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Steakhouse Creamed Spinach

Rich and cheesy, this creamed spinach recipe is just like the one from your favorite steakhouse. Thick and creamy, this vegetable side dish takes minutes to make in a skillet and is a wonderful accompaniment to any main.

Thick creamed spinach in a white serving bowl with a spoon.


 

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I can not wait for you to try this delicious creamed spinach recipe! Seasoned with onion, garlic, parmesan, and nutmeg, this spinach side dish is thick, rich, creamy, and full of flavor, just like your favorite at the local steakhouse!

This is a super easy side dish to make, and with a few simple ingredients, it comes together quickly on the stovetop in a skillet.

This is one veggie side dish that you can’t say no to!

Be sure to try my Creamed Corn and Creamed Cabbage and Sausage too! And if you love a good steakhouse side dish, you’ll love these sauteed mushrooms.

A wooden spoon stirring the steakhouse creamed spinach.

How to make steakhouse creamed spinach

  • Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Blanch the spinach for 20-30 seconds. Then drain. Once the spinach is cool enough to handle, use paper towels to squeeze as much water out of the spinach as possible.
  • Since this is a lot of spinach, this reduces it a nice bit so it will fit in the skillet without cooking it in batches. It also keeps the spinach bright and green.
Wilted spinach in a bowl.
  • Heat the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Once the butter starts bubbling, add the onion and cook until it starts to brown. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant.
Onion and garlic cooking in a skillet.
  • Stir in the milk, cream, and cream cheese. Reduce the heat a little and simmer until this mixture thickens slightly, stirring occasionally.
Cream added to the skillet.
  • Stir in the parmesan, spinach, salt, pepper, and pinch of nutmeg.

Can you use frozen spinach?

I highly recommend that you use fresh spinach for this recipe. Frozen spinach tends to be quite bitty, using fresh will give you more texture. Use baby spinach that is nice and tender rather than the larger spinach leaves. If you do use the larger leaves, they will require a little extra time to blanch so that they are nice and soft.

Can you make it ahead of time?

This is a favorite side dish of mine as it takes minutes to prep and cook, so it’s great to do at the last minute. You can keep it warm on the stovetop for a little while til ready to serve. It’s best not to make this too far ahead of time as the cream will thicken a lot if it is cooled.

Can you make it healthier?

The joy of this steakhouse creamed spinach is that it is wonderfully indulgent! If you are looking to cut down a little on fat and calories you could use low-fat cream cheese and half-and-half instead of cream, but I much prefer it full fat!

What do you serve it with?

This spinach side dish works wonderfully with so many main courses. Try it with:

Close up of the creamed spinach in a skillet ready to serve.

Recipe Notes and Tips

  • For best results, use fresh baby spinach.
  • Once blanched, squeeze as much excess water out of the spinach as possible, this will help to create a thick and rich cream sauce.
  • Taste the spinach before serving and adjust the seasonings to suit.

More Vegetable Side Dishes

Thick creamed spinach in a white serving bowl with a spoon.
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5 from 4 votes

Steakhouse Creamed Spinach

Rich and cheesy, this creamed spinach recipe is just like the one from your favorite steakhouse. Thick and creamy, this vegetable side dish takes minutes to make in a skillet and is a wonderful accompaniment to any main.
Course Side Dish
Cuisine American
Keyword easy creamed spinach recipe, how to make creamed spinach, spinach side dish
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes
Servings 4 servings
Calories 371kcal
Author Tanya

Ingredients

  • 20 ounces baby spinach
  • 3 Tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 small yellow onion chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves minced
  • 3/4 cup milk
  • 1/2 cup cream
  • 4 ounces cream cheese block style
  • 1/4 cup grated Parmesan
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Pinch of nutmeg

Instructions

  • Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Blanch the spinach for 20-30 seconds. Then drain. Once the spinach is cool enough to handle, use paper towels to squeeze as much water out of the spinach as possible.
  • Heat the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Once the butter starts bubbling, add the onion and cook until it starts to brown. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant.
  • Stir in the milk, cream, and cream cheese. Reduce the heat a little and simmer until this mixture thickens slightly, stirring occasionally.
  • Stir in the parmesan, spinach, salt, pepper, and pinch of nutmeg.

Notes

  • For best results, use fresh baby spinach.
  • Once blanched, squeeze as much excess water out of the spinach as possible, this will help to create a thick and rich cream sauce.
  • Taste the spinach before serving and adjust the seasonings to suit.

Nutrition

Calories: 371kcal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 10g | Fat: 33g | Saturated Fat: 20g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 96mg | Sodium: 345mg | Potassium: 971mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 14501IU | Vitamin C: 42mg | Calcium: 308mg | Iron: 4mg
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Although myforkinglife.com attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Under no circumstances will myforkinglife.com be responsible for any loss or damage resulting for your reliance on nutritional information.
5 from 4 votes (3 ratings without comment)
Recipe Rating




Christine

Friday 28th of October 2022

This looks really good please send me the website thank you

Connie

Saturday 25th of June 2022

Delicious I used Fontina cheese and a dash of hot pepper.