Recipe
Why make it
A thick, deeply savoury Punjabi winter dish of slow-cooked mustard greens and spinach, thickened with cornmeal and finished with a sizzling garlic-ginger ghee tarka. Best with makki ki roti.
Serves 6
+ 10 more in the full recipe
Step 1 of 7
Wash the mustard greens and spinach in several changes of cold water until no grit remains at the bottom of the bowl. Trim off any thick, woody stems and chop the leaves roughly.
Step 2 of 7
Put the mustard greens, spinach, turnip, green chillies, chopped ginger, 6 whole garlic cloves, salt and 250 ml water in a large heavy pot. Cover and cook over medium-low heat, stirring every 10 minutes, until the greens are comp…
Step 3 of 7
Take the pot off the heat and let it cool for 10 minutes. Blend with a hand blender, or mash with a wooden masher, to a coarse, slightly textured purée rather than a smooth one.
Step 4 of 7
Whisk the cornmeal into 100 ml cold water until smooth. Return the pot to medium-low heat, stir in the cornmeal mixture and simmer, stirring constantly, until the saag is thick, glossy and no longer tastes of raw cornmeal. Splash…
Step 5 of 7
For the tarka, heat the ghee in a small frying pan over medium heat and add the cumin seeds. When they sizzle, add the chopped onion and fry until deep golden brown.
The last 2 steps are in the full recipe.
Ready to cook?
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