Palak Paneer/ Cottage Cheese in Spinach Sauce

There is no fun in blogging anymore. Once upon a time, there were few blogs and there were few bloggers and being food crazy was frowned upon. Hence there was this thrill in writing lustily about a particular recipe, as if you just stumbled upon its virtues,as if it changes your life (it may have!!),  as if you were the only one in the world who could make it well and photograph it like never seen before, tempting lots and lots of readers who still haven't discovered the secret.
What secret, you ask? Well the secret is that dear readers, anybody can cook and just like any other skill, the more u cook, the better you become....But now there are sooooooooooo many blogs.. that there is no need  for me to blog anymore.

 I can spend my days surfing on others blogs and see and enjoy the thrill in the younger blogs while I secretly miss the old hats whose blogs lie still and dead, gathering dust like the empty tharavadus in Kerala.  I wish all these bloggers would wake up and blog once more, just to see some new words from them..just for a new line of conversation... not for the recipes which abound everywhere.
Between the frozen aisle which imports everything u miss, to the multitude of new bloggers, there is no recipe left to cover now. Its just versions and versions...which is really what a recipe is... a version of a food played out in your family, customized to your family's tastes.

Rant apart, an old standby which is the best way to get spinach into my kids, though my better half refuses to touch it..:) Palak Paneer, which is fried cubes of cottage cheese in a spiced up spinach gravy. Some fry the paneer, some toss it with tandoori spices and grill it, some put in bland... it works any way..just don't add cream to the final gravy , Ala restaurant style.


Paneer cubes - 15-20 .
Onion - 1 small onion
Garlic Clove-3
Coriander Powder-1 Tsp.
Cumin Seeds -1/2 tsp Tsp.
Turmeric- 1/8 tsp
Asafoetida- A pinch
Red Chili Powder-1/4 tsp
Garam Masala- A pinch.
Oil -2-3 Tbsp.

For Gravy Base :
Spinach- 1 bunch.
Ginger small-1/2 inch
Onion- 2 tbsp chopped
Green Chilies(Small) 2-3 Nos
Salt to taste
Cream (Optional) 1 Tbsp

Preparation:
1. You could use fresh or good quality frozen spinach. Since this is one leaf that soaks up all the insecticides and stuff sprayed on it, use organic as much as possible.  Spinach if bought as fresh bunches from the farmer’s market or the Asian stores has a lot of sand on it. Soak the spinach in a large vessel with water for 10 minutes and rinse each leaf well under running water. Do not stint on washing it well. The sand can destroy all your hard work! If you are using pre-washed spinach, you could cook it as it is. Wash & drain the water from Spinach. Chop them coarsely.

2. Heat 1 1/2 tbsp of oil in a non stick pan and sauté the paneer pieces till light golden on all sides. Take care not to leave the pan unattended as it gets burnt quickly. This should take about 2-3 minutes. Drain onto paper towels and keep aside.

3. Cook the spinach with the ginger, green chilies, ½ cup water and one clove of garlic in a pan till soft. If using a pressure cooker, cook for one whistle only.
When it cools down, blend the cooked spinach to a coarse paste using a hand blender or food processor. Use quick pulses to avoid blending it to a paste.

4. In the same wide pan heat the remaining oil, fry the chopped onions till translucent. Add the remaining garlic and sauté. Add the spice powders, 1 tablespoon of water and sauté for a minute. Take care not to burn the spices. Add the yogurt and when the liquid in it dries up add the blended spinach paste and salt.

5. Cover and let it simmer on medium heat for about 10 minutes and add the paneer cubes. Let it cook for another 5-6 minutes to combine the flavors, check seasoning and add the tablespoon of cream. It should be slightly tangy and spicy. Add a pinch of garam masala before serving.

Tips to Note:
Do not add any additional water for blending. The spinach should be coarse but should not be fibrous.
Do not add any water while cooking the gravy. The gravy has to get thickened on medium heat so the more the water, the more time it will take and it will dilute the flavor of the spinach.
Add tomato instead of yogurt in the first cooking of the spinach for the tanginess.

