Adam Liaw’s palak paneer recipe combines paneer with a smooth spinach gravy, aromatic spices and a garlic tadka to finish. The dish begins by softening the paneer in boiling water for 10 minutes before it is drained.
For the base, onion, ginger, garlic and chilli are blended into a smooth purée. Spinach is blanched briefly in simmering water, transferred to iced water and drained well, then blended with cashews to make a second purée.
Butter and oil are heated in a saucepan with cardamom, cassia and cloves until fragrant. The onion mixture is added and cooked for about five minutes, until the oil begins to separate.
After seasoning with salt, turmeric and about a quarter of a cup of water, the mixture is cooked for a further three minutes. Fenugreek leaves and the spinach purée are then added and simmered over a low heat for five minutes.
Cream can be stirred through the spinach gravy, followed by garam masala and the paneer. The seasoning is adjusted before the dish is transferred to a serving plate.
To make the topping, butter and garlic are heated in a small saucepan until the garlic turns golden. Chilli powder is added off the heat, and the resulting tadka is poured over the palak paneer to serve.
