I've been totally obsessed with spinach lately (much to the annoyance of my fiancé, who isn't a fan - I know, I'm the worst girlfriend ever). So much so that I think I'm going to have to ban myself from buying any more for the next couple of weeks. It's just so versatile - eat it in burgers, stick it in soup, use it to make pesto... this time I made saag aloo, an Indian spinach and potato curry.
Saag aloo isn't tricky to make at the best of times, but I decided to make it even more super simple (read: for lazy people) by using my slow cooker. The best bit is that, like most of my other slow cooker recipes, it requires no pre-cooking whatsoever. I really don't see the point of spending ten minutes at the hob before you even get to the slow cooker - by the time you've dirtied some pans and spoons, you may as well have cooked the whole meal on your stovetop. No, this recipe is for those days where you literally want to dump everything in the pot and return to your dent in the sofa.
I'm sure even the busiest of us have five minutes to spare to peel a few potatoes.
By the way, the usual disclaimer: I have no idea how authentically Indian this recipe is. Chances are, not very. But, it does the job - it's easy to make, it's healthy, and it tastes great - so I don't really think I mind either way.
Since this dish lacks a protein element, it's often served as a side dish. We had ours alongside a curry and some naan bread - it was a bit of a feast but it was awesome. If you'd rather have it on its own, you could always stir in some tinned chickpeas for the last hour or so of cooking time.
Oh, by the way, it's vegan too! Told you I'd changed!
- 650g potatoes
- ½ onion, thinly sliced
- 50ml water
- ½ vegetable stock cube, crumbled
- 1 tablespoon oil
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon ground coriander
- ½ teaspoon garam masala
- ½ teaspoon hot chilli powder
- Black pepper
- 250g fresh spinach, roughly chopped
- Peel the potatoes and cut them into chunks measuring about an inch. Add them to the slow cooker (mine's a 3.5 litre one) along with the sliced onion, water, crumbled stock cube, oil, spices, and plenty of black pepper. Top with a couple of big handfuls of fresh spinach - however much you can easily fit in your slow cooker. I couldn't fit all of the spinach in, so I came back and added the rest about an hour into the cooking time, once it had wilted down and created some space.
- Cook on medium (or high if you don't have a medium setting) for around 3 hours, until the potato is soft - stir every hour or so to scrape down the sides. The exact cooking time will depend on exactly how big you cut your potato chunks.
Vicos says
I intend making this recipe with correct ingredients that are specified, in the near future. However I would like to have a try now using a spring cabbage that I have in my fridge. Do you think it would be ok? I’ll resort to using spinach when I’ve been shopping . . .
Becca Heyes says
I think it would taste fine but the texture will be a bit different, since cabbage leaves are usually thicker and tougher than spinach leaves. But it will probably be tasty nonetheless!