Mushroom Mutter Paneer Masala

Mushroom Mutter Paneer Masala

Mutter Paneer is one of the favourite side dishes for chappathi at home and my daughter loves that even if its given separately. But introducing mushroom into her paneer dish is difficult but still i was very firm to made her eat Mushroom too as it has very high protein in it. At the end, the dish came out very tasty and she was unable to filter the mushrooms from the dish.

Ingredients
Paneer - 12 oz Bar cut into cubes.
Jeera Seeds - 1 tbsp
Cinnamon Sticks - 1 medium
Kasuri Methi ( Dry Methi Leaves ) - 1 tsp
Ginger Garlic Paste - 2 tbsp.
Mushroom - 15 medium size ( Cut into halves)
Peas - 1 Cup.
Oil - 4 tbsp.
Salt - To Taste.
Sugar - 1 Pinch.
Turmeric Powder - 2 tsp.
Red Chilli Powder - 1 tbsp.
Coriander Powder - 1 tbsp.
Garam Masala Powder - 1 tbsp.

For Grinding
Tomatoes - 2 Medium size
Onion ( Yellow or Red) - 1 Big One
Coriander Leaves - 4 or 5 stems.
Lavang( Cloves ) - 2
Cinnamon Sticks - 2 Medium ones.
Green Chilly - 1 Medium.
Dry Almonds ( Badam ) - 7 or 8.
Cardamom Seeds ( Elachi ) - 1.

Method
1. On the stove, add olive oil and slowly add the ingredients one by one to the kadai for sauting before grinding it.
2. I prefer to slightly fry the ingredients before actually grinding them as it gets cooked quickly and the gravy comes out of the raw smell quickly.
3. Next, add the cubed paneer into the kadai and shallow fry the paneer cubes and keep it separately.
4. On the kadai, then add jeera seeds, cinnamon stick, ginger garlic paste and fry nicely till the raw smell completely goes off.
5. Add the mushroom and peas to the kadai and fry for 1-2 minutes.
5. Then add the grinded mixture into the kadai.
6. Add the turmeric powder, chilli powder, coriander powder, garam masala powder into the gravy now.
7. Add salt and pinch of sugar to the gravy. Mix all the contents thoroughly and let it simmer for 5-6 minutes on a low flame.
8. Open the lid and let the dish cook on a medium flame openly till you get a very nice aroma of Mushroom and the gravy together.
9. Finally add the paneer cubes into the kadai.
10. Cover it with the lid and let it cook for 1-2 minutes. Then, switch it off.

Tips
Generally I substitute coriander leaves with the preserved coriander stems for grinding which gives a nice aroma to any gravy.
Keep the pudina stems, coriander stems even the methi stems in the fridge. While grinding for a gravy, we can add those stems along with other ingredients. Surely the gravy tastes good and with an excellent flavour.

Variations
For making a very rich tasty gravy for parties, get-togethers, you can substitute almonds with cashewnuts as the grinding ingredient.
To have a restaurant finish, add 1 tbsp of low fat fresh cream into the kadai at the end.

Veg Paneer Kofta in Spring Mix Green Gravy

Veg Paneer Kofta in Spring Mix Green Gravy

Really frustrating to see some of the Spring Mix Salad bought from Costco getting spoiled at the end, though we consume a considerable quantity to our level of satisfaction...I really wanted to make use of all the Spring Mix that we buy from the wholesale Costco. Before I used to make Pappu out of the leftover Spring Mix salad but  this time I wanted to try out something different with this salad mix. Using Paneer ( which is an all-time favourite at home), I made some crunchy Koftas and made them to dance in my healthy Spring Mix Green Gravy...I followed the same procedure of Palak Paneer for making this Green Gravy. With few tricks, the dish got upgraded and a perfect Kofta gravy was achieved...( with my leftover Spring Mix salad..!!!) . More than that, I felt so relieved while throwing the big Spring Mix Salad Box without any wastage in it.

