Palak Tofu is my take on a popular dish from the Punjab region of India called Palak Paneer, which is made of spinach (Palak) and cheese (paneer).

Unlike Swiss cheeses which melt easily, the paneer cheese is harder in consistency and does not melt when heated. I’m told that it’s easy to make paneer from scratch and it’s on my list of things to try out in the coming weeks.

In the meantime, I’ve substituted the paneer for tofu, providing a convincing vegan option. For the preparation of this recipe, I used a kilo of frozen spinach, but you can very well use fresh produce, just use two kilos of spinach leaves instead.

Looking for another 100% vegan dish? take a look at the spicy Dahl recipe!

Ingredients

500 g Plain tofu (firm)
1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
2 tsp Curcuma powder (haldi)
1 tsp Garam masala
1 tsp Salt
4 tbsp Olive oil
1 kg Plain frozen spinach (or 2 kg of fresh spinach)
1 Tomato, diced
1 Red onion (finely chopped)
25 g Ginger finely grated
16 g Garlic (finely chopped)
1 cc Jeera (whole) (cumin seeds)
2 Cardamom pods
2 Cloves
Salt and Pepper

Instructions

1. Cut the tofu into cubes and marinade them for a few hours in 2 tbsp of olive oil, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp garam masala, 2 tsp turmeric and 1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder.
2. If you’re using frozen spinach, defrost 1 kg before cooking
3. In a frying pan, heat 2 tbsp olive oil, and fry onion, ginger, garlic, jeera, cloves and cardamom pods.
4. Add the tomato and tofu pieces. Fry on a high heat for 5-6 minutes until the tofu is slightly brown.
5. Add the spinach and mix well. Simmer on low heat for 30 minutes.