This Indian Style Creamed Spinach is a bit like Palak Paneer, but without the paneer. …because my homemade paneer didn’t turn out. 😅 But that’s okay! The creamy spiced spinach is absolutely delightful on its own, so it’s still totally worth sharing. It’s amazing for dipping bread (preferably naan), spooning over rice, or using as a base for a more complete meal.
Make it Dairy-free or with Dairy
When I originally posted this recipe seven years ago I made it with evaporated milk. Since that time I’ve discovered how incredibly amazing coconut is with garam masala, so this time around I swapped out the evaporated milk for coconut milk. That also happens to make this recipe vegan and friendly to those who can’t consume dairy. If you prefer the dairy version, simply use one cup evaporated milk in place of the coconut milk.
Can I Use Light Coconut Milk?
Yes, you can use light coconut milk in place of the full-fat coconut milk, but the end result will be slightly less thick. I do not suggest using coconut milk sold in a carton, the type meant to be used as a dairy milk substitute. It will be far too watery for this recipe.
What to Serve with Indian Creamed Spinach
As mentioned in the intro, this Indian style creamed spinach makes a great side dish. You can serve it with dishes like Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala, Cauliflower and Chickpea Masala, or Slow Cooker Coconut Curry Lentils. Or, you can add a couple more ingredients into your creamed spinach and make that your main dish. Consider adding cubed tofu, a can of chickpeas, or a diced potato or two.
Is this Creamed Spinach Spicy?
This recipe does have a little heat, thanks to a ¼ tsp cayenne pepper. If you prefer a mild creamed spinach, simply skip the cayenne pepper.
Is there a Substitute for the Garam Masala?
If you can’t find Garam Masala in a store near you, you can substitute it with curry powder. Or, try your hand at making a homemade garam masala.
Indian Style Creamed Spinach
Servings 4 about 1 cup eachIngredients
- 1 13.5oz. can full-fat coconut milk ($1.79)
- 8 oz. fresh spinach ($1.29)
- 1 yellow onion ($0.32)
- 2 cloves garlic ($0.16)
- 1 Tbsp grated fresh ginger ($0.30)
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.32)
- 2 tsp ground cumin ($0.20)
- 1 tsp garam masala ($0.10)
- 1/2 tsp turmeric ($0.05)
- 1/4¼ tsp cayenne pepper ($0.02)
- 1 large tomato ($0.97)
- 1/4 cup water ($0.00)
- 3/4 tsp salt (or to taste) ($0.03)
Instructions
- Add the coconut milk and spinach to a large pot. Stir and cook over medium heat until the coconut milk is warmed through and has wilted the spinach. Remove from the heat as soon as the spinach has wilted to avoid over cooking the spinach.
- Transfer the warm coconut milk and spinach to a blender and pulse until the spinach is in small pieces (you can choose to blend until smooth, if you prefer). Set this mixture aside.
- Dice the onion, mince the garlic, and grate the ginger. Add the onion, garlic, and ginger to a large skillet along with the olive oil. Sauté over medium heat until the onions are soft (about 5 minutes).
- Add the cumin, garam masala, turmeric, and cayenne to the skillet. Stir and cook the spices with the onion, garlic, and ginger for about two minutes more.
- Dice the tomato and add it to the skillet along with about 1/4 cup water. Stir and cook the tomato with the other ingredients, dissolving any browned bits off the bottom of the skillet, until the tomato has broken down (5-8 minutes).
- Finally, add the coconut and spinach mixture to the skillet and stir to combine. Allow the mixture to heat through, stirring occasionally.
- Taste the creamed spinach and add salt to taste. Start with 1/4 tsp, adding more as needed until the flavors pop (I added 3/4 tsp).
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Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!How to Make Indian Creamed Spinach – Step By Step Photos
Start by pouring one 13.5 oz. can of full-fat coconut milk into a soup pot.
Add 8 oz. of fresh spinach to the coconut milk. Stir and cook over medium heat just until the spinach has wilted (this should only take about five minutes). Do not over cook the spinach here. It should still be bright green in color.
Transfer the warm coconut milk and spinach to a blender and pulse until the spinach is in small pieces. You can blend until smooth if you prefer, but I like a little texture in mine. Set this mixture aside.
Dice one yellow onion, mince two cloves of garlic, and grate about 1 Tbsp fresh ginger. Add all three to a skillet along with 2 Tbsp olive oil. Sauté the onion, garlic, and ginger over medium heat until the onions are soft (about 5 minutes).
Once the onions are soft, add 2 tsp cumin, 1 tsp garam masala, ½ tsp turmeric, and ¼ tsp cayenne pepper to the skillet. Stir and cook the spices with the onion, garlic, and ginger for about 2 minutes more.
