Sides

Creamed Spinach

Chef John–style cream base + aggressively dry spinach — watery spinach is how you lose.

Effort
medium

How to do it

  • Put 1 tbsp butter in a stock pot on high heat; put the rest of the butter in a saucepan.
  • Wilt spinach in the stock pot: cover, high heat, on/off with the lid, ~3 minutes until wilted. Drain in a colander.
  • In the saucepan, cook onion in the remaining butter over medium heat until soft.
  • Add garlic and flour; cook 2–3 minutes.
  • Whisk in cold milk, a quarter cup at a time.
  • Bring to a simmer (stay on medium heat); it thickens when it boils.
  • Turn to low; cook ~10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  • Season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
  • Drain spinach hard — press and squeeze until completely dry (watery spinach ruins the dish).
  • Coarse chop the spinach, stir into the cream base, and serve.

Make-ahead: You can wilt/spinach and cream base separately, then combine and reheat gently on medium-low.