Palak Chicken (Spinach Chicken Curry)

Palak chicken or spinach chicken recipe: tender pieces of boneless chicken breast and spinach leaves simmered in an onion-tomato gravy made creamy with cashews. This is the best of North Indian chicken recipes and a foodie's dream come true! Both stovetop and instant pot recipes included.

When it comes to easy and healthy chicken recipes, palak chicken or spinach chicken is one of my favourites. A high protein meal, it combines the goodness of white meat and spinach plus it is very tasty.

The secret ingredient in this recipe is cashews. A handful of them, when pureed and added to the simmering gravy makes a world of difference to the texture and taste of palak chicken. The gravy becomes wonderfully creamy and thick, just the way it's supposed to be.

Two hacks to make palak chicken easy to cook

1. Chop the spinach instead of boiling it - I have seen a lot of  palak chicken recipes where the spinach is first boiled, then blanched and then pureed (phew!) to make it ready for the chicken gravy. I have done away with these tedious steps and found, to my joy, that it makes not a jot of difference to the final dish. All you need to do, in my version, is to wash and chop the spinach roughly and dunk it in the cooking masala. Saves a ton of effort.

Tip: If you're using baby spinach that comes in plastic containers, it is pre-washed and there is no need to chop it either. Available in most supermarkets.

2. Use chicken breast instead of bone-in chicken pieces - boneless chicken, as everyone knows, cooks faster. I regularly make spinach chicken with boneless chicken breast pieces. The meat is fork-tender in 8-10 minutes and turns out yum!

So, these are my two simple tips for keeping your cooking process easy and fuss-free. And if you have the onion-tomato masala and the ginger garlic paste ready (you can make these beforehand and store in your refrigerator), making this palak chicken recipe becomes so easy!

Ingredients used in this chicken and spinach curry

Note: Exact amounts are given in the recipe card further down.

1. chicken breast - cut into small-medium pieces
2. spinach - washed and chopped
3. onions - sliced
4. tomatoes - chopped or pureed
5. ginger-garlic paste - store bought or homemade
6. cashews - pureed
7. whole spices - cardamom, cumin and cloves. Substitute with garam masala powder if you wish to.
8. powdered spices - red chilli, turmeric and coriander. The turmeric is optional.
9. cooking oil and salt

Prep Steps

• Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces.
• Slice the onions and chop the tomatoes.
• Chop the spinach roughly. If using baby spinach, you can forego this step.
• Make the ginger-garlic paste - put 8-10 garlic cloves and an inch long piece of ginger in a blender along with a few tablespoons of water and blend. If making the exact amount needed for this recipe, you can throw in the cashews too for convenience. No need to puree them separately.

However, if you want to make a larger batch of ginger-garlic paste to use later, you will need to puree the cashews separately. Just soak the cashews in a little warm water for 15 minutes and blend along with the water to get a smooth puree.

How to make spinach chicken on the stovetop

Step 1 - Make the masala

Add whole spices in hot oil and when they start sizzling, add the onions. Fry on medium heat until the onions are golden brown (approx. 8-10 minutes). Add the ginger-garlic and cashew pastes, chopped tomatoes, salt and powdered spices. Sauté until the masala is thick and fragrant (8-10 minutes). Add splashes of water to prevent the masala from sticking to the bottom of the pan.

Step 2 - Add chicken 

Add the chicken pieces, 1 cup water and cook until the chicken is almost done (10-15 minutes).

Step 3 - Add spinach 

Add the chopped spinach and cook until the spinach has wilted and mixed with the chicken (2 minutes). Serve hot with Indian bread or rice.

How to make instant pot spinach chicken

Step 1 - Make the masala on sauté 

Switch on your instant pot to sauté and add the cooking oil. Wait for it to display HOT, then add the whole spices. When they start to sizzle (a few seconds), add the onions and fry until golden brown (approx. 8-10 minutes). Add the ginger-garlic paste, cashew paste, chopped tomatoes, salt and powdered spices. Sauté until the masala is thick and shiny and the oil leaves the sides (8-10 minutes). Cancel sauté.

Step 2 - Add the chicken and pressure cook

Add the chicken pieces and 1 cup water. Secure the lid, make sure the steam release handle is on 'sealing' and press the pressure cooking button. Adjust it to high and set the timer for 5 minutes.

Step 3 - Add the spinach

When the timer beeps, wait for 5 minutes, then release pressure by turning the steam release handle to 'venting'. Switch back to sauté and add the spinach leaves. They will wilt very quickly. Let the spinach cook in the chicken masala for 2 minutes until it is well mixed with the masala. Serve hot with Indian bread or rice.

