An Instant Pot Palak Paneer recipe that shares how to make palak paneer in Instant Pot under 30 minutes of active cooking time, and leaves you with only one pot to wash! A one pot recipe in the true sense where you can saute & pressure cook in the same pot!
If you have been following my blog or the Youtube channel, you know that I have been obsessed with my Instant Pot. So I have been trying to make all kinds of Indian & international recipes using it.
I first started with Eggs, White Rice, Brown Rice & Ghee, and was a convert. Because of the sheer hassle free perfection of Instant Pot. Then I moved to making curry sauce bases like Bhuna Masala & Chicken Biryani, and I was in LOVE!
Currently I am focusing on adapting stovetop recipes for Indian curries to Instant Pot recipes. And I started with Palak Paneer, because it's one of my favorites, and so healthy too! Okay okay.. I'll admit that healthy wasn't the biggest consideration - tasty was! The fact that it is healthy too, is a total bonus! 🙂
And Instant Pot has made it even more easier to make this curry (as compared to stovetop), requiring lesser active cooking time, and using less than half the utensils. I'm not even exaggerating!
This is my stovetop palak paneer recipe I adapted - same ingredients, same quantity etc. And for that recipe you'd require the pressure cooker to boil the palak & tomato, the mixie to grind the ingredients, and a deep pan to make the curry!
But for making palak paneer in the Instant Pot, you only really need the Instant Pot - you can saute the onions, pressure cook and make the curry all in the inner pot of the Instant Pot, and use a hand blender like this one to blend it to the consistency you desire. And voila.. you have healthy and delicious palak paneer to indulge in, and only one pot to wash! Isn't that a win-win?
I know it is! It's the reason why I don't think I'll ever make palak paneer on the stovetop again. It's also the reason why I am especially excited to share this recipe with you!
Ingredients You Need
Ingredient Notes:
- Palak leaves - Try to always choose fresh palak leaves that are tender and bright green, and do not use the stem, as it can make the curry taste bitter and metallic. I have never used frozen spinach, but you can use it in a pinch. Though I strongly recommend using fresh spinach leaves whenever possible.
- Paneer - Homemade paneer is the best, it has that melt in mouth quality that is not usually found in store bought paneer. Haldiram paneer comes close though. If you are using store bought paneer, which is usually more harder (Haldiram being the only exception I tried), especially after refrigeration, you can soak it in hot water for 5 minutes to soften it. Though remember to remove it after 5 minutes, else it can disintegrate.
How to Make Palak Paneer in Instant Pot
This is my go to method for making Palak Paneer in the Instant Pot. And once you get the hang of how this was adapted from this stovetop recipe for Palak Paneer, you'll be able to adapt most stovetop recipes to Instant Pot. Using the same ingredients and quantities (for the most part) as the stovetop version.
- Start in the SAUTE MODE - heat up a little oil, saute cumin, chopped ginger & garlic, green chillies, onions & tomatoes - in that order.
- You can choose to use ginger garlic paste if you are short on time, but for a recipe like this, with limited ingredients, using freshly chopped ginger & garlic will add a boost of flavor.
- Onions need to be sautéed till they are translucent, there is no need to brown it, but you can wait till it is starting to turn light brown, if you prefer the flavor.
- Tomatoes only need to be sautéed for a couple of minutes, there is no need to cook them down, as they will be pressure cooked later.
- Once the tomatoes have been sautéed for a few minutes, add palak leaves, and a little water, and close the lid.
- PRESSURE COOK on high for 2 minutes, and once the pressure cooking cycle is complete, let the pressure release naturally for 5 minutes, and then manually release all the pressure from the pot, and open the lid.
- At this point, the palak mix will be really hot, so let it cool down to about room temperature.
- Once the palak mix has cooled down, use a hand blender like this one to make a semi smooth curry base. Of-course you can blend it till it's a totally smooth curry base, if that's what you prefer.
- Then add the paneer cubes, and start the Instant Pot on SAUTE MODE AGAIN, for a few minutes, till there is a light boil and the paneer gets a chance to cook in the curry.
- Instant Pot Palak Paneer is ready to serve!
Serving Suggestion
Serve hot with rotis, naan, or parathas, and enjoy!
Variations / Stovetop Palak Paneer
If you don't have an Instant Pot, you can make palak paneer on the stovetop. Here is my go-to recipe for the stovetop version.
In the post linked above, I have also shared tips on how to adapt this recipe to make a restaurant style palak paneer, and even vegan palak paneer. So check it out, if you haven't already!
Video Recipe
More Instant Pot Recipes to Try!
Instant Pot Chicken Biryani
Instant Pot Ghee Recipe
Instant Pot Bhuna Masala
Instant Pot Hard Boiled Eggs
As always, I hope you found this recipe useful. If you did, please let me know your rating ⭐️ and feedback ? in the comments below, or simply rate the recipe right on the recipe card. I'd really appreciate it. ❤️
Instant Pot Palak Paneer
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon oil
- ½ teaspoon jeera / cumin seeds
- 2 tablespoon chopped ginger
- 2 tablespoon chopped garlic
- 1 chopped green chilli
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 mid tomatoes chopped
- 10 oz palak /spinach leaves
- 250 gms paneer cubed
- 1 cup water
Instructions
- Start Instant Pot in saute mode (normal), and heat up a little oil.
- Add cumin seeds, and wait till it flutters, then add chopped ginger & garlic, and saute for a few minutes. Then add chopped green chillies.
- Once the ginger & garlic start to change color, add chopped onions & salt, and saute till the onions turn translucent or even light golden brown, based on your preference.
- Then add in the chopped tomatoes, and saute for a couple of minutes. You don't need to cook them down, pressure cooking will take care of that.
- Next add in the palak leaves and water. The water doesn't need to cover the leaves. Only a little water is needed. 1 cup for 10oz of palak leaves.
- Close the Instant Pot lid and pressure cook for 2 minutes on high.
- Once the cooking cycle is complete, let the pressure release naturally for 5 minutes, and then manually release all the pressure from the pot, and open the lid.
- At this point, the palak mix will be really hot, so let it cool down to about room temperature.
- Once the palak mix has cooled down, use a hand blender to make a semi smooth curry.
- Add paneer cubes, and start the Instant Pot on saute mode again, for a few minutes, till there is a light boil and the paneer gets a chance to cook in the curry.
- Serve hot with roti or naan, and enjoy!
Notes
- I adapted this stovetop recipe to this Instant Pot version.
- Use fresh palak leaves, and don't use stems, as it can give a bitter, metallic taste to the curry.
- Fresh homemade paneer is best, because it will just melt in your mouth. Alternatively, you can use Haldiram paneer. It's pretty good too.
Nutrition
Video Recipe
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