How to make spinach more interesting

Spinach might not be everybody’s favourite, but it is sure packed with a lot of goodness! This wonder is being heralded into the new era to work perfectly in combo with other foods. The rich green colour of the leafy veggie highlights any dish, making it chief in the nutrition department. But if the thought of spinach makes you or your family members roll their eyes, then here is a bit of a nudge. After all, we want to set you on your path to health and wellness!

We are going to blitz some creativity into our culinary experiment. So yep, tighten up your apron strings, palak is going to have its moment of crowning glory.

What’s the deal with palak?

So, what’s the deal with palak and why are we egging you on to have it? Here are some of the highlights…

• It is low in fat and cholesterol making it a ‘must-have’ for weight watchers.
• Jam-packed with vitamins and minerals, the fibre in this green leafy palak makes it an effective solution for constipation.
• The rich green colour helps in increasing our RBC performance making it an excellent dish for those of us who are anaemic.
• As we all know, most Indian women are anaemic. So, if you feel tired much of the time, it is high time to be spinach regular.
• This plant also improves the function of the brain and enhances bone health. Thus, those suffering from osteoarthritis or any such bone-related problem should look at spinach dishes more often.
• Spinach helps with diabetes.
• For you beauty queens, palak is good for hair, and skin, so gulp it up.

How to make palak interesting

Having elaborated on why you should have, let’s get started on how you can enjoy it. There are many creative ways to allow this healthy leaf to return rapidly to your dining table. Here are some selections of tummy happy and ‘dil khush’ spinach recipes with some twirl.

Palak corn fritters

A must-have is a plate of mouth-watering fritters which works during monsoon as well as the cold climes that we are enjoying now! The corn adds the extra munch making it a “dil maange more’ of this dish. Can’t help salivating, can you?

Enjoy a power-packed breakfast with this Spinach Dosa recipe. 

Crispy greens

Drizzle olive oil and a dash of salt on the spinach and put it on the hibachi grill. Crisp it up. Enjoy the crunch or dip it in hummus. You can crush and sprinkle it on salads. Any which way you bite into these crispy greens, they will be simply yummy.

Palak paratha

Add cooked palak to your roti dough and roll out hot paratha. Brush it with some ghee on top and serve with tangy homemade tomato sauce. Adding paneer to palak will add proteins to your lip-smacking paratha. This healthy wholesome meal goes best with raita too. And yes, you can add some blanched palak finely chopped in your raita. If you are bored of paratha, make small balls of dough and deep fry them. You get palak pakoras. Sinful is gleeful!!

Craving for something indulgent? This Spinach-Cheese Balls recipe fits the bill. 

Soups

Soups are an all-time “souperb” way to have a hearty, healthy meal and what an awesome dish for you to gobble up your healthy green leaf. Tear up a bunch of spinach into a bowl of creamy soup of mixed veggies. Blitz and give the mixture a boil for just a few minutes. Dash of freshly ground pepper on top and squeeze some lime juice. We promise that you will never say no to this super soup. It is a great way to keep slim too.

Sarson ka saag

Go Punjabi! A delicious must-have winter dish from the North that boasts of five green leafy vegetables. Can you beat that? Add more spinach and enjoy. Chop and mix some palak in makkai ki roti for more goodness. Don’t forget white butter and melted jaggery on the side!

Palak Paneer

If you are making this over-rated regular, then you as well cook it differently.  Cook it with lemongrass to give it a hint of Thai.

How about swapping the paneer with mushroom for a delicious Palak Mushroom recipe?

Green pulao

Ok, so you are a rice eater. Don’t worry; make your rice pulao hara bhara. Add palak to your rice and it will make health go a long way. Just make palak soup and boil the rice with it. You can also prepare it the usual pulao way by adding mushrooms, broccoli and such delights.

Palak chaat

An absolutely lip-smacking dish with crispy palak, sweet-sour tamarind chutney with sev and other garnishes… delicious, isn’t it?

Another type of spinach that’s soft, tender, mild, and just as healthy is Baby Spinach.

Do note

• If you are a patient with kidney stones, talk to your nutritionist before making spinach your main dish.
• Howsoever inviting these bunches of bright and green look, you need to check it out for worms. Dip the bunch in saltwater just before use. Don’t keep them in the solution for a long time, the plant could lose its nutritive value.
• Spinach is best eaten when it is fresh. So avoid storing it for a long time.
• Please yaad rahe that our dear humble palak has a lot of water content. It will shrink when cooking.

So, readers, let us give Popeye a run for his spinach!

Click here to buy spinach