Aloo Palak / Potato and Spinach Curry

5 from 83 votes

Aloo Palak / Potato and Spinach Curry

Indulge in a flavorful delight with this easy-to-make aloo palak recipe. Using frozen spinach and an Instant Pot, this recipe takes only 20 minutes to prepare, making it one of the simplest Indian recipes you'll ever cook.

Prep Time5

Cook Time15

Total Time20

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Indian

Diet: Diabetic, Gluten Free, Hindu, Vegan, Vegetarian

Servings:

Calories: 240kcal

Author: Shilpa Kerur

Ingredients

2-3 large potatoes (around 1 lb)
10 oz frozen spinach (see note 1)
2 tablespoon oil
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
2-3 dried red chilies
3-4 cloves garlic finely chopped
1 medium onion finely chopped
½ teaspoon salt (adjust as per taste)
¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
½ teaspoon ground coriander
½ teaspoon red chili powder
½ teaspoon garam masala (use store-bought or homemade garam masala)
¼-½ cup water (see note 3)
2 tablespoon lemon juice

Instructions

Prep:

Wash and peel the potatoes. Cut them into small bite-sized pieces and place them in a bowl. Add water and keep them immersed in water.
Frozen spinach can be used straight from the freezer without the need to defrost it. If you are using fresh spinach, clean them well and finely chop the leaves.

Making the dry curry:

Set the Instant Pot in saute mode and add oil. Once it heats, add cumin seeds and dried red chili.
Add garlic and saute for about one minute, until the garlic begins to change color.
Next, add the chopped onions and saute for 3 minutes, until they soften.
Drain the water from the potatoes and add them next.
Add turmeric powder, coriander powder, red chili powder, and salt. Mix well and saute for 2 minutes.
Add ¼-½ cup water and deglaze the pot well. Make sure there are no brown bits stuck (see notes 2 and 3).
Add the frozen spinach.
Cancel saute mode and set the Instant Pot to pressure cook mode (on Low pressure) for 3 minutes.
Do a natural release of pressure for 5 minutes, then do a quick release.
Set the Instant Pot back to saute mode. Let it simmer until the excess moisture dries.
Add garam masala and lemon juice.
Serve hot with roti, naan, or rice.

Video

Notes

Note 1: I am using frozen spinach in this recipe. If you want to use fresh spinach, add it only after pressure-cooking the potatoes. Once the potatoes are cooked, set the Instant Pot in saute mode and add spinach. Mix well and saute for 4-5 minutes, until they are cooked. The rest of the recipe remains the same.

Note 2: Make sure you deglaze the pot really well and remove any brown bits stuck to the bottom of the pot. This is important to avoid burning the curry.

Note 3: Use ¼ to ½ cup water depending on the size of the Instant Pot. For an 8-Quart IP, use ½ cup water and for the smaller ones, use ¼ cup. Don't be tempted to add more water as we want the curry to be dry.

Nutrition