There are times when I crave good food in quantity– I want to completely fill up my bowl and savor it for a good long time until I’m totally satiated. Palak Paneer is absolutely perfect for those nights, with spinach and fresh protein-packed cheese in a rich, creamy sauce. A heaping serving is still incredibly healthy so you can feel good about ladling just one more spoonful on top.
Making fresh cheese sounds so much more intimidating and time-consuming than it really is and the result is so worth it. The Kitchn has great instructions on making paneer – I’ve included the basic steps I follow in the recipe, but head over there if you’re looking for more in-depth information & photos. It takes some patience, which is not something I have in abundance or even in teaspoons sometimes, but it’s worth it to not have to scrape burned milk bubbles off the bottom of your best stockpot. Trust me on this one.
The first few times I made paneer, every recipe said to use whole milk – you need a certain amount of fat to get a good cheese, and whole milk is less processed than lower fat milks. But I’m not very good at following directions, so I’ve experimented with making paneer with low fat and skim milk and here’s what happens: you’ll only get about two-thirds of the curds from 0% fat skim milk that you would from the same amount of 3.5% fat whole milk. The cheese will be dense and more rubbery instead of fluffy and melt-in-your-mouth. I’ve written that you can use 2% as well because I find that it still has enough fat to make a good cheese, and it actually holds together better when being stirred into the palak sauce.
I wanted to wait to share another Indian-inspired recipe, but the cool weather has just been calling out for this. If you’re not feeling the whole make-your-own-cheese part and can’t find paneer at your local store, this is also delicious with tofu. Tofu won’t melt into the dish in quite the same way, but holds its shape for a different texture.
