Saag, sometimes called palak, is and has always been one of my favorite foods. This Indian dish is a staple throughout India and is most common in the state of Odisha in northern India. Other parts of the country and neighboring Bengal have slight variations in flavors and textures, but the base ingredients of the dish remain the same. This dish has become wildly popular in areas with a lot of Indian immigrants, especially in Great Britain and the United States.
Made with a leafy green vegetable, most commonly spinach or mustard greens, saag is a form of creamed spinach with a variety of Indian spices that combine to create a one-of-a-kind flavor. The greens are slow-cooked for hours and wind up being a dark, sometimes muddy, or brownish-green color, making it somewhat less appealing to look at.
A favorite in the US is saag paneer, a version of the dish with small chunks of a simple cheese called paneer. Other varieties are chicken tikka saag, which features white meat chicken cooked in a tandoori oven, and aloo saag, which includes fried potatoes mixed into the cooked greens.
My favorite Indian restaurant where I grew up once told my family that their saag contained 52 different spices and was cooked for over 8 hours. I’m not quite sure I believe that they use 52 different spices. I think the incredible flavor of their saag comes largely from butter and cream, along with the right quantities of spices.
This recipe is not quite as good as their saag, but it’s certainly an excellent version to make at home and is quite easy to prepare!
A few of the ingredients may seem intimidating, but in general, they are easy to find in most grocery stores or specialty food stores, such as Whole Foods. (Keep in mind, Ghee is usually not refrigerated!)
Naan, an Indian flatbread usually served with any Indian meal, can be found at specialty stores and some grocery stores.
Ingredients
- 16 – 18 oz fresh spinach
- 2 (16 – 18 oz) bunches of roughly chopped mustard greens (remove the stem) or turnip greens
- 2 Tbsp ghee or clarified butter (butter is fine if you can’t find ghee.)
- 1 diced red onion
- 2-inches minced fresh ginger
- 6 cloves minced garlic
- 1 minced Serrano pepper (seeds removed)
- 2 tsp salt (adjust as needed)
- 1 tsp coriander powder
- 1 tsp cumin powder
- ½ tsp turmeric powder
- ½ tsp cayenne
- 1 Tbsp ghee (butter is fine)
- 1 tsp garam masala
- ¼ tsp fenugreek leaves
- 1 cup heavy cream
Instructions
- Add the mustard greens and spinach to a large pot and fill with water. Place on high heat and bring to a boil and simmer for 3 – 5 minutes or until wilted.
- Drain as much water as possible, place all the leaves in a blender, and blend to your desired consistency. Place the greens in a crock pot.
- Add ghee, red onion, ginger, garlic, and serrano pepper to a cast iron skillet and sauté on medium-high heat.
- Turn the heat down to medium and add the spices. Cook for about 2 minutes. The mixture should be very fragrant. Add this mixture to the crock pot.
- Cook on low in a crock pot for 3 hours.
- Add additional ghee, garam masala, fenugreek, and cream. Stir thoroughly and cook for another 45 minutes on low.
- If you’re adding meat or paneer, add it now as well.
- Serve over rice and a side of naan.
