Palak tofu (spinach curry with tofu)
40 min · 27 g protein · 301 cals / serving
The curry-house favorite made with tofu in place of paneer: golden cubes of tofu folded through a silky, bright green spinach sauce spiced with ginger, garlic, green chili and garam masala. A splash of soy milk makes it creamy without cream.
Ingredients
- 2 blocks (14 oz each) prepared extra firm tofu, patted dry, cut in 2 cm (3/4-inch) cubes
- 1 tbsp canola oil
- 1 lb spinach, washed
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 5 cloves garlic, grated
- a 4 cm (1 1/2-inch) piece ginger, grated
- 1–2 green chili pepper, chopped
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 2 Roma tomatoes, chopped
- 2 tsp garam masala
- 1 cup unsweetened soy milk
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
Steps
- Pat the tofu dry, giving it a firm squeeze in a clean towel. Heat half the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat and fry the tofu cubes for 6–8 minutes, turning, until golden on most sides. Tip them onto a plate.
- Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil, push the spinach under for 1 minute, until just wilted, then drain and rinse with cold water so it stays green. Squeeze lightly.
- Heat the remaining oil in the skillet over medium heat and cook the onion for 5 minutes, until soft. Add the garlic, ginger, green chili, cumin, coriander and turmeric for 1 minute, then the tomatoes, and cook 4–5 minutes, until they break down.
- Blend the spinach, the tomato masala, the garam masala and the soy milk until smooth with a stick blender or in a blender, then return it to the pan with the salt and simmer 3–4 minutes.
- Fold in the tofu and simmer 2 minutes more, so it soaks up the sauce. Stir in the lemon juice, taste for salt, and serve with rice or warm flatbread.
Good to know
Can I use super-firm tofu?
Yes, the dense kind sold as super-firm or high-protein. It carries more protein in every bite and more calories too, at about 64 instead of 72.
Frozen spinach instead of fresh?
Use the same weight of frozen leaf spinach, thawed and squeezed. Skip the blanching in step 2 and blend it straight in.
Alternative
Per
- Calories
- 70
- Protein
- (35%)
- 6 g
- Fat
- (50%)
- 4 g
- Carbohydrates
- (15%)
- 3 g
- of which sugar
- 1 g
- Fiber
- 1 g
- Sodium
- 154 mg
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Computed from the ingredients with our published formula, not yet kitchen-tested. How
As written, 1203 kcal goes into the pot and 1989 g of ingredients comes out as about 1710 g of food: 70 kcal per 100 g. Cooking moves water and energy density is the score's biggest lever, so the dish is scored as cooked, not as an average of its parts. Every ingredient links to its food page, with the same data and score. The label's percentages are each macronutrient's share of the calories. The full formula.