Saag Paneer (spinach w/ cheese)

Annemarie requested this recipe and I thought I'd post for all. This is the best saag I've ever made. The recipe I used was really unclear and i didn't actually follow it all -- but I guess that's nothing new!

**You'll need one small square of paneer which can be bought of homemade. See recipe below. If you decide to make your own paneer -- and I recommend you do -- start it ahead of time. It takes about an hour of draining.

To make the Saag
Start by putting the following into a pot and boiling for 10 minutes (I covered the pot):
1 large onion
1 lb spinach, roughly chopped
4 quarter-sized slices of ginger
3 large garlic cloves peeled
1/4 cup water

Let cool a bit and pulse in food processor then return to pan. Don't get it too smooth. You want some chunks left. Put spinach mixture back in pot and add:
1/4 cup yogurt
Don't let the yogurt get too hot too fast and curdle. Thats prob why you're supposed to let the spinach cool before processing?

Heat up a saute pan, then add:
2 T. vegetable oil
1 T. melted ghee (you can use butter in a pinch)

Add the following and fry for 1-2 minutes:
2 cinnamon sticks
5 cracked-open cardamon pods
1 (1-inch) piece ginger peeled and cut into matchsticks

Add the following and fry for a few seconds:
1 T. ground coriander
1 tsp. garam masala
1 tsp fenugreek leaves (didnt have it so omitted)
1/2 tsp salt
1 clove minced garlic

At this point, you are supposed to clear out the pan and add more oil to fry some chilis. It seemed like a ton of oil to me already, so I just took out the cinnamon and spice 'chunks' from the saute pan and put them in a little bowl on the side. I left the oil mixture in the pan and fried up 4 dried red chili peppers (like chili de arbol). The chili peppers should be really dark, and look kind of burned.

Add the contents of the bowl/pan and the saute into the spinach and stir gently. Don't overmix it.

Add chunks of paneer that have been fried in a bit of oil. Or don't fry it. It's good either way. Serve with basmati rice.


To make paneer
This is a good tutorial but I add a little more yogurt than the recipe recommends.

Cliff's Notes version here: Bring 1/2 gallon WHOLE milk to a boil, then add about a cup WHOLE yogurt.

Stir until the milk and yogurt curdle, about two minutes. Add a pinch or two of garam masala, cumin and salt (all are optional). For saag I usually leave it unsalted and fry in oil and salt afterwards.

Pour the mixture in a strainer lined with cheese cloth. Gather up ends of cheesecloth and tie it on to the faucet for about 1/2 hour to let it drip out. Form the cheese into a flat/squarish ball in cheesecloth and let sit between two plates and balance a big pot of water on top to continue to squeeze out moisture, about 1/2 hour. Unwrap. Cut. Eat.