作法
- 菠菜在沸水中汆燙90秒，再泡冰水——冷激鎖住綠色。瀝乾擠乾，與一條青辣椒打成滑順綠泥。
- 厚鍋加熱2大匙酥油。下孜然籽爆香，再下洋蔥與一撮鹽。煮8分鐘至金黃——耐心建立料理深度。
- 加薑蒜泥與剩餘劃開的辣椒；炒一分鐘。加番茄、薑黃、芫荽粉與喀什米爾辣椒粉。煮6分鐘至番茄完全化開、邊緣冒油。
- 加入菠菜泥與100毫升水。煮8分鐘——顏色應加深，生菠菜味讓位於更甜更圓潤的味道。加入煎過的paneer丁與一小匙鹽。
- 拌入鮮奶油與搓碎乾葫蘆巴葉。再煮兩分鐘。試味——調整鹽；咖哩應微妙綿密，不沉重。
- 做最後爆香：剩餘酥油在小湯勺中加熱，放一條劃開辣椒與一瓣壓碎大蒜爆香20秒，倒入咖哩。蓋上靜置5分鐘。配印度烤餅、印度餅或孜然飯上桌。
Common questions
Can 菠菜起司咖哩 be made ahead?
菠菜起司咖哩 is best made and eaten the same day, but the components can be prepped earlier — chop and measure the ingredients up to a day ahead, refrigerated separately. Final cooking takes about 30 minutes.
Is 菠菜起司咖哩 spicy?
菠菜起司咖哩 as written is mild to mildly warming — the heat comes from aromatics rather than chili. Add fresh sliced chili or chili oil at the end if you'd like to push it spicier.
Is 菠菜起司咖哩 vegetarian or gluten-free?
菠菜起司咖哩 is suitable for vegetarian (and vegan if dairy is omitted) diets.
How hard is 菠菜起司咖哩 to make at home?
菠菜起司咖哩 is approachable for a home cook with basic stove skills — total time about 45 minutes, no special technique required.
Can 菠菜起司咖哩 be scaled up or down?
This recipe is written for 4 servings. To scale, multiply each ingredient proportionally; the cooking times stay the same up to about double the volume. Beyond that, expect to cook in batches because of pan size and heat distribution.
文化背景
菠菜起司是旁遮普乳製品家庭的標準——新鮮paneer（壓重物的乳酪凝塊）一週做兩次，菠菜自種或從蔬果攤買。這道菜是海外最受歡迎的印度素食咖哩，印度餐廳常與奶油雞咖哩搭配組成套餐。鮮綠是新鮮paneer與快汆燙菠菜的標誌；長時間燉煮版本會變橄欖綠失去個性。最後的乾葫蘆巴葉是把這道菜繫於旁遮普源頭的氣味。
