Chicken Saag

• servings: 4
• active time: 20 minutes
• total time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

1 lb chicken thighs, boneless and skinless, sliced into bite sized chunks and salted on a plate (can sub chicken breast for higher protein, just cook them less)

10 oz spinach

1 large onion, diced or blended

1 small tomato, blended

¼ cup water

3 tbsp neutral oil / ghee

2 tbsp heavy cream, optional

1 in ginger, grated

6 cloves garlic, minced

2 tsp ground coriander seeds

1 tsp Kashmiri chili powder (more or less to taste)

1 tsp garam masala

½ tsp ground cumin seeds

¼ tsp ground turmeric

Salt to taste

Directions

Boil some water in a large pot. Cook all the spinach in the boiling water for 2-3 minutes, then drain out the water and add the spinach to a bowl of ice water. Alternatively you can spray the spinach down with cold water, but it’s less effective. Lightly squeeze out the extra liquid from the spinach, then add it to a blender.

Blend the spinach until it’s a coarse paste, not fully blended at this point.

Heat a large pan with tall sides over medium-high heat, and add the oil / ghee. Once that’s heated up nicely, add the chicken pieces and sear them on both sides, making sure not to overcrowd the pan. Once both sides are nicely seared, or you’re worried the fond will burn, remove the chicken from the pan and add the onions along with any needed extra oil. (The chicken doesn’t need to be fully cooked at this stage, as it can finish in the curry later).

Cook the onions for about 6-7 minutes over medium heat, or until they are golden in color. You can add a little water as needed to scrape up the fond from the chicken. Add the ginger garlic, and the dry spices and saute until aromatic, about another minute.

Add the blended tomato and use the extra liquid to scrape up any fond in the pan. Cook that down for about 2 minutes, then add the blended spinach to the pan, along with the seared chicken and any resting juices. Mix until well combined, adding some water as needed to loosen the consistency. Bring to a boil and simmer over low heat covered for about 8 minutes.

After cooking with the lid on, add the heavy cream and any extra water needed and combine. Cook over medium heat until the cream is well combined and the thickness is what you want (remember it will thicken as it cools). Taste for seasoning and enjoy it warm with rice or another starch of your choice!

Notes

Chicken Saag is a very flavorful dish originating from the northern Punjab region of India. “Saag” is derived from a Sanskrit word referring to leafy vegetables. This is a curry that utilizes blended spinach to create a creamy and healthy curry popping with spices and flavor, and serves as a nice departure from the tomato based curries more popular in The West. This specific dish may also be referred to as “Palak Chicken”.