Aloo Palak
آلو پالک
Aloo palak is one of the most common winter sabzis in Pakistani homes, made when spinach is cheap and tender. This is the dry version: no gravy, just soft potatoes coated in a dark green, well-fried masala. The spinach releases a lot of water, so the trick is to cook it off at the end until the oil shows again, a short that turns a watery pot into a rich one.
- ⏱ Total: 55 min
- Prep: 20 min
- Cook: 35 min
- Easy
- Serves 4
Method
Tap a step when it is done.
Wash the spinach in plenty of water two or three times, lifting it out so the grit stays behind. Drain well in a colander and chop it roughly.
Heat the oil in a over medium heat. Add the cumin and, once it crackles, the onion. Fry for 5–6 minutes until light golden.
Add the and stir for a minute until the raw smell goes. Add the tomatoes, turmeric, chili powder, coriander powder and salt, and cook for 5 minutes until the tomatoes are soft and the oil begins to show at the edges.
Add the potatoes and turn them in the masala for 2 minutes. Cover and cook on low heat for 8 minutes, until the potatoes are half done.
Add the chopped spinach in handfuls; it looks like far too much but shrinks quickly. Stir it in, cover and cook on low heat for 10–12 minutes, until the potatoes are tender when pressed with a spoon.
Uncover, turn the heat to high and cook, stirring and scraping, for 5–7 minutes until all the water from the spinach has dried up and the oil separates. The spinach should look dark and glossy.
Sprinkle in the garam masala, green chilies and ginger strips, stir once and turn off the heat. Serve hot with roti or paratha.
Kitchen notes
Drain the spinach well after washing. Leaves dripping with water make the sabzi take much longer to dry out.
Don't skip the final high-heat stage. Undercooked spinach tastes grassy and slightly bitter; fried until the oil shows, it turns sweet and rich.
Cut the potatoes into even 2 cm cubes so they all cook in the same time.
A winter sabzi for roti
From November to February, bundles of fresh spinach pile up on every vegetable cart in Pakistan, and aloo palak becomes a weekly dish. It is eaten as a main with hot roti or paratha, often with a bowl of yogurt or raita on the side, and it also goes well next to daal and rice. Because it is cheap, quick and needs nothing special, it is one of the first sabzis many people learn to cook.
Cooking the water out
Spinach is mostly water. As soon as it hits the hot pot it wilts and releases a puddle of green liquid, and if you stop there the dish tastes flat. The potatoes need that moisture to finish cooking under the lid, but once they are soft the lid comes off and the heat goes up. Stir and scrape until the liquid is gone and the oil reappears. That last few minutes of concentrates the flavour and gives the spinach its deep colour.
Variations
- Methi: add a small bunch of fresh fenugreek leaves with the spinach, or a teaspoon of at the end, for a slightly bitter, fragrant edge.
- Garlic tarka: for extra flavour, fry four sliced garlic cloves in a spoon of ghee and pour over just before serving.
- Palak gosht: the same masala works with mutton; cook the meat until tender first, then add the spinach.
Storing and reheating
Aloo palak keeps in the fridge for 2 days. Reheat it in a pan over medium heat with a splash of water, stirring until hot. The potatoes soak up more masala overnight, so many people find it tastes even better the next day.
Questions people ask
Can I use frozen spinach?
Yes. Thaw it, squeeze out as much water as you can, and add it after the potatoes are half cooked. It needs only 5 minutes covered before the final frying.
Should I blanch or puree the spinach first?
Not for this dry style. Chopped raw spinach cooks down with the potatoes and keeps some texture. Pureed spinach is used for the gravy style, which is closer to palak paneer.
Why did my aloo palak turn watery?
The spinach water wasn't cooked off. Uncover, raise the heat and keep stirring until the liquid disappears and you see oil around the edges.
Nutrition (estimate, per serving)
- Calories
- 240
- Protein
- 5 g
- Fat
- 14 g
- Carbs
- 24 g
