Exploring the global comfort of winter greens, and cozying up with a Punjabi style saag dish.
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A bowl of greens for dinner might not be the norm in most Canadian homes, but all over the world different communities and cultures turn to leafy greens for comfort and nutrition, especially when the temperatures drop.
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Whether it’s Sukuma Wiki from Kenya, a dish of stewed spiced collard greens, a Greek Horta — which is greens like dandelion, amaranth, and chicory, boiled and dressed with olive oil — or Jamaican Calloloo, greens cooked with onion, garlic and sometimes coconut milk — however you serve them up, greens rock. My personal favourite, a Punjabi-style saag.
I grew up in a home where every winter my mom would make a huge pot of saag and freeze it for us to enjoy all throughout the cold season. It was something we anticipated and waited for all year long. Slowly simmering the rapini and spinach with some ginger and garlic, and then tempering it with warming spices turned those basic greens into a bowl of pure goodness, which happened to be packed with nutrition.
I’m sharing a simplified version of my family’s saag recipe here. The fresh fenugreek leaves make all the difference and are totally worth venturing out to an Indian grocery store for.
Serve this saag with store-bought rotis, or as a side with spiced chicken breast or tofu. You won’t regret the effort.
Saag
2 bunches rapini
1 bunch spinach
1/2 bunch fresh fenugreek leaves
3 red radishes
4 cloves garlic
3-inch piece ginger
1-2 green chilis chopped (optional)
1 tsp (5 mL) salt (or to taste)
1 tbsp (15 mL) coriander powder
1/2 tbsp (7.5 mL) cumin powder
1 cup (250 mL) water
1/4 cup (60 mL) corn flour or maize
Tempering ingredients:
1 tbsp (15 mL) oil
1/2 tbsp (7.5 mL) cumin seeds
1 cup (250 mL) onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup (125 mL) Roma tomato chopped
1/2 tsp (2.5 mL) salt (or to taste)
Wash and chop all the greens into bite size pieces. For rapini discard the bottom inch from the stalks.
Add greens into a large pot with all other ingredients listed under saag, except for the corn flour. Do not add corn flour at this point.
Bring the saag greens to a boil, and then drop the heat down to low and simmer for at least 90 minutes. To test the doneness of the saag, press on a stalk from the toughest green and it should easily come apart.
Add the corn flour to the greens and mix thoroughly. Keep mixing to prevent lumps. The flour will absorb excess water in the greens. Cook this on a low simmer for 30 minutes stirring occasionally.
In the meantime heat the oil and cumin seeds for the tempering. Toast them for 90 seconds and then add in the onions. Cook those for 4-6 minutes on medium heat until they are translucent. Add the tomatoes and cook for another 4 minutes, finish with salt.
Puree the saag lightly with an immersion blender until an almost smooth texture is achieved. Add the tempering to the saag. Stir well and taste for salt and chili, adjust as needed.
Serve the saag warm, and add a dollop of butter for extra creaminess if you like.
Serves 4.