Ingredients

Photo Courtesy by Wiki -- Spring Mix Salad

For the Green Gravy
Spring Mix Salad - 5 cups fully
Ripe Tomatoes - 2 Big
Green Chillies - 1 Big
Cumin Seeds - 1 tsp


For the Koftas 
Potato - 3 medium
Carrot - 2 medium
Peas - 1 Handful
Beans - 6 or 8
Green Pepper / Capsicum - 1/2 Medium
Paneer - 1 Cup shredded
Yellow Corn Flour - 1/2 cup
Water - Little to make the corn paste.
Salt - To Taste
Turmeric Powder  - 1 tsp
Red Chilli Powder - 1 tsp
Dhana Jeera Powder / Coriander Cumin Powder - 1 tsp
Sugar - 1 pinch
Oil - Enough for frying the Koftas

For the Main Process
Oil - 1 tbsp
Butter or melted ghee - 1 tsp ( just for flavour , optional )
Cumin Seeds - 2 tsp
Garlic Ginger Paste - 1 tbsp
Onion Shredded / finely sliced - 1/2 cup
Turmeric Powder - 2 tsp
Red chilli Powder - 1 tsp
Coriander Cumin / Dhana Jeera Powder - 1 tsp
Garam Masala Powder - 1 tsp
Sugar - 1 Pinch
Thick whole Milk - 2 tbsp
Salt - To Taste

Method

Paneer Veg Koftas

Kofta Preparation

In a big thick bottomed vessel, cook all the vegetables including Green Pepper / Capsicum completely and keep them ready. To the cooked veggies, add the crumbled paneer and the other ingredients as mentioned above, and make small balls. In a plate, add the yellow corn flour and add few drops of water and make a moist powdery paste.( Not like bajji batter...). Roll the Veg Paneer Kofta ball on the surface of the moist corn flour so that it gets coated uniformly in all the directions.

Fry them till golden brown in the oil. Continue the process for the rest of the balls and keep the fried koftas ready.

Gravy Preparation

In the cooking pan, add the Spring Salad Mix, tomatoes, green chillies and cumin seeds and allow them to cook inside for few minutes. No need to add water. Let them cook with the steam inside on a low flame. When its cooked and shrunk in size, grind them together with little water and keep the green gravy paste ready.

Main Process

• In the cooking pan, add oil and little melted ghee / butter first. When its heated, add cumin seeds.
• Add the ginger garlic paste and fry them till the raw smell vanishes.
• Add the onion pieces next and fry them with a pinch of salt for 2-3 minutes.
• Add all the powders as mentioned above and fry them again for a minute.
• Add the green gravy paste and required amount of salt, 1 tbsp of thick whole milk and add some water if required.
• Allow the gravy to cook well with all the spice powders for 5-6 minutes.
• Switch off the flame when the gravy is done which can be noted with the appearance of little oil oozing out of the edges, in the middle slightly.
• Finally before serving, place the koftas in the serving bowl and pour the gravy on its top.

Tips / Variations

• You can add Tofu, shredded cabbage, tiny cauliflower florets or any other suitable vegetables of your choice while making the Koftas.
• You can add few drops of fresh cream on its top just before serving to make it more appealing and richer.

Saag Paneer / Mustard Greens Paneer Gravy

Saag Paneer / Mustard Greens Paneer Gravy

"Saag", the green leafy vegetable, also called as "Mustard Greens" is one of the healthiest choice in regular cooking. This contains more anti-oxidants and anticancer effects. Its low in calorie and an excellent source of Calcium, folic acid, vitamins and other minerals. Using this vegetable, there is a famous Punjabi dish called "Sarson Ka Saag" which is generally eaten with Corn Roti ( Makki ki Roti). I added Paneer to this dish and made "Saag Paneer" to attract my kids. Recipe is simpler with less ingredients and the process is also much simpler. As I used less oil, its bit thicker. You can customize the dish and make it in your style.

Ingredients

Saag / Mustard Greens - 1 Fresh Bunch

Tomato - 1 Medium

Red Onion - 1/2 Medium

Ginger Garlic Paste - 1 tbsp

Oil - 1 tbsp

Butter - 2 tsp

Cumin Seeds / Jeera - 2 tsp

Turmeric Powder - 1 tsp

Sugar - 1 Pinch

Salt - To Taste

Green Chillies - 3 or 4.

