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Saag paneer

Reza Mahammad from Great Food Live
Reza Mahammad combines spinach, spices and cream with paneer, a soft Indian cheese, in this rich and spicy main course

Saag paneer

Method

1. For the paneer: put the milk in a pan and bring to the boil. As soon as it rises, remove from the heat and add lemon juice, a teaspoonful at a time, until the milk curdles. The curd will then separate from the whey. Do not add more lemon juice than necessary as this will harden the paneer.

2. Drain through a sieve lined with muslin. Squeeze out as much liquid as possible and leave the paneer in the cloth to drain while it cools.

3. For the saag paneer: wash the spinach and put the leaves in a large pan. Cover with a lid, and cook over a medium heat for 2-3 minutes. The spinach will cook in the steam made by the water clinging to its leaves. As soon as it begins to wilt, stir the top leaves to the bottom. When all the leaves are wilted, remove the pan from the heat and drain, squeezing out as much liquid as possible.

4. Allow the spinach to cool, press out the remaining liquid to get the spinach as dry as possible, and roughly chop.

5. Heat the oil in a medium pan and when hot add the cumin seeds and allow them to sizzle. Add the onion and cook until it becomes soft and translucent. Add the garlic and cook for another minute or so, then add the turmeric.

6. Stir the spinach into the mixture and continue to cook for a further couple of minutes, and then add the paneer and vegetable stock.

7. To serve: adjust the seasoning; pour the cream on to the saag paneer, and garnish with coriander leaves. Serve with dhal and plain boiled rice.

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Serves: 4

Prep: 25 min, plus cooling for the paneer
Cook: 25 min

Ingredients

For the paneer

1.7 litres Milk
lemon juice

For the saag paneer

450g Spinach
1 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tsp Cumin seeds
1 onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely sliced
pinch ground turmeric
100g block paneer, from recipe (see method)
100ml vegetable stock
50ml double cream
1 tbsp fresh coriander leaves