This Perfect Creamed Spinach Belongs on Your Holiday Table

Tender babe spinach, mixed successful a flavorful pick sauce, makes 1 of nan champion and easiest broadside dishes for vacation dinners.

Serves4

Makes2 cups

Prep8 minutes

Cook6 minutes to 8 minutes

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My first clip trying creamed spinach was astatine a classical steakhouse. Tender, cooked spinach mixed into a creamy, flavorful condiment was an absolute delight erstwhile paired pinch grilled steak. But what made creamed spinach truthful memorable for maine was its savory, creamy sauce, which had a hint of herb to equilibrium nan crockery and make it not excessively rich.

Creamed spinach is an easy, yet satisfying side dish that’s perfect astatine immoderate feast — particularly during nan holidays. It mightiness not beryllium nan prettiest, but it’s 1 of those broadside dishes that goes good pinch anything. After all, nan champion measurement to eat much greens is to service them successful an ultra-creamy sauce. 

The Best Spinach for Creamed Spinach

Fresh babe spinach is preferred erstwhile making creamed spinach. I for illustration to spell for babe spinach alternatively than a bunch of full-grown spinach because it’s tender and little bitter, takes little clip to cook, and doesn’t request to beryllium chopped into bite-size pieces. Also, caller babe spinach typically comes successful a container of 10 ounces, and 2 of those make an perfect serving size for nan party. While 20 ounces of caller spinach whitethorn sound for illustration a lot, retrieve that spinach shrinks down a batch erstwhile cooked.

Can You Use Frozen Spinach Instead of Fresh?

Yes! Just thaw 2 (10-ounce) packages of frozen spinach, but beryllium judge to drain well. Because it mightiness clasp other moisture from being frozen, location mightiness beryllium much excess liquid erstwhile utilizing thawed stiff spinach versus caller spinach. But, utilizing thawed stiff spinach tin beryllium easier and faster, arsenic it skips nan cooking process. 

How to Cook nan Spinach for Creamed Spinach

It’s important to navigator spinach earlier adding it to nan pick sauce. Fresh spinach releases a batch of moisture erstwhile cooked, truthful we person to blanch spinach first, past travel it pinch a speedy crystal bath to halt nan cooking.

Blanching spinach does 2 things: It cooks nan spinach evenly and helps merchandise excess liquid. (Be judge to play nan h2o earlier adding nan spinach to blanch.) Cooking spinach successful beforehand allows nan spinach to beryllium incorporated into nan pick condiment good without watering down nan flavor. 

How Do You Make nan Cream Sauce? 

The operation of full beverage and dense pick delivers nan astir balanced pick condiment without it being excessively rich. To start, make a roux by cooking flour and food together. Then, play it pinch spices for illustration crushed ginger, crushed nutmeg, and powdered mustard. Ground ginger and powdered mustard bring acidity to nan dish, while crushed nutmeg adds a pleasant warmth to nan sauce.