Chicken & Spinach Curry (Chicken Saag)
I was blown away the first time I ever had Chicken Saag, also known as a Chicken & Spinach Curry. The combination of spices are simply divine. Plus, it's a healthy and budget-friendly meal.
The first time I ever had chicken saag was at an Indian restaurant when we went to London, England last fall. We went back to that restaurant more than once because... Indian food. I love many different cuisines, but I gotta say, Indian definitely tops my list. The combination of spices used, the variety of curries to choose from, the fluffy rice on the side... everything is just so. freaking. good. And so explosively flavourful.
After that trip I made it my mission to make my own chicken saag at home. Chicken Saag is basically a chicken and spinach curry, with "saag" translating to a spinach or other leafy vegetable gravy of sorts. I hope I explained that correctly!
But what makes it so good are the spices used to flavour it. Spices like cumin, cinnamon, coriander, and ginger. Ugh! It's just so good! Garam masala is traditionally used in a lot of recipes, too, which is a blend of some of those spices, although it's not part of my recipe today.
If you've never had chicken saag before, my guess is you'll LOVE it if you love those kinds of spices. But you'll probably love it regardless. Because how can you not?!
How to Make Chicken Saag
One of the benefits of Chicken Saag is that it's very budget-friendly. Ingredients like rice and spinach can be purchased at reasonable prices. You can use fresh spinach for this recipe, although frozen (which often comes in concentrated blocks) is also really inexpensive.
The ingredients you'll need for this amazingly delicious recipe are:
Chicken breast
Spinach, fresh or frozen
Rice
Butter, ghee, or coconut oil
Garlic
Onion
Ginger
Nutmeg
Cinnamon
Coriander
Cumin
Salt
Now, if you're like me in the kitchen and sometimes lose interest in recipes when you see they require a ton of different herbs and spices (sometimes I feel like it's too much work, or I need to go out and buy spices I'll only use once), stick with me here. This recipe is worth it. There's a small bunch of spices involved, but all for good reason. They pair beautifully together.
Some Chicken Saag recipes call for things like cream, tomatoes, or lentils, but I like to keep my recipe on the more simple side and just stick with the spinach primarily. As such, this recipe doesn't create an overly saucy-sauce. It's a little thicker.
To make this recipe:
Mince garlic and finely chop your onion. Add to a pan over medium heat with butter or coconut oil and sauté until fragrant and a little browned.
Slice chicken breast into bite-sized chunks and add to pan.
Add in all spices and stir well to combine. Place lid on top and cook for a few more minutes until chicken is cooked through.
Place frozen spinach blocks in pan, pop the lid back on, and let them thaw and cook, breaking them apart and stirring every few minutes. Alternatively, you can use fresh spinach instead. If you use baby spinach, you'll need to add it to pan in increments as it needs time to wilt down.
Once spinach is fully thawed, keep lid on and continue to cook over medium-low for about 25-30 minutes, stirring now and then.
Once fully cooked, chicken should break apart easily and you should have a nice thick, leafy spinach sauce.
Serve over rice.
Chicken & Spinach Curry (Chicken Saag)
An incredibly flavourful Indian Chicken Saag recipe made with spinach and a blend of spices.
Servings: 4
Ingredients
2 chicken breasts, chopped
24 oz frozen spinach
2 tbsp butter, ghee, or coconut oil
1 small onion, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 tsp ground coriander
2 tsp ground cumin
1.5 tsp salt
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cinnamon
Instructions
Mince garlic and finely chop your onion. Add to a pan over medium heat with butter or coconut oil and sauté until fragrant and a little browned.
Slice chicken breast into bite-sized chunks and add to pan.Add in all spices and stir well to combine. Place lid on top and cook for a few more minutes until chicken is cooked through.
Place frozen spinach blocks in pan, pop the lid back on, and let them thaw and cook, breaking them apart and stirring every few minutes. Alternatively, you can use fresh spinach instead. If you use baby spinach, you'll need to add it to pan in increments as it needs time to wilt down.
Once spinach is fully thawed, keep lid on and continue to cook over medium-low for about 25-30 minutes, stirring now and then.
Once fully cooked, chicken should break apart easily and you should have a nice thick, leafy spinach sauce. Serve over rice.