recommend using fresh spiant. However, frozen spinach leaves will also work. Wash and clean the spinach and chop it coarsely.
Peel and finely chop onions and garlic. Dice the panir and fry with 2 tbsp. ghee (or clarified butter) until golden brown. Remove the panir.
Now sauté the onion, garlic and the freshly grated ginger with the remaining fat also until golden brown. Mix in the spices and finally add the spinach and cook for about 10 minutes. Add half of the cream and the sautéed panir. Let everything simmer for another approx. 5 min. Season with salt and garnish with the remaining cream just before serving.
A variation of this dish:
Exchange spinach for the same amount of yellow, young chard or garden orache.