Saag Paneer – Keto Friendly, Gluten-Free, Vegetarian

5 from 3 votes

Apr 06, 2018, Updated Jul 03, 2021

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Saag Paneer is a North Indian recipe made with Indian cheese and spiced creamy greens. This can be enjoyed as a side dish or main entree. Super easy to make and very healthy as well.

This Indian classic recipe is a weeknight favorite along with instant pot butter chicken and spiced Indian lentils.

Saag paneer in a gold small dish with green chilies on the side

If you’ve been following my blog for a while, then you may know that Indian food is my absolute favorite. So much flavor. Today I’m sharing one of my favorite Indian recipes. Saag Paneer. It’s Keto-friendly, Gluten-Free, and Vegetarian.

While I love sharing comfort meals like coconut chicken curry, once in a while these low carb and keto-friendly recipes are awesome as well.

You can serve this with cauliflower rice if you’re on a low carb or keto diet. Saag paneer makes wonderful leftovers. In fact, it always tastes better the next day.

This is a mild spice curry but feel free to add some chili powder and green chilies for a spicier version. I also seasoned the paneer with a little turmeric to give it color and garam masala as well.

What is Saag Paneer?

Saag paneer is a classic North Indian dish made with spinach and paneer. It can be made with mustard leaves, broccoli, or any other greens. Although traditionally made with spinach, any spiced greens work well with this dish. Paneer is Indian cheese that can be purchased at any Indian supermarket.

How to Make Saag Paneer – Step by Step

Bring a pot of water to a boil and salt it generously.
Drizzle the paneer with 1 tbsp olive oil.
Season the paneer with turmeric, salt, pepper, and 1 tsp garam masala.
Fry the paneer over high heat for 1 minute on each side.
Remove the fried paneer from the skillet and set aside.
Roughly chop spinach.
Add the spinach to the boiling water and cook for 1-2 minutes, drain completely.
Place half of the spinach and coriander in a food processor and blend until pureed.
Warm-up some oil in a pan, add the bay leave and cumin seeds, let the cumin seeds pop.
Stir in the remaining garam masala.
Add the onions, tomatoes, and green chilies for 2-3 minutes or until translucent.
Add the ginger-garlic paste and cook for an additional 30 seconds.
Stir in the spinach and paneer and cook for 2 minutes.
Add the heavy cream.
Season with salt and pepper, and add a squeeze of fresh lemon juice. The lemon juice is optional.
Simmer over medium-low heat for 10 minutes.
Garnish with some fresh finely chopped coriander, if desired.

Can you Substitute Fresh Spinach With Frozen Spinach?

You absolutely can use frozen spinach instead of fresh spinach. Make sure to thaw the frozen spinach and squeeze out most of the water before using it.

Top Tips and Recipe Variations:

Not a fan of cheese? Make the spinach base and throw in your favorite vegetables like mushrooms, corn, okra, etc.
Add chickpeas instead of paneer and replace the heavy cream with coconut milk for a vegan version.

Check out These Other Indian Inspired Recipes:

Paneer Salad

5 from 3 votes (3 ratings without comment)