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    Home » Indian

    Published: Sep 12, 2016 · Modified: Mar 10, 2022 by Smruti · This post may contain affiliate links · 14 Comments

    Palak Tofu | Spinach and Tofu Curry

    Blogging Marathon #68 Week 3 Day 1

    Theme: Entree

    Dish: Palak Tofu | Spinach and Tofu Curry


    Today is the beginning of a new week of the Cooking Carnival, a month long non stop blogging Marathon and my theme for the week is Entree. Over the next six days I shall be posting curries from different cuisines. These curries are best enjoyed with breads specific to the cuisine or rice from the cuisine. 


    For the first day, here is a simple yet indulgent curry; palak tofu. This curry is Indian but can be classified as fusion as tofu is not inherent to Indian cooking. Paneer, the milk based protein is used widely in Indian kitchens and Palak Paneer is one of the most famous dishes from Northern India. This recipe is a modern take on the traditional.

    In my kitchen, I love to start off with a traditional recipe and modify it to suit our taste and calorie preference. Substituting frying with baking, rice with quinoa and making use of the appam stand wherever I can is common. This recipe stems from one such thought as well. We enjoy paneer sometimes, but like tofu more. So I added tofu in the palak and made the curry. 

    The first time I made this one, we liked every aspect of it, except that the tofu tasted rather bland. This is because we always like our tofu marinated in some kind of sauce. That was not possible in this curry. So instead of marinating, I added sauteed garlic and cumin to flavor the tofu. This ensures that the pieces of tofu do not taste bland. Once the tofu, garlic and cumin mixes with the spinach puree, the result is perfect. I like to prepare the curry a couple of hours before serving. This ensures the flavors are absorbed by the tofu and the curry tastes awesome! Serve it with roti, paratha, naan or just steamed rice. It is a great meal! 




    Ingredients



    Spinach 1 bunch

    Firm Tofu 1 box (14 oz)

    Garlic 2-3 pods

    Onion 1 medium

    Ginger 1 inch piece

    Green Chilli 1-2 

    Garam Masala 1 tsp

    Mustard Seeds 1 tsp

    Asafoetida a pinch

    Cumin Seeds 2 tsp

    Dhania Jeera Powder 1 tsp

    Oil 2 tbsp + 2 tbsp

    Salt as required

    Lemon Juice ½ tsp

    Spring onion and garlic to garnish


    Method

    Remove tofu from the box and press between paper towels to remove all the water. Once drained, dice to pieces and set aside. Heat a tablespoon of oil and saute the tofu till crisp on all sides. Once done, remove and soak in water with half a teaspoon of salt. 


    In a pan add 1 teaspoon oil and add minced garlic, green chilli and ginger. After it gets fragrant, add diced onions and cook for a few minutes. Turn down the heat and cool. Meanwhile, heat water in a large pan, add some sugar and salt. Once it boils, add the spinach and cook for 1-2 minutes. Remove and immediately drop in cold water. Once cool, puree the spinach along with the onion garlic ginger and green chilli to a smooth paste. 

    In the same pan, heat 1 tablespoon oil and add the mustard seeds. Once they splutter, add asafoetida and a teaspoon of cumin. After it splutters, add the spinach puree, garam masala and salt if needed. Mix and cook for a few minutes. Once it starts to boil, add dhania jeera powder and turn down the flame. Add the lime juice and mix well. 

    Remove tofu from water and set aside. To make the garnish, heat 1 teaspoon of oil. Add remaining cumin seeds and 1 garlic minced. Once the garlic begins to turn brown, turn down the heat and pour it on the tofu pieces. Add the tofu pieces to the palak gravy and add the spring onion greens. Mix well and enjoy. 

    Check out the Blogging Marathon page to see what the other Blogging Marathoners are doing for BM# 68

    An InLinkz Link-up


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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Gayathri Kumar says

      March 10, 2022 at 7:58 pm

      That is a vibrant looking palak and the tofu on it looks awesome.

      Reply
    2. Kalyani says

      March 10, 2022 at 7:58 pm

      Am a big fan of curries ; so am gonna look forward to rhis week ! Palak tofu looks great !

      Reply
    3. MySpicyKitchen says

      March 10, 2022 at 7:58 pm

      Love the color of the curry. It is so bright and vibrant. N

      Reply
    4. cookingwithsapana says

      March 10, 2022 at 7:58 pm

      Palak tofu looks so vibrant and tasty.

      Reply
    5. vaishali sabnani says

      March 10, 2022 at 7:58 pm

      Paalak tofu is a nice variation , the color of the paalak is pretty and looks very fresh . Garlic lends a wonderful flavor to any dish and this one looks super inviting .

      Reply
    6. Srividhya says

      March 10, 2022 at 7:58 pm

      that colorrrr.. whoa super vibrant and love the setup

      Reply
    7. Priya Suresh says

      March 10, 2022 at 7:58 pm

      Omg, the colour of your curry looks absolutely stunning, wat a catchy dish.

      Reply
    8. Harini R says

      March 10, 2022 at 7:58 pm

      Stunning colors Smruti. Lovely gravy there!

      Reply
    9. Sandhya Ramakrishnan says

      March 10, 2022 at 7:58 pm

      Love the vibrant color of the palak. I regularly use tofu instead of paneer as my boys love it.

      Reply
    10. Archana says

      March 10, 2022 at 7:58 pm

      Ho wow what a stunning curry!! We like palak paneer and have not developed a taste for tofu as yet. Think we may like it like this.

      Reply
    11. Suma Gandlur says

      March 10, 2022 at 7:58 pm

      Lovely curry I love how the green color is popping in the clicks.

      Reply
    12. Srivalli says

      March 10, 2022 at 7:58 pm

      The entire setup looks stunning Smurti..I love how green your palak looks..I have made with tofu couple of times, though we didn't like the texture..guess repeated usage will make us all inclined to it.....looking fwd to read your rest of the series..

      Reply
    13. Pavani says

      March 10, 2022 at 7:58 pm

      Love how vibrant and delicious your palak tofu looks.

      Reply
    14. Priya Srinivasan - I Camp in My Kitchen says

      March 10, 2022 at 7:58 pm

      wow what a green, love that kadai too!!! i have never tried tofu at home, since people didnt like the taste of it first time. This tofu palak is so tempting, bookmarking this!!!

      Reply

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