Palak Paneer (A Work in Progress)

Palak Paneer, or Saag, is a creamy spinach dish with yummy fried cheese in it.  Now, you don't really have to fry the cheese if you don't want to.  Now please note, this recipe is far from perfect.  I kind of knew the flavor combination I was going for and the consistency I was shooting for, and it turned out much better than previous attempts, but could still use some improvement.  But I'll post it here anyway.

1 lb. Paneer, cut into 1" cubes, lightly dusted with flour
2 lbs. Spinach, washed and picked over for wilted leaves
1 medium sized onion, diced
6 cloves garlic, chopped
1 Tbsp fresh ginger, chopped
2 green chilies, seeded and diced
6 Tbsp Ghee (or Veg oil)
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 tsp coriander
1/4 tsp red pepper
1 tsp Kosher salt
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 cup milk (or sub heavy cream... yeah baby)
1-2 tsp. Garam Masala

1. Bring 4 cups of water to a boil in the largest pot you have. Add the spinach. If it won't all fit at first, just pack it down. It will wilt to a fraction of it's original size. Cover and let cook for 10 minutes or until the spinach is completely cooked. Strain and immediately run cold water over the spinach to stop the cooking process. Shocking it like this will lock in the green color and lend to a better looking dish. Set aside.

2. On a back burner, put the cumin seeds in small frying pan and dry roast them on Medium heat until they're slightly browned. They should smell sweet and aromatic, not sour. Try not to burn them because burned cumin tastes nasty. When done, grind them in a spice grinder or in a mortar and pestle. Or... you could just buy ground cumin, but this tastes better.

3. Add 3 Tbsp of Ghee to a large, non-stick pan on Medium-high heat. When the oil is hot add the paneer pieces and fry, turning the pieces often, until golden brown on all sides. Don't overcrowd the pan. Fry them in batches of 6-8 at a time. When done, set aside.

4. Add the remaining Ghee to the pan and fry the onion until it's slightly translucent, 5-6 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger, and chilies. Let cook for 10 minutes until the onion is slightly browned. Remove from heat and let cool for a minute. Then combine onion, garlic, ginger, chilies, and cooked spinach in a food processor or blender (honestly, I'd recommend a blender... it'll get it smoother, but a food processor will work too). Puree, adding water if it gets too pulpy. Put contents back into pan.

-- At this point I had to screw with the consistency of it. It was little too thick so I kept adding water until it was a little looser than I wanted (keeping in mind it would thicken as I continued to cooked it). I think I added roughly half a cup of hot water, but this is negotiable as to how thick you want your curry.--

5. Fold in ground cumin, coriander, red pepper, and salt, followed by the lemon juice. Add in the paneer pieces, folding them in carefully so as not to break the pieces apart. Let cook on low to medium-low for 20 minutes, stirring every now and then. Add milk and Garam Masala, again carefully so you don't break up the paneer. Let rest for at least 30 minutes before serving. When ready to serve reheat and serve over basmati rice.

Note -- you don't have to fry the paneer if you don't want to. I did it because my paneer was especially crumbly and I wanted to give the pieces a little more rigidity. In which case, cut the ghee by half.