More Indian chicken recipes you might like

Best side dishes for palak chicken

Chicken is fantastic with some basic bread or plain rice, but if you want to move away from the same old and do things differently, try some new side dishes to go with it. Here are a few recipes that complement it perfectly:

• Whole Wheat Naan - Soft, pillowy and healthy naan bread made with whole wheat flour or atta.
• Cumin Rice - Basmati rice flavored with cumin and other whole spices.
• Onion Raita - A quick and easy yogurt dip that is a must-have with curries.
• Bombay Potatoes - Crispy and spicy baby potatoes with soft insides.

These are just a few possibilities. Find a lot more recipes for what to serve with chicken curry in this post: 20+ Best Side Dishes for Chicken Curry. You'll never run out of ideas for interesting sides!

📖 Recipe

Palak Chicken (Spinach Chicken Curry)

Saima Zaidi

Palak chicken is made with tender pieces of boneless chicken breast and spinach leaves simmered in an onion-tomato gravy. Ground cashews make it creamy and rich.

4.87 from 23 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 35 minutes mins

Total Time 45 minutes mins

Course Dinner

Cuisine Indian

Servings 4

Calories 329.2 kcal

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

 

1x2x3x

• 3 chicken breasts boneless
• 4 cups chopped spinach
• ¼ cup cooking oil
• 1 medium onion sliced
• 2 tablespoon ginger-garlic paste
• 1 medium tomato chopped
• 12 cashews pureed
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1 black cardamom
• 4 cloves
• 1 teaspoon red chilli powder
• 1 teaspoon coriander powder
• ½ teaspoon turmeric powder optional
• salt to taste

Instructions

 

Preparation 

• Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces.
• Slice the onions and chop the tomatoes.
• Chop the spinach roughly. If using baby spinach, you can forego this step.
• Make the ginger-garlic paste - put 8-10 garlic cloves and an inch long piece of ginger in a blender along with a few tablespoons of water and blend. If making the exact amount needed for this recipe, you can throw in the cashews too for convenience. No need to puree them separately.
• However, if you want to make a larger batch of ginger-garlic paste to use later, you will need to puree the cashews separately. Just soak the cashews in a little warm water for 15 minutes and blend along with the water to get a smooth puree.

Cooking on the stovetop

• Heat oil in a pan and add the whole spices. When they change colour, add onions and fry until they caramelize and turn reddish brown.
• Add the ginger-garlic paste, cashew paste, chopped tomatoes, powdered spices and salt. Saute for 8-10 minutes on low to medium heat or until the masala is thick and shiny. Add water as required to keep the masala from burning.
• Add the chicken pieces, 1 cup water and cook on slow heat until tender. Add more water as required.
• Add the chopped spinach leaves and cook for 2 minutes more. Serve palak chicken with Indian bread or rice.

Cooking in the instant pot

• Switch on your instant pot to sauté and add the cooking oil. Wait for it to display HOT, then add the whole spices. When they start to sizzle (a few seconds), add the onions and fry until golden brown (approx. 8-10 minutes).
• Add the ginger-garlic paste, cashew paste, chopped tomatoes, salt and powdered spices. Sauté until the masala is thick and shiny and the oil leaves the sides (8-10 minutes). Cancel sauté.
• Add the chicken pieces and 1 cup water. Secure the lid, make sure the steam release handle is on 'sealing' and press the pressure cooking button. Adjust it to high and set the timer for 5 minutes.
• When the timer beeps, wait for 5 minutes, then release pressure by turning the steam release handle to 'venting'. Switch back to sauté and add the spinach leaves. They will wilt very quickly. Let the spinach cook in the chicken masala for 2 minutes until it is well mixed with the masala. Serve hot with Indian bread or rice.

Notes

1. The gravy in palak chicken is supposed to be thick. Spinach releases a lot of water, so if you find the gravy getting watery after you've added it, just cook on high heat until most of the liquid gets absorbed.
2. Spinach is quite salty on its own, so be careful while adding salt. You might not need to put in as much as you do in other dishes.
3. You can adjust the red chilli powder too according to your taste. If one teaspoon is too much, reduce the quantity to half.
4. If you don't have the whole spices required for this recipe, you can substitute with powdered garam masala. It is available easily in Indian stores and the international aisles of most supermarkets.

Nutrition

Calories: 329.2kcalCarbohydrates: 8.7gProtein: 29.7gFat: 27.3gSaturated Fat: 1.9gPolyunsaturated Fat: 12.1gCholesterol: 68mgSodium: 444.2mgFiber: 2.1gSugar: 1.8g

Keyword easy chicken dinner, instant pot chicken with spinach, palak chicken, spinach chicken

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