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    Home » Main Course

    Healthy Palak Paneer | How to make Healthy Paneer Recipes

    Published: Nov 30, 2021 by Deepti · This post may contain affiliate links · 2 Comments

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    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    Looking for a Healthy Paneer Recipe?

    This Homemade Quick Palak Paneer promises to be healthy and delicious! Let's make this winter special by choosing to have fresh spinach leaves and desi ghee. Find out how little tweaks to the traditional Palak Paneer make it an easy recipe for busy people!

    healthy palak paneer

    Healthy Palak Paneer is a gluten-free recipe that is made using fresh spinach or palak leaves (boiled and blended in a paste) with paneer added to this palak gravy. It is one of the most popular main courses of Indian cuisine made in winter. Winters are absolutely dull without green leafy vegetables like methi, palak, saag, and bathua. My day begins with a bathua paratha almost daily in winter. I believe most of us are so pleased to know when lunch or dinner has methi or makki ki roti with sarson ka saag.

    This recipe of low-calorie Spinach Paneer is made in one pot and is absolutely made without any cream. The traditional recipe involves boiling spinach leaves, cooling and blending, and then tempering them with onion, garlic, and tomato. I have made little tweaks to it in order to make it quick and yet super healthy and delicious. If you are looking for easy paneer recipes, you have landed on the right page!

    Ingredients Overview

    You need fresh Spinach (Palak) leaves and if you don't have spinach locally available, feel free to use your local greens like Kale. Though I haven't tried this recipe with Kale leaves, I guess they would be a good substitute. Looking forward to my readers sharing their experiences.

    I had boiled freshly sorted and washed spinach leaves along with Onion, Garlic, Ginger, tomato, and green chilies. Once it cools off, blend it and add raw paneer along with a tempering of Red Chily, Jeera (Cumin), Heeng in Desi Ghee!

    • fresh spinach leaves
    • washing palak leaves

    How is this recipe of Palak Paneer Healthy?

    This recipe makes no use of any cream!

    I think this answers 80% of your question. We all know that Indian dishes made in restaurants are made tasty by deliberately adding extra cream or butter and however great they may taste, they are totally unhealthy. Heating Butter over and over again is not doing any good to your heart.

    I have added warm Desi ghee Tadka at the last when the whole dish is ready.

    I prefer to use the freshly sorted spinach leaves, not the frozen ones. It is a blend of rich nutrients like Calcium, Iron, Potassium, Vitamin A & C, and loads of loads of fiber and protein.

    Busy friends have thanked me after trying this healthy recipe of Palak Paneer. You can totally control the amount of ghee that goes in the spinach gravy. Personally, I always add mirch ki Tari (Red Chili powder slightly roasted in Desi ghee) to Palak Paneer and for that matter to every gravy dish. That's because Ghee is indeed a healthy fat required by the body.

    What to team Palak Paneer with?

    You may have Homemade wheat Paratha, chapati, or rice with palak paneer.

    • palak leaves for boiling
    • boiled palak leaves

    Is Palak Paneer Good for Weight-Loss?

    If you are following me, you already know how I react to this question. To achieve weight loss, you have to eat the right food in the right proportion at the right time.

    To answer your query, yes choosing homemade vegetables and food over market ones is the best choice to sustain through the weight-loss journey.

    This recipe is a bundle pack of healthy nutrients and fiber-rich spinach that keeps you full for longer. [1]

    Similar Recipe Sugggestions

    One may also try making Saag Paneer or Methi Paneer, Aloo Methi, Dal Palak (Lentil Spinach Curry). If fresh spinach leaves are not available, one may use Kasuri Methi (dried fenugreek leaves). They taste amazing in Methi Malai Matar. I prefer using fresh leaves over frozen ones as the fresh spinach leaves take the recipe to another level.

    Can I use Homemade Paneer?

    Yes! You may use homemade paneer / Indian cottage Cheese. You may curdle the milk using lemon juice and sautee it on simmer for about 15 min (or more depending upon the quantity of milk). For about 1 litre of milk, you may get approx 150 gms of paneer. Since Paneer is my first love, I made Healthy Paneer Tikka for weight loss.

    paneer in spinach gravy

    What is the difference between Saag Paneer and Palak Paneer?

    Palak Paneer is made using spinach leaves whereas Saag can be made of Mustard green leaves also called Sarson, or bathua ( Chenopodium Album) or any winter greens mixed in a known ratio.

    Like I make Sarson ka saag by using 1 kg sarson leaves, 250 gm palak leaves, and 250 bathua leaves. I think being an Indian, loving green leafy veggies comes naturally to us, and topping it with desi ghee, teaming them with chapati loaded with white butter makes it an ultimate delight that no dish could really match.

    How can I make Vegan Palak Paneer?

    To make this recipe of palak paneer vegan, you may use Tofu instead of Paneer and replace desi ghee with any other vegetable oil.

    How to make Instant Pot Palak Paneer?

    The procedure is almost the same as that with the pressure cooker. Add ghee, spices, onion, tomato, garlic, ginger (all roughly chopped) to the instant pot along with washed chopped spinach leaves. Set it on pressure mode for about 3-4 min. Once it beeps, cool it off, blend, and add salt and paneer. Cook for 2 min and your delicious palak paneer in the instant pot is ready.

