Palak Paneer (Indian Cottage Cheese w/Spinach): Today's new food is another find from the Buford Highway Farmers Market's Indian aisle. I was lucky enough to find several great pre-prepared dishes there, and even though they may or may not be super-authentic, they've at least allowed me to try some new foods without investing in a full-on restaurant meal. I'm going to do that sometime soon (I promise), but for now, these will work.
This selection from Kohinoor was called palak paneer, or cottage cheese with spinach. I've really enjoyed all the Indian food I've tried so far, despite all of what I've tried being vegetarian. I'm usually not too big of a fan of vegetarian cuisine, but Indian dishes make up for the lack of meat with a lot of flavor and spice. Oh, and the ghee (clarified butter) doesn't hurt, either. The package suggested serving it with rice or naan, so I opted for a piece of the Trader Joe's tandoori naan I had stashed in the freezer.
When I opened the package, it didn't look appetizing at all. It reminded me more of the gunk I pull out of my shower drain than something I would eat, but I wasn't going to let that stop me. I've eaten crickets, lamb heart, and durian, so how bad could this be?
After heating, I served the mixture in a bowl with my naan as a dipping implement, then went to work. The flavor was reminiscent of pureed creamed spinach, but much more flavorful. A lot of the traditional Indian spices were present (garam masala, coriander, fenugreek, cumin), but it wasn't nearly as spicy as some of the other Indian dishes I've tried. The cottage cheese cubes were a dead ringer for soft tofu - in a blind taste test, I wouldn't have known the difference.
Pretty good, but not quite as tasty as some of the curries and masala dishes I've tried. Oh, and this whole package allegedly contained 3 servings, but I scarfed down most of it in one sitting. Given the calorie count, it wasn't exactly healthy eating. Oh well.
No comments:
Post a Comment