Food

Maska Paneer Recipe

Spinach and fenugreek greens are cooked down with aromatic spices and fresh herbs, then finished with homemade paneer in this classic Indian dish.
maska-paneer-recipe
Photo by Farideh Sadeghin

Serves 4 to 6
Prep time: 20 minutes
Total time: 40 minutes

INGREDIENTS

1 pound|450 grams baby spinach washed and trimmed, pureed
¼ cup|60 ml fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons canola oil
3 tablespoons ghee
1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
1 teaspoon whole jeera
3 pieces dry bay leaf
3-4 pieces dry red chilies (Kashmiri chilies)
1 cinnamon stick
1 sprig fresh curry leaves
pinch asafoetida
1 medium red onion, diced
4 tablespoons|75 grams garlic paste 
3 tablespoons ginger juice
3 tablespoons minced serrano chili 
kosher salt, to taste
2 tablespoons coriander, fennel, cumin toasted powder mix
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
8 ounces|225 grams fenugreek greens (frozen or fresh)
1 cup|60 grams chopped cilantro
2 teaspoons chaat masala
2 teaspoons garam masala 
4 scallions, thinly sliced      
granulated sugar, to taste
kosher salt, to taste
1 ½ cups|245 grams homemade paneer
chili oil, for drizzling

Advertisement

DIRECTIONS

  1. Blend the spinach with the lemon juice and ¾ cup|177 ml water until smooth. Set aside.
  2. Heat the oil and ghee in a large saucepan over medium-high. Once hot, add the mustard seeds, jeera, bay leaves, red chilies, cinnamon, and curry leaves, starting with the mustard seeds. It’s very important that the mustard seeds pop before adding the rest of the ingredients as fast as you can. Lower the heat, add the chopped onion and cook until golden, 7 to 8 minutes.
  3. Add the garlic paste, ginger juice, and minced serrano chilies and season with salt and cook until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Add the toasted powder mixture, tomato paste, turmeric, cardamom, and ¼ cup|60 ml water and cook 8 to 10 minutes, then stir in the blended spinach and the fenugreek. Cook, stirring occasionally, until thick, about 15 minutes, then stir in the cilantro, chaat and garam masala, and scallions. Cook until the spinach has darkened in color, 5 to 7 minutes more. Season with salt and sugar and divide among plates. Serve topped with a dollop of paneer on top and drizzle with the chili oil.

Get recipes like this and more in the Munchies Recipes newsletter. Sign up here.