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Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons ghee store-bought or homemade (or use 1tbsp butter and 1tbsp olive oil)
  • 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
  • 1/2 teaspoon red chili powder or cayenne
  • 1/2 teaspoon brown mustard seeds
  • Pinch of hing asafedita (if available!)
  • 1 small yellow onion finely chopped (about 1 cup)
  • 2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
  • 2 serrano chiles finely chopped (optional - we didn't use)
  • 12-19 ounces of greens any combination of spinach, mustard greens, kale, and arugula - note that more mustard greens will make for a more bitter saag, and more spinach and arugula will make for a sweeter and tangier saag
  • 3 tablespoons finely chopped mint
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • Kosher salt
  • 8 ounces Paneer home-made or store-bought, cut into bite-sized pieces
  • Basmati rice for serving
  • Chapatis for serving optional
  • Cream or coconut cream optional

Instructions

  1. In a large sauté pan, melt the butter and heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the cardamom, cumin, chili/cayenne powder, mustard seeds and hing and sauté until the mustard seeds begin to pop, about 2 minutes. Reduce the heat the medium, add the onion and sauté until translucent and light golden brown, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the ginger-garlic paste and serranos and sauté over medium-low heat for two more minutes, stirring frequently so it doesn’t stick to the pan.
  2. Add the greens and sauté, raising the heat gradually to medium, until the greens are wilted and the kale and mustard are tender, 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and cool at room temperature for 5 minutes.
  3. Transfer the greens to a food processor. Add the mint and pulse until chunky but not uniform. We ended up adding almost a cup of water to thin the sauce enough to blend well, but if you're adding cream or coconut cream, that might help too. Stir in the lemon juice and a generous 1/2 teaspoon of salt (use a little less if you’re using salty store-bought ginger-garlic paste) and return the mixture to the sauté pan. Set the pan over medium-low heat and gently stir in the paneer, being careful not to break it up. Cook until the paneer and the saag are heated through, 4 to 6 minutes.
  4. To serve, spoon the sag and paneer into a serving bowl or individual bowls, drizzle with melted ghee or yoghurt if desired, and garnish with cilantro. Serve with rice and a few more fresh mint leaves..