Palak Paneer
It's not the traditional Indian dish but rather my take on this classic. Firstly......it's palak tempeh. I love tempeh and believe it can be incorporated in so many recipes, well beyond South East Asian Cuisine. Tempeh is packed with proteins and fiber (almost double that of tofu), so my palak paneer is a high protein recipe.
If you don't have tempeh you can always replace it with hard tofu, just remember to press it well beforehand.
Ingredients
250g tempeh
600 g spinach (aka palak)
1 onion finely diced
3 cloves of garlic minced
1 inch of grated or finely chopped ginger
1 bay leave
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon of cumin seeds
1 tablespoon of garam masala
1 tablespoon of coriander powder
30g of cashew nuts
1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar
1 tomato diced
Fresh coriander
oil
Method
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Preheat the oven to 180C and chop tempeh into cubes.
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Bake in the oven for approx 10 minutes until lightly brown and set it aside
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Blanch the spinach - throw it into a boiling water for about 3 minutes, drain it and put it immediately into cold water.
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Transfer the spinach to a blender or food processor and blend to a puree. It shouldn't be necessary to add liquid, but if it is, add up to 1/4 cup of water to get the spinach moving. Set aside.
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Blend cashew nuts, with apple cider vinegar and 60ml of water until smooth, runny mixture forms
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Heat the oil and add cumin seeds, cinnamon and bay leave and cook for about 1 minute until fragrant and a shade darker.
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Add the onion and fry for about 3 minutes, then add garlic and ginger, now it's time to add turmeric and coriander powder. Cook for 30 seconds, stirring the spices.
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Add the spinach puree, and garam masala and cook for about 5 minutes, if it gets too dry you can add more water.
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Add 3/4 of cashew sour cream and tempeh and cook for another 3 minutes
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Garnish curry with drizzle of sour cream and fresh coriander