Silver beet Paneer, a variation of Palak Paneer

The other day I showed you my curry made with borage, ‘invented’ because I have tons of it in the garden! The other green-leaf crop that does well in Auckland is silver beet. My old plants (from last year!) got so tall that I started collecting only the little leaves from the stalks, and they look like spinach.

One of my favourite Indian dishes is Palak Paneer (or Panir), spinach with panir cottage cheese, and this variation is made using my silver beet.

I washed (many times!) the small silver beet leaves, and then I steamed them and drain them.

In a heavy pot I heated 2 tbsp of vegetable oil (I used rice bran oil) and sautéed for 30 seconds:

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp turmeric

1/3 tsp ground chili

then I added 2 roughly chopped shallots and, after 3 minutes, a good pinch of salt and the cooked silver beet.

I cooked everything on low for about 20 minutes (you may need to add just a little water if the silver beet is too dry) and then finely pureed the content of the pot with an immersion blender.

I added the paneer, cut into small squares (Vegans, you can add tofu), and cooked everything for 5 more minutes, tasted for salt, and served.

It was amazing, almost as good as the palak paneer made with spinach!

Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©