Palong Shak is a Bangladeshi spinach dish — fresh spinach (palong shak) simmered with garlic, green chili, and a simple tempering of panch phoron in mustard oil. Unlike the Indian saag, the Bangladeshi version is lighter, quicker, and lets the fresh flavor of the greens shine through. It is the everyday vegetable dish of Bangladeshi homes.
Palong Shak (spinach greens) is the most common leafy green dish in Bangladesh. Unlike the Indian 'saag' tradition (which purees the greens and simmers them long), the Bangladeshi version is quick — the spinach is wilted briefly with garlic, green chili, and a panch phoron tempering, keeping the greens bright and fresh-tasting. Mustard oil is the cooking fat. The dish is eaten with rice and dal as the vegetable component of the everyday meal. It is the simplest vegetable preparation in Bangladeshi cooking.
A bowl of bright green, lightly wilted spinach with flecks of golden garlic and green chili. The greens are fresh and clean-tasting; the mustard oil is pungent; the garlic is sweet; the chili gives a gentle heat. It is the lightest, freshest vegetable dish in Bangladesh.
The spinach must be cooked very briefly (overcooking makes it grey and bitter). The tempering (panch phoron in mustard oil) is done first, then the garlic is added, then the spinach is tossed in and wilted in 3-4 minutes. The dish should be bright green, not dark.
Variations
Some add shrimp; some add lentils; some use different greens; the cooking time varies.
On the Palate
Where Palong Shak sits in the Bangladeshi flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 4How it's made
8 steps · 20 min active + 10 min waiting
- 13 min
Wash 500 g fresh spinach (palong shak); drain.
- 22 min
Heat 2 tbsp mustard oil in a pan; add 1/2 tsp panch phoron; let it sizzle.
Watch outLet the panch phoron sizzle and release its aroma before anything else goes in — bloomed in the hot mustard oil is where its fragrance comes from; rush it and the spices taste raw.
- 31 min
Add 4 crushed garlic cloves; cook 1 minute until golden.
- 41 min
Add 2 chopped green chilies.
- 54 min
Add the spinach; toss to coat in the oil.
- 61 min
Cook 3-4 minutes, stirring, until just wilted (do not overcook).
Watch outToss the spinach just until it wilts and stays vivid green — three or four minutes; cook it longer and it goes grey and turns bitter.
- 71 min
Season with salt.
- 81 min
Serve immediately with rice.
