Garlic sautéed baby spinach but cherry tomatoes and olive oil. This is a simple but flavor-packed side dish that can be prepared quickly in a skillet.
Fresh spinach is sautéed with garlic and fresh cherry tomatoes. This is a simple, flavor-packed, minimal effort, side dish that you can prepare in a skillet within minutes.
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TL;DR
Occasionally, a simple side dish is all that you need to complete a weekend dinner meal. This is the case with this skillet spinach and tomatoes.
The ingredients are freshly prepared and sautéed in a single pan.
It’s a plant-based weekend lunch or dinner meal for one or a side dish for two.
Ingredient Notes
- Spinach — Fresh, tender baby spinach leaves. Clean them in vinegar water (dash of vinegar in water) to remove all impurities.
- Cherry Tomatoes — Or fresh grape tomatoes. I used red ones because that’s what I got, but you can add a splash of color by getting a pack of cherry tomatoes in different red and yellow shades.
- Garlic — Freshly chopped. This is a main flavor giver.
- Olive Oil — I recommend cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil. The olive oil adds a lot of flavor and proper olive oils are lightly spices.
- Salt & Black Pepper
Seasoning Ideas
You can enrich the simple spinach and tomatoes with herbs and spices. Here are some ideas to call this recipe your own:
- Thyme, fresh or dried for a French touch.
- Rosemary, fresh or a pinch of dried powder, that goes well with thyme combined.
- Lemon zest to add citrus brightness.
- Cumin for a Mexican/Indian approach.
- Paprika, smoked or sweet for a central European flavor profile.
- Za’atar seasoning, to add middle eastern flavors.
- Herbes de Provence for a French Mediterranean finish.
- Italian Seasoning, if you love Italian flavor combinations.
- Everything Bagel seasoning as a topping.
- Garam Masala, to turn this into an Indian dish.
Process Overview
Step 1
Roughly chop the spinach, cut the cherry tomatoes in two and chop the garlic,
Step 2
Sauté first garlic with the olive oil, and then stir in some spinach.
Watch the spinach reduce in size with the heat, and then add remaining spinach in batches.
Step 3
Season with salt and pepper, stir in tomatoes.
Sauté until the spinach is cooked, and the liquids have dissolved. I like if my tomatoes keep some of their shape, but you can cook them down further.
Serve up.
📖 Recipe
Garlic Sautéed Spinach and Tomatoes
Garlic sautéed baby spinach but cherry tomatoes and olive oil. This is a simple but flavor-packed side dish that can be prepared quickly in a skillet.
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Servings: 2 servings
Calories: 188kcal
Instructions
-
Roughly chop your bunch of clean baby spinach leaves into smaller, manageable pieces. Keep aside.
12 Ounces Baby Spinach
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Slice cherry tomatoes into two and keep separate. Chop garlic fine.
1½ Cups Cherry Tomatoes, 2 Cloves Garlic
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Keep your skillet on a medium heat setting and sauté briefly your chopped garlic with the olive oil for 1–2 minutes.
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil, 2 Cloves Garlic
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Stir in a batch of the spinach. The bunch of chopped leaves will populate the pan. Wait for it briefly to decrease in size a bit, as the leaves release liquids into the pan so that you can add the remaining spinach leaves.
12 Ounces Baby Spinach
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Season with salt and black pepper (you can add more seasonings, see post for ideas). Mix it all up a bit.
⅛ Teaspoons Black Pepper Ground, ½ Teaspoons Salt
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Stir in the tomatoes at the end, and cook them on the same medium heat setting until they get a bit soft. You can cook your cherry tomatoes further down, I like them less cooked.
1½ Cups Cherry Tomatoes
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Take from the heat when it looks done and enjoy hot.
Nutrition
Nutrition Facts
Garlic Sautéed Spinach and Tomatoes
Amount Per Serving
Calories 188
Calories from Fat 135
% Daily Value*
Fat 15g23%
Saturated Fat 2g10%
Polyunsaturated Fat 2g
Monounsaturated Fat 10g
Sodium 729mg30%
Potassium 1207mg34%
Carbohydrates 12g4%
Fiber 5g20%
Sugar 4g4%
Protein 6g12%
Vitamin A 16497IU330%
Vitamin C 74mg90%
Calcium 187mg19%
Iron 6mg33%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Storing
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container for up to 6 days, cooled in your refrigerator.
The dish can be frozen as well. To that, just place it in your fridge frozen overnight or gradually defrost and reheat in one go in your microwave or oven.
