Loading...Palak Matar Malai is an enticing combo of spinach, green peas & milk cream. Notably, there are two vegetables & a dairy item in this recipe. However, the quantity of milk cream (मलाई) is subjective.
It depends on your taste. Yeah, I am talking about how much cream goes in there. Palak Matar Malai is a Punjabi recipe. Since it has the Punjabi legacy, there will be a lot of oil & cream involved.
Therefore let me show you exactly how much malai we will be putting in this recipe. Let’s start with the ingredient list. Here it is.
Things Needed For Palak Matar Malai
The item list seems long, but it involves only three steps to put everything together. The tempering process is one of them. Since we are making a Punjabi recipe, the tadka has to be typical Punjabi. Let’s get started with items.
For easy understanding, I have bifurcated the item list into sections. Take a look.
Boiling (3 items)
Boiling green peas (मटर) is a pre-preparation. To do that you will need green peas, salt & water. Watch the salt quantity. Boil till they are soft. Don’t overboil, or else they will tear apart.
Remember, we need green peas in one piece in the first place.
Tempering (10 items)
Tadka, aka tempering, is a crucial process while making a recipe. Whether it’s an Indian dish or something else, tempering is a vital thing. Therefore, here are the tadka items.
Oil, cumin seeds, onion, asafoetida, ginger-garlic paste, tomato, coriander powder, red chilli powder, garam masala & turmeric powder.
Using the above spice, we will make the base of our gravy. Each one is traditional spice & masala powders.
Spinach
Spinach (पालक) is our base ingredient like green peas. Chop spinach so that it cooks. Use fresh leaves. Nothing fancier about it anymore.
Heavy Cream in Palak Matar Malai
First thing first, it’s not whipping cream; it’s heavy cream. Second, you can use thick malai. The same malai that you have accumulated in the fridge for a long time. Yup, I do the same. Thus, go for it.
Best Heavy Cream Brand
I use Amul heavy cream because it is available in small packs. Bigger packs are a pain to store. Moreover, you can’t keep heavy cream for a long time. But WHY?
Once the packs open, it is useless after a couple of days. The cream starts curdling & tastes awful with a foul smell. Henceforth buy small packs only.
It is immaterial which brand of heavy cream you use. I already told you about the substitute also. The only point is not to skip heavy cream.
Our next step is how to cook palak matar malai.
Making Palak Matar Malai
Like I said above, the entire cooking process includes three steps. Boiling, tempering & finally cooking.
First, boil green peas. Take care they don’t shatter in boiling water. Once they are soft, take them out of the hot water. Allow them to cool down. Suppose necessary run them through tap water.
Second, prepare the tadka masala. Roast cumin with onions. When they change colour, add all masala powders. Take care so that it doesn’t burn. Therefore, keep the gas flames medium to low.
Third, cook spinach with boiled peas. It is the final step where we will add spinach first and allow it to cook till soft. There’s a reason why we aren’t adding boiled peas. Yeah, they are boiled already. If we add them with spinach, they will overcook.
Once every item is in the pan or pot, simmer the mixture for 5 minutes. Turn off the gas and then add heavy cream & mix. Cover the lid & allow it to mix.
Jobe done! Your palak matar malai is ready.
So, that was it with the palak matar malai recipe today.