Garam Masala Powder - 2 tsp

Method

1. Wash the Mustard Greens thoroughly for three times and drain the sand and other dust particles.
2. Cut the Mustard Greens, tomato in bigger size and steam cook them in a kadai with no water.
3. Grind them along with green chillies and keep the paste ready.
4. On a medium flame, add oil to the cooking vessel / non-stick pan. When its heated up, add cumin seeds followed by cut red onion, ginger garlic paste. Fry them for few minutes till you completely come out of the raw smell...
5. Add the turmeric powder, garam masala powder, pinch of sugar and stir them for another 2 minutes.
6. Add the grounded saag paste to the vessel now and add required amount of salt to the vessel.
7. Mix them well and allow them to cook on a low flame for 4-5 minutes. Finally add the paneer cubes into the saag and mix it well with the cooked saag masala. Cover the lid and allow the saag paneer to remain in the flame for another 2-3 minutes.
8. Switch off the flame and add little butter or ghee on top just before serving.

Tips / Variations

• You can shallow fry the paneer cubes instead of adding the raw cubes into the saag.
• You can add make it in any consistency you want by adding little more water / oil.
• In place of paneer, you can even add potato cubes and make it attractive for the kids.

Paneer Butter Masala

Paneer Butter Masala, a rich creamy gravy dish is a very popular North Indian Side dish. Fresh Paneer cubes inside the rich, creamy tomato gravy makes the dish more exotic and the wonderful flavours of the Indian spices add more flavour to the dish.  I tasted the same "Paneer Butter Masala" in various places like "Sagar.." hotels in Bangalore, in trains, in many good restaurants in South India and in various restaurants in New Delhi, etc., Every version of this dish has its own taste and preparation style. I am sharing my version with all of you, though many of you would be preparing and enjoying this dish in your own way.  As its my daughter's favourite, I make this often for her.

Ingredients

Fresh Paneer Cubes - 2 Cups

Onion - 1 Big

Tomato - 2 Medium

Green Chillies - 1 Medium

Cashew Nuts - 1 Handful ( Optional ) ( You can substitute this with Almonds )

Turmeric Powder  - 1 tsp

Dry Red Chili Powder - 1 tsp

Garam Masala Powder  - 3 tsp

Coriander Powder - 2 tsp

Sugar - A pinch

Salt - To Taste

Ginger Garlic Paste -  1 tbsp

Oil - 2 tbsp

Butter or Ghee - 1 tsp

Cumin Seeds ( Jeera ) - 1 tsp

Fresh Cream - 2 tsp ( Optional )

Coriander Leaves - To Garnish

Method

• In a big non-stick vessel \pan, shallow fry the Paneer cubes with 1 tsp of oil and keep them aside.
• Cut the onions, tomato and green chili and fry them on the same vessel with little bit of oil and make a smooth paste of those using a mixer grinder by adding a handful of Cashew nuts to this mixture. If you don't like to use cashews, substitute this with a handful of almonds and make a fine, smooth grounded paste.
• In the same vessel, add butter or ghee and the remaining oil. When it gets heated up, add the cumin seeds first.
• Then, add the Ginger Garlic paste into the oil and fry them on a low flame till the raw smell completely vanishes.
• After its done, add the grounded paste into the non-stick vessel. Add all the powders as mentioned above along with Salt and a pinch of sugar.
• Mix everything well and let them cook on a medium flame for sometime. When the oil gets separated from the mixture, its an indication that the tomato gravy is almost done.
• Add the fried paneer cubes into the gravy now and close the lid. Let it cook for a minute.
• Switch off the flame and finally add the fresh cream to the Paneer Butter masala and mix it well.
• Garnish with coriander leaves and add few drops of fresh cream on the top just before serving.
• It goes well with roti, chappathi or with any variety of  rice pulav.

Tips \ Variations

If you fry the tomatoes and onion before grinding, the preparation time for making the gravy is lesser.

You can always substitute Cashews with Almonds and also the fresh cream at the end is totally optional. Add fresh cream only if its made for a party or for a larger crowd. Fresh cream adds richness, sweetness to the side dish.

You can increase or decrease the spice powder levels according to your taste buds.