This savory and satisfying Lemon Garlic Sautéed Spinach is easy, quick, and low ingredient. It’s also a tasty way to use up some spinach that is a little wilted and not as fresh as you’d want in a salad.
Enjoy Lemon Garlic Sautéed Spinach
- with pasta & Vegan Garlic Alfredo Sauce
- as a side dish to lighten up Lux Red Lentil Curry, Vegan Swedish Meatless Balls, or Vegan Sourdough Starter Biscuits & Amazing Creamy Vegan Biscuit Gravy
- in bowls with roasted veggies and Instant Pot Ancient Grains
- wrapped in a tortilla with I Can’t Believe It’s Low Oil Hummus, sprouts and other delicious veggies, pumpkin seeds, or leftovers
- with Marinated Portobello Mushrooms & Vegan Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes (No-Drain)
A pound of spinach seems like a lot
It looks like a lot of spinach. Prepare to be amazed—the spinach will magically shrink before your eyes as you sauté.
Before sautéing 
After sautéing
When sautéing, the spinach is added to the pan a third to half at a time as the spinach shrinks. It’s much more manageable to sauté and keep in the pan this way.
A little lemon juice & salt goes a long way
Recently, I made myself some very zesty, lemon-forward spinach. Much like salt, you can always add more lemon juice, but you can’t subtract. If you find you’ve overdone it, you can add more spinach—if you are the type of person who has loads of spinach around, count me impressed.
Whatever you like for salt will work nicely in this recipe. Please taste before adding more salt. The acid from the lemon juice amplifies the salt. This time I used kosher salt.
Fragrant garlic
We want the garlic to be fragrant but not browning. If the garlic browns before you’ve added the spinach, you’ve gone too far, and your spinach will likely have unpleasant bitter and burnt flavors. For this recipe, I like to slice the garlic and give it a rough chop.
Let’s Make Lemon Garlic Sautéed Spinach
Heat the oil over medium-low to medium heat. Add garlic and red chili flakes. Sauté for 2 – 3 minutes until fragrant. If the garlic browns you’ve gone too far and your spinach will likely have unpleasant bitter and burnt flavors. Occasionally, I’ve had to start over on the garlic. Go easy.
Add a third to half of the spinach, lemon juice, salt & pepper to the pan.
Toss & sauté the spinach over medium to medium-high heat and add more spinach as it shrinks while you sauté. Continue sautéing until uniformly cooked and dark green, about 5 minutes.
Taste and add more salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, or lemon juice if desired and enjoy.
Lemon Garlic Sautéed Spinach
Equipment
- large sauté pan
Ingredients
- 1 pound fresh baby spinach or regular fresh spinach
- 1 TBSP oil for sautéing i.e. non-virgin olive oil, avocado oil, or Earth Balance
- 5 cloves garlic thinly sliced + roughly chopped or minced
- 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes optional; more to taste
- 2 TBSPs lemon juice about half a lemon's worth
- 1/4 teaspoon salt kosher or fine; more to taste
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper more to taste
Instructions
- Heat the oil over medium-low to medium heat. Add garlic and red chili flakes. Sauté for 2 – 3 minutes until fragrant. If the garlic browns you've gone too far and your spinach will likely have unpleasant bitter and burnt flavors. Occasionally, I've had to start over on the garlic. Go easy.
- Add a third to half of the spinach, lemon juice, salt & pepper to the pan. Toss & sauté the spinach over medium to medium-high heat and add more spinach as it shrinks while you sauté. Continue sautéing until uniformly cooked and dark green, about 5 minutes.
- Taste and add more salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, or lemon juice if desired and enjoy.
Notes
A little lemon juice & salt goes a long way
Recently, I made myself some very zesty, lemon-forward spinach. Much like salt, you can always add more, but you can’t subtract. If you find you’ve overdone it, you can add more spinach—if you are the type of person who has loads of spinach around, count me impressed. Whatever you like for salt will work nicely in this recipe. Please taste before adding more salt. The acid from the lemon juice amplifies the salt. This time I used kosher saltFragrant garlic
We want the garlic to be fragrant, but not browning. If the garlic browns before you’ve added spinach, you’ve gone too far and your spinach will likely have unpleasant bitter and burnt flavors. For this recipe, I like to slice the garlic and give it a rough chop. www.planttestkitchen.comNutrition
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If you liked this recipe you might also like
- Vegan Spinach & Artichoke Dip
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- Ancient Grains Bowl
- Pan-Seared Vegan Gnocchi With Brussels, Kale, Toasted Walnuts & Garlic Shake
- Massaged Kale Ribbon Vegan Caesar Salad
- No-Float Vegan Cauliflower Gnocchi & Lemon Kale-Basil Pesto
Did You Make Lemon Garlic Sautéed Spinach?
How did it go? What did eat with the spinach? Any fun variations or substitutions? Tell me about it in the comments section below. If this recipe went well for you, please leave a 5-star rating on the recipe card to help others find it.
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