Lasooni Corn Palak | Makai Palak with Garlic Tadka

Lasooni Corn Palak is a beautiful dish with a creamy spinach curry base and bits of sweet corn topped with a spicy garlicky tadka. This restaurant style dish is lightly spiced and really creamy.

If you are palak (spinach) fan, you need to try this recipe. Spinach and corn are a match made in heaven and this dish comes together so fast if you need something quick and easy to make for dinner.

When it comes to spinach based recipes like Palak Paneer or Palak Paneer Kofta Curry, the #1 complaint is that it's too bitter or it doesn't do enough to mask the strong flavour of spinach. What if I told you that you can still taste the spinach, mask the bitterness and have a fresh, green coloured curry that's creamy, balanced and lightly spiced. Something nobody can stop licking off the plate!

How to make Corn Palak + Ingredients

The beauty of this recipe is that it only needs a few ingredients and is ready in 30 minutes but nobody will guess because it's packed with flavour.

• Ghee: In a pinch you can use oil but ghee adds flavour and makes this gravy super luxurious
• Garlic: Garlic is actually added at two steps in this recipe - first in the base gravy that is blended till smooth and next in the tadka (tempering) on top to add a second layer of garlic-ness
• Green Chillies: Chopped green chillies add a nice level of heat to this recipe. We won't add any red chilli powder later because we don't want to compromise the bright green colour and make it muddy so all the heat comes from here. Use Serrano Peppers if living outside India. Adjust the amount based on how spicy your chillies are
• Spinach or Palak: Stems removed because stems make the gravy more fibrous. Leaves washed well in water 2-3 times because spinach can hide a lot of grit and mud between leaves
• Coriander: Fresh coriander is my secret weapon which helps balance out the bitterness from the spinach and keeps this green gravy tasting beautiful and fresh
• Whole Spices: I like to use whole bayleaf, cardamom and cloves to flavour the gravy from the start
• Kasuri Methi: Basically dried fenugreek or methi. This features in so many of my Indian recipes. Its perfect for finishing the dish and adding a mildly smoky flavour

You can cook this puree ahead of time and store in the fridge till whenever you are ready to cook Corn Palak. I sometimes make this a day ahead.

1. Saute: Saute the garlic and green chillies in ghee till aromatic - about 30-40 seconds
2. Fry: Fry the onions till they are soft and turn translucent. Don't brown them or the colour and flavour of the gravy will change
3. Add Greens and Wilt: Add spinach and coriander and cook till the greens are wilted - about 3-4 minutes. You can cover with a lid to steam them
4. Cool and Blend: Cool completely and blend with a little water till the puree is smooth

Once this puree is ready, the next few steps go by realy fast. Here's what you'll need:

1. Saute: Sauteeing the spices lightly in ghee or oil helps release their aroma in the gravy
2. Cook Tomatoes: We've already added onions before in the pureed spinach gravy, so now we are cooking the tomatoes with whole spices. Cook them till they are soft and pulpy. They add freshness and texture
3. Spices: The list of ground spices is limited in this recipe - just jeera powder, coriander powder, garam masala, kasuri methi and salt to season. Cook the spices for a minute or two to get rid of the raw flavour
4. Spinach Puree: Add the puree, mix well and bring this to a gentle simmer - 3 to 4 minutes is enough since everything was already cooked before
5. Corn and Cream: Add the corn, cook for another two minutes and drizzle cream on top
6. Tempering: Finally, make a tadka with ghee, lots of garlic whole red chillies and chilli powder and pour it on top of the hot curry. Let this rest for a few minutes before serving to help the flavours of the tadka permeate through the curry

This is a proper, easy weeknight dish when you want to feed the family something wholesome, healthy and tasty but want it done FAST. I love serving this with rotis or parathas because that palak gravy is so moppable!

Fabulous Indian Curries

• Mushroom Masala
• Rajma Masala
• Matar Paneer Curry
• Vegetable Korma
• Cauliflower Chickpea Coconut Curry
• Chana Aloo

Watch the Recipe Video

Lasooni Corn Palak | Makai Palak

A lush green spinach based gravy thats mildly spiced and extra garlicky with sweet corn in it. This restaurant style Indian curry is creamy, flavourful and has a beautiful texture.

5 from 12 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Indian

Diet: Hindu, Vegan, Vegetarian

Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes minutes

Servings: 4 people

Calories: 223kcal

Author: Richa

Ingredients

For Curry:

• ▢ 2 tablespoons Ghee divided
• ▢ 6 cloves Garlic chopped
• ▢ 1-2 Green Chillies chopped
• ▢ 1 Onion sliced
• ▢ 150 grams chopped Palak spinach, stems and roots removed - approximately one bunch
• ▢ 15 grams fresh Coriander roots removed - approximately ¼ cup
• ▢ 1 Bay leaf
• ▢ 2 Cardamom Pods
• ▢ 2 Cloves
• ▢ 1 large Tomato finely chopped
• ▢ ½ teaspoon Jeera Powder ground cumin
• ▢ ½ teaspoon Coriander Powder dhaniya powder
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon Garam Masala Powder
• ▢ 1 teaspoon Salt
• ▢ 1 teaspoon Kasuri Methi roasted and crushed into a powder
• ▢ ¾ cup Corn fresh or frozen; defrost if frozen
• ▢ 2 tablespoon Cream

For the Tadka/Tempering

• ▢ 1.5 tablespoons Ghee
• ▢ 5 Garlic Cloves sliced
• ▢ 2-3 whole Dried Red Chillies
• ▢ 1 teaspoon Jeera
• ▢ 1 teaspoon Red Chilli Powder

Instructions

For Curry:

• Heat a tablespoon of ghee in a pan and saute garlic for 30 seconds. Add sliced onions and green chillies and saute till the onion is just starting to become light brown. Add the palak (spinach) and coriander leaves and saute for a minute. Then turn off the heat and cover and let the leaves wilt for another 2-3 minutes. Set this aside to cool and then blend to a paste.
• In the same pan, heat ghee and saute bay leaf, cardamom and cloves for a minute. Add tomatoes, jeera powder, coriander powder and salt and cook the tomatoes for 4-5 minutes till soft. Add kasuri methi and garam masala and cook for another minute.
• Add the pureed spinach and bring this to a gentle boil. Add the corn and allow to cook for 2-3 minutes or until softened. Add the cream and mix.

For the Tadka/Tempering

• Finally make the tadka by add ghee and garlic to a small pan. Cook the garlic till it's golden brown. Then add whole red chillies and jeera. Once the jeera starts spluttering, turn off the flame and add chilli powder.
• Pour this tadka on the corn palak gravy for an extra garlicky kick! Serve hot.

Video

Notes

1. Use fresh tender spinach leaves. You can discard the stems or use them for any other dish. Tender stems however, can be used. 
2. I only use corn for this dish. However, it is super versatile. You can add your favourite vegetables like onion, bell peppers, potato etc., or even proteins like paneer, chicken or mutton. The cook time will vary accordingly.
3. To make this dish vegan, you can substitute fresh cream with coconut cream. You can also skip the cream if required.  
4. If the spinach tastes bitter, you can add half a teaspoon of sugar and adjust it to your liking. 

Nutrition

Calories: 223kcal | Carbohydrates: 18g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 44mg | Sodium: 669mg | Potassium: 527mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 4628IU | Vitamin C: 26mg | Calcium: 88mg | Iron: 2mg

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