    If you make this recipe, share the image of it on our Instagram account @veg.buffet or Twitter account @vegbuffet

    paneer in spinach gravy

    Healthy Palak Paneer | Paneer in Spinach Gravy

    Healthy Palak Paneer is a gluten-free recipe that is made using fresh spinach or palak leaves (boiled and blended in a paste) with paneer added to this palak gravy. It is one of the most popular main courses of Indian cuisine made in winter. Winters are absolutely dull without green leafy vegetables like methi, palak, saag, and bathua.
    5 from 1 vote
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 10 mins
    Cook Time 20 mins
    Cooling off 10 mins
    Total Time 40 mins
    Course dinner, Indian main course, Main Course, Main Dish
    Cuisine Indian, indian traditional
    Servings 5
    Calories 207 kcal

    Equipment

    • Pressure Cooker
    • Colander
    • Blender

    Ingredients
      

    • 800 gm Palak leaves fresh and sorted (8 -10 cups)
    • 300 gm Paneer/ Indian Cottage cheese can replace with Tofu
    • a pinch Heeng (Asafoetida) optional
    • 1 teaspoon Jeera
    • 2 small tomato
    • 1 large onion
    • 2-3 small green chily optional
    • 3 cloves garlic
    • 1 teaspoon grated/chopped ginger
    • 1 teaspoon haldi
    • 2 teaspoon red chilly powder
    • 1 teaspoon Amchur powder replace by lemon juice
    • 1 teaspoon Garm masala optional
    • 1 tablespoon Desi Ghee
    • salt as per taste

    Instructions
     

    • Sort and wash the spinach/ palak leaves under running water in a colander. This step is really important. The yellow leaves or rotten ones shall be discarded. You may feel free to roughly chop them. I skipped that step as we have to anyway blend the boiled leaves.
      washing palak leaves
    • Take a pressure cooker and add washed palak leaves to it.
      Note: Don't add any extra water as Spinach is full of water and you don't need any water for boiling it in a pressure cooker like other recipes. In fact, in my experience, if we add any water at this step, palak tastes really bitter.
      add palak leaves to pressure cooker
    • Add roughly chopped tomato, ginger, garlic, onion, and green chilly. Pressure cook it on full flame for 2 whistles and then simmer for 5 min.
      palak leaves for boiling
    • Let the pressure cool off. Once it completely cools off, transfer the boiled spinach and veggies to a blender and blend for a smooth paste. You may use a hand blender too.
      If you like not very smooth paste, use a hand blender. It depends on how you want it.
      boiled palak leaves
    • The paste looks like as shown in the image. Depending upon the size of the jar, you may have to blend in 1-2 steps.
      smooth paste of the boiled spinach leaves and veggies
    • In the same pressure cooker, I had made a desi ghee tadka to the boiled palak. You may use Kadai. Since palak splatters a lot while cooking, I prefer a utensil with height.
      Add desi ghee to the same pressure cooker (Note: we don't need any pressure boiling now). Add heeng and jeera
      Desi ghee tadka to palak paneer
    • Once jeera cracks, add haldi and red chilli powder. Make sure the flame is simmer or else spices might get burnt.
      Tempering to palak paneer
    • Add blended palak paste to this tadka. Let it cook on simmer for about 10 min. It would have some moisture in it. Let it absorb that moisture.
      Palak added to tadka
    • Then add chopped pieces of paneer. Paneer leaves the water. So cook for another 5 min and add salt, garm masala, and amchur/ lemon juice.
      paneer added to boiled palak
    • The Delicious and Healthy Palak Paneer is ready. top it with my choice of Mirch ki tari and trust me you would always make palak paneer in this super-easy way. Enjoy!
      healthy palak paneer

    Notes

    Nutrition Facts
    Serving size: 1 bowl
    Servings: 5
    Amount per serving  
    Calories 207
    % Daily Value*
    Total Fat 12.9g 17%
    Saturated Fat 1.3g 6%
    Cholesterol 3mg 1%
    Sodium 155mg 7%
    Total Carbohydrate 12.1g 4%
    Dietary Fiber 4.3g 15%
    Total Sugars 2.3g  
    Protein 14.1g  
    Vitamin D 0mcg 0%
    Calcium 207mg 16%
    Iron 5mg 30%
    Potassium 774mg 16%
    *The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calorie a day is used for general nutrition advice.
    Keyword easy low calorie palak paneer, healthy paneer recipe, high protein veg recipes, quick recipe of palak paneer, weight-loss veg recipes

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    About Deepti

    Warm Welcome to my blog!
    This blog is created by a former Assistant Professor, mother, and Netflix Binge watcher who is passionate about food! This blog is my collection of homemade healthy vegetarian (egg-free too) recipes that are tested and approved by my family before they are finally posted here. A variety of Indian and World recipes that are made in a simple way!
    I am so glad to have you as a part of my journey in this online world.
    Thanks for stopping by!

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    Comments

    1. Anonymous says

      January 03, 2022 at 6:51 am

      5 stars
      I wish I could give more stars to this wonderful recipe! I had been looking for a weight-loss paneer recipe and I found yours. Could you suggest how it would taste with Tofu? I love Paneer but my hubby is trying to be vegan and I was not sure about it. Thanks

      Reply
      • Deepti says

        January 04, 2022 at 6:34 am

        Thank you so much for the encouraging words. Honestly, I haven't tried this recipe with Tofu, but my guess is it would be worth trying. Let me know how it worked for you.

        Reply

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    Hi, I'm Deepti!

    Warm Welcome to my blog!
    This blog is created by a former Assistant Professor, mother, and Netflix Binge watcher who is passionate about food! Here, I am sharing homemade healthy vegetarian (egg-free too) recipes that are tested and approved by my family before they are finally posted.

    Thanks for stopping by!

    More about me →

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