Palak Paneer A La Lavallée

Ok, so here’s the deal. When I lived in Toronto many moons ago, and felt down and out, I would call upon a little Indian restaurant on Gerrard Street called “The BBQ Hut“. I would order copious amounts of spicy Indian food and drown my sorrows in it. Many plates later, and some serious ring of fire, I would wander about my end of the city and think how lucky I was that I had all this at my fingertips. Obviously, there is something in Indian food that turns my pessimism into optimism. I wonder, is it the cumin seed or perhaps the tamarind? Nope, it is just the big plate of Palak Paneer!

In light of the horrible stretch of weather we were experiencing last week, I thought it was only appropriate to put together an Indian feast to lift our spirits. Here is my recipe for “optimism”.

Palak Paneer A La Lavallée

• 1 onion; finely chopped
• 2 tomatoes; chopped
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 3 chilies
• 1″ ginger; minced
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 2 tsp coriander powder
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• salt & pepper
• 1 tsp cumin powder
• 1 bunch fresh coriander; roughly chopped
• 1 can pureed spinach
• 1 block Paneer cheese; cut into chunks

In a skillet, add some oil (about 3 tsp) and heat. On medium heat, add onion and ginger. Cook until translucent and add all the spices. Cook for one minute until fragrant. Add tomatoes and peas. Cook for five minutes and add the spinach.  Cook for another 10 minutes and add the paneer and fresh coriander. Cook another 10 minutes and check for seasoning.

Serve with your other favourite Indian dishes, basmati rice, and papdums.

Many of the above ingredients can be found at the stores mentioned in this story: Saturday Food Round-Up

Another successful Indian feast.