The sautéed spinach is a classic and versatile side dish, perfect for accompanying a wide variety of dishes. They pair excellently with roasts, stews and grilled meat, but are also great alongside egg or fish-based dishes, such as salmon, with which they create a particularly tasty combination. In this healthy and quick recipe, it is not necessary to boil the spinach: simple pan cooking is more than enough to obtain soft and flavorful spinach, best preserving their precious nutrients. Besides being a practical side dish, sautéed spinach can become the ideal base for many other appetizing dishes, such as the savory ricotta and spinach pie, the spinach meatloaf or the chicken and spinach cutlets. In this recipe, I cooked the spinach in a mix of oil and butter, as I find that the latter slightly sweetens the metallic taste of spinach; however, if you prefer, you can use only oil.
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- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very cheap
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 4 People
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter, and Spring
- Energy 135.30 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 9.18 (g) of which sugars 1.10 (g)
- Proteins 7.18 (g)
- Fat 9.78 (g) of which saturated 3.52 (g)of which unsaturated 1.90 (g)
- Fibers 5.49 (g)
- Sodium 293.75 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 142 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients for Sautéed Spinach
- 2.2 lbs spinach
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1.4 oz butter (or 2 more tablespoons of oil)
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 pinch salt
Tools
- 1 Pan large sauté pan with lid
- 1 Tongs
How to Cook Spinach in a Pan
To prepare the sautéed spinach, start by washing the spinach thoroughly under running water (1). Drain them well, but do not dry them, this way they will cook better. In a high-sided pan melt the butter in the oil and add a peeled garlic clove (2). Let it gently brown, then add the spinach and a pinch of salt (3).
Cover with a lid – pressing them a bit if necessary to fit them all in a pan – and let them cook for a couple of minutes over medium heat (4), just enough time to wilt the spinach. Then remove the lid (5) and continue cooking uncovered, stirring the spinach frequently, for about 5 minutes, until they are soft (6).
Drain and serve the sautéed spinach immediately, or use them as a base for other preparations.
Storage
You can store the spinach in the refrigerator, in a glass jar, for 4 days. When ready to eat, you can reheat them quickly in a pan or in the microwave.
Tips and Variations
If once cooked they seem still very watery, instead of continuing to cook and overcooking the spinach, you can drain them, put them on a plate and squeeze them slightly by overlaying another plate of the same size.
FAQ (Questions and Answers)
Can I use frozen spinach?
Yes, you can also use frozen spinach after thawing them completely in the refrigerator.
Yes, you can also use frozen spinach after thawing them completely in the refrigerator.
