Palak paneer, a vegetarian recipe from India

Name: Palak paneer
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: India
Ingredients: 500 g fresh spinach, stems removed; 250 g paneer, in 2 cm cubes; 1 onion, finely chopped; 3 garlic cloves; 3 cm piece of ginger; 2 green chillies; 1 tsp cumin seeds; 1 tsp garam masala; ½ tsp ground turmeric; 80 ml single cream; 3 tbsp ghee or oil; 1 tsp salt

Palak paneer

Local name: पालक पनीर

This palak paneer recipe is a deep green spinach purée scented with ginger and garam masala, holding cubes of softly browned paneer.

Published on 6 February 2026·Updated on 26 September 2026

Gluten-free#spinach#paneer#creamy#curry#indian

Method

Blanch the spinach for 90 seconds in boiling salted water, drain and plunge straight into iced water to hold the colour.
Squeeze it firmly dry and blend with one green chilli and two tablespoons of water into a not-quite-smooth purée.
Brown the paneer cubes for 2 minutes a side in a tablespoon of ghee, then rest them in a bowl of warm salted water.
In the same pan, heat the remaining ghee and crackle the cumin seeds for 20 seconds.
Add the onion and let it turn golden over 6 minutes, then the chopped garlic, ginger and second chilli for 2 minutes more.
Stir in the turmeric, garam masala and spinach purée, season, and simmer for just 5 minutes, partly covered.
Add the cream and the drained paneer, warm through for 2 minutes without boiling, and serve with rice, or flatbread if you are not avoiding gluten.

Don’t cook the spinach long after blending: past five minutes the green turns khaki. Resting the paneer in warm salted water keeps it tender rather than rubbery.

The techniques this recipe uses

Drain and rinse
Canning liquid clouds a sauce and salts it blind: rinse until the water runs clear.

Frequently asked questions

Why does my spinach turn a dull khaki?

The green is lost to long cooking after blending: five minutes of simmering is plenty, no more. The ice-water plunge straight after blanching is the other decisive step, since it stops the cooking dead and sets the colour.

How do I avoid rubbery paneer?

Paneer toughens if it is fried too long or boiled in the sauce. Two minutes a side is enough, then the warm salted water bath rehydrates it and keeps it soft. At the end, reheat it gently and never let the sauce boil.

How can I make this vegan?

Use oil instead of ghee, a plant cream instead of dairy cream, and firm tofu cubes, drained and browned the same way, instead of paneer. Tofu benefits a lot from the same warm salted water soak, which seasons it right through.

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Palak paneer

Method

The techniques this recipe uses

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Nutrition per serving

Frequently asked questions

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