Dice one tomato and add it to the skillet along with about ¼ cup water. Stir and cook the tomato with the other ingredients, dissolving any browned bits off the bottom of the skillet, until the tomatoes have broken down (5-8 minutes).
Finally, pour the coconut and spinach mixture into the skillet and stir to combine.
Allow the mixture to heat through, stirring occasionally. Once hot, give it a taste and add salt as needed. I added about ¾ tsp. I suggest starting with ¼ tsp and adding more to your liking. Adding the correct amount of salt will help the flavors pop.
Serve hot with some bread for dipping!
Perfect for a pound of spinach I didn’t know what to do with. So easy and quick.
I followed all ingredients except milk / spinach added after and it came out delish!!!
So good to have many recipes in this time of CoviD19 wen we have to make do with what we have.
I make this recipe every other week, it’s so good! I usually add either a can of chickpeas (added at the same time as the tomato) or a diced potato (added at the same time as the onion) to bulk it out a bit. I also highly recommend Thai Kitchen coconut milk — I tried this once with Trader Joe’s brand coconut milk and it was WAY too coconutty and not thick enough. Naan is also a must. Highly recommend this recipe!
Once again this is a hit for me. Beth, your flavors are so spot on! I used frozen spinach, a can of tomatoes, and I added some cooked chickpeas. It was so good I had to have seconds. Thank you!
I used frozen spinach. I put all the ingredients (added a little tom paste as I was short on fresh toms) except for the coconut milk and frozen spinach in the recipe as prescribed. Then when it all came together, I added the coconut milk and spinach and heated it all together. Got rave reviews from my wife. She brought it for lunch and her coworkers loved it as well. I am planning on going to sea to cook aboard a square rigged ship and I think a few bags of frozen spinach would be easy to keep aboard ship with the some canned coconut milk for a hearty and healthy meal afloat. Thanks for the inspiration and follow my life aboard ship at my Blog at thechartedlife.net
Used similar steps as above. Sautéed onion, diced cauliflower, and chopped mushroom in garlic. Left out tomato bc they give my pregnant self heartburn. Added half cup broth to vegetables. Once they were soft, added frozen spinach and let it soften. Then coconut milk and heated through.
IT WAS SO GOOD!! My older kids called it Salad Soup and my 1 yo ate 2 bowls
How long can this be kept in the fridge?
We recommend up to three days.
can it be frozen?
It should be okay to freeze, we haven’t tested it ourselves yet. But if stored properly it can freeze up to three months.
Excellent! So much easier than my old saag paneer recipe! I made it with frozen spinach and fire roasted diced tomatoes. I added a little extra garlic, ginger and spices. It turned out fabulous! I’m going to make paneer and try adding it in next time. Thanks for another awesome recipe!
I’m going to make this with a can of Rotel spicy tomatoes and some silken tofu. Can’t wait!
For those asking about using frozen spinach…
This came out delicious using a bag of frozen chopped spinach (12 oz, I think), that I microwaved to thaw/partially cook and then squeezed mostly dry. Added the coconut milk to that, then went on per the recipe. The result was delicious, probably less saucy than Beth’s and with a coarser texture, since I chose not to blend it at all. It was really good as a side with chicken, Bombay potatoes, and naan. Probably I would up the spices more next time, since I had more spinach.
I loved this! I made it exactly as posted and had with Trader Joe’s garlic naan, yum! Potatoes and chickpeas would be really good too, I may try that next time. Thanks for another awesome recipe :)
I just made the updated recipe with coconut milk and my wife was really happy with it. To make it a main dish I added a can of chickpeas and served over rice.
Thanks Beth!
Can you make this with chicken? Would I just cook chicken 20 minutes in this sauce at the end?
As Beth mentions in the post, this Indian style creamed spinach makes a great side dish. You can serve it with dishes like Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala, Cauliflower and Chickpea Masala, or Slow Cooker Coconut Curry Lentils. Or, you can add a couple more ingredients into your creamed spinach and make that your main dish. Consider adding cubed tofu, a can of chickpeas, or a diced potato or two. I’d recommend cooking the chicken separately, then adding it to the spinach.
Since I am not vegetarian nor vegan – I added 4 sliced of cooked and crumpled bacon and then dipped Naan into it. Yum!!!!!!! Thanks for sharing.
Just finished making this recipe. I substituted a can of diced tomatoes with the juice for the tomatoes and water because it was all I had on hand. I threw it on top of some left over sweet potatoes and basmati rice. Looks gorgeous and sooooo delicious!
Love this a LOT more with coconut milk than the evaporated milk. Definitely an upgrade! Added chickpeas to make it a main and it was fab.
This was REALLY good. So flavorful, healthy and affordable. I’ll definitely make this often.