"Spring Onion-Paneer Palak Curry served with Spring Onion-Vegetable Pulav" ... Lots of spring onions were lying in my home so gave a twist and prepared paneer palak (spinach) with addition of spring onions and served it with mildly spiced pulav to which also I added spring onions ... Definitely a delicious hit combo of dishes .... Yummy Yumz ....
** Paneer Palak or Palak Paneer is a very common dish tasted by almost all Indians at some point of life. Though this dish was not so famous till few decades back in the southern parts of India, it is now widely spread almost all round the globe. Very easy to prepare and delicious in taste this dish is liked by young and old alike. Frankly I had not tasted many palak / spinach dishes before marriage as though this leafy vegetable was available in Mangalore it was not so abundantly available as of now. My Mother never cooked it to the best of my knowledge but now she loves palak paneer dish very much and always insists we make it. In fact whenever we got out for lunch/dinner we always order paneer palak for her and also tomato soup which is also her favorite.
** After settling in Mumbai I came across palak / spinach that used to flood the market and people always seemed to by them in huge bundles. After quering with my helpful neighbor I came across a few recipes and even tried out making our own Alvati from Konkani Cuisine using palak some 30 yrs back and I still do it. Well to cut short, this is a very versatile lovely leafy vegetable that adapts very well with dishes, I prepare it in form of curries, soups, kababs, muddo, bajo, egg scramble and many more dishes. This time I gave a slight twist to my usual paneer palak curry with the addition of spring onions while cooking the same and it turned out to be fantastic with a beautiful rich green color. Do try out this recipe and relish it with either roti/chapati or mildly spiced pulav.
** Spring Onions are another leafy vegetable available throughout the year in Mumbai and during winter they almost flood the market. I have not prepared many items with this veggie and would really love to try more dishes as till now I have stuck to some of my standard recipes with it. This time I went ahead and used it in ground paste form for the curry and it tasted wonderful. Since spring onions are slightly on the astringent side you should make the curry slightly spicier than normal curries to come to that fantastic taste in recipes. I added in a few extra green chillies while grinding the masala and made the curry more spicier, also as I had served it with mildly spiced spring onion vegetable pulav they both went on well in accompaniment of each other. I am sharing the link to the pulav at the bottom of this recipe and you can try out the same in combo.
** Here is my simple recipe for "Spring Onion-Paneer Palak” … My style ….
** Ingredients :
Paneer / Cottage Cheese : 200 gms.
Spring Onions / Hare Pyaz / Piyava JadHa : 5-6
Palak / Spinach : 1 Bundle
Green Chillies / Hirvi Mirchi /Tarni Mirsanga : 5-6 … finely chopped.
Losun / Garlic / Lehsun : 8-10 … finely chopped.
Ginger / Adrak / Alle’ : ½ inch piece … finely chopped.
Kashmiri Red Chilly Powder : ½ tsp
Cumin / Jeera Powder : ½ tsp
Coriander / Dhania / Kothimbir Powder : 1 tsp
Amchur / Dried Raw Mango Powder : ½ tsp
Oil : 2 tblsp + 1 tblsp
Butter / Loni : 1 small lemon sized (Homemade white butter)
Salt to taste
** Cut the paneer into 1.5 inch sized cubes and keep them ready aside.
** Clean, wash, wipe clean and cut the spring onions along with the stems and bulb and keep them ready aside.
** Finely chop the palak leaves (only leaves) and wash them well. Drain off excess water and keep it ready aside.
** Heat 2 tblsp oil in a thick bottomed pressure cooker pan, when hot add in the finely chopped garlic, ginger and green chillies and fry for just a minute or two. Do not brown them, they just need to be fried for a minute or two that's it. Now add in the chopped spring onions keeping aside a handful for seasoning later. Fry all for 3-4 minutes then add in the chopped palak, one cup of water and mix well.
** Cover with its lid and pressure cook on medium flame for 2 whistles. Once the pressure in the cooker cools down on its own, remove the lid and allow the ingredients to cool down properly. Then put all the ingredients into a mixer grinder and grind to a very fine paste. Add water only if necessary, as we need to have a thick ground paste. Remove and keep this ready aside.
** Heat the remaining 1 tblsp of oil in a thick bottomed kadai, when hot add in the handful of spring onions kept aside and fry for about 2-3 minutes. Then add in the chilly powder, dhania powder, jeera powder and continue frying for another 2 minutes on low heat. Now add in the ground spring onion-palak puree, amchur powder, salt to taste and mix well.
** Bring the curry to a boiling point, then lower the heat and simmer for 3-4 minutes, now add in the paneer cubes, butter and mix well, let the butter melt and mix on heat well. Remove from fire and keep it aside covered for 5-10 minutes for the flavors to settle in well and it is done.
** "Spring Onion-Paneer Palak Curry” is done and ready to be served. You can serve it with any dish of your choice like pulav, roti, parathas etc. They taste best with butter naan or kulchas. But I served them with “Spring Onion-Vegetable Pulav” and it tasted delicious. The pulav being mildly spiced complimented the spicy curry well and it was a hit combo in my home and with my friends.
** Note : Do make the curry slightly spicier than your normal palak curry as addition of spring onions adds on a astringent sort of taste that gets balanced with addition of spice.
** Note : Addition of butter is a matter of a choice and you can leave out the same. You can add beaten cream instead of butter too which gives the dish a rich taste. Again, you can leave out both butter and amchur powder and add in 2 tblsp of beaten curds too.
** Note : You can tava fry the paneer pieces with little bit of ghee to evenly brown it and then add it on to the curry too. Decades back paneer was always fried and added on to the dishes, however over time and people turning health conscious try to cut down as much as possible on oil and ghee to make the dish healthier.
** I myself fry the paneer only if it must for the dish like for pulav and for curries I try avoiding the frying part as I find that it turns out hard in texture if done so. Again, do not add the paneer cubes hours before serving as it turns hard when you reheat the dish. Paneer is best dropped into simmering curry and then the curry removed and allowed to settle for just 5-10 minutes before serving. This way it remains very soft.
** Note : Many a times people just grind the palak and spring onions directly instead of frying it for a few minutes, cooking it and then grinding. You can do so if you wish but I have always found that, a little bit, just for a few minutes of frying before cooking and grinding ensures a lovely aroma and an excellent color to the dish.
** Do try out this dish the next time you bring home palak and spring onions or do buy them to prepare this awesome curry. This is a very delicious and lovely aromatic dish that is sure to be loved by young and old alike. Your family and friends are sure to love this. You can also try serving it with pulav or roti but if possible serve them with naan or kulcha, they taste awesome. I could not prepare them as I was pressed for time and in a hurry.
** I have aso given below the link to the “Spring Onion Vegetable Pulav” that is shown in the picture along with “Spring Onion Paneer Palak Curry” … Please do check out on the dish if you want to try out the same in this combo.
** An Earnest Request : There are many more recipes of different types in the blog. For all my Recipes, use the search option or the label section in the Blog. If you are still not able to find it or have a query, please leave a message in comment section or mail me the same. I will try my best to get back to you as soon as possible. Do try out various types of dishes included in the Blog and Enjoy them with your family and friends and do give me a feedback if possible. I have also started a food group for by the name "KONKANI DELICACIES" where in you will find many more recipes by members and you too can share some of your own. The link to the group is posted on the left side of the blog page. Do join us in our culinary journey. I strongly believe in Sharing and always endorse that "Sharing Is Caring" … Thank You ….
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