Sautéed Spinach with Garlic and Olive Oil (Simple and Delicious!)

Name: Sautéed Spinach with Garlic and Olive Oil (Simple and Delicious!)
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 20 min
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 4 tablespoons good quality olive oil that you like the flavor of; 8-10 garlic cloves, peeled and thickly sliced, crosswise; 16 ounces baby spinach, washed (see notes if using frozen spinach); Morton's kosher salt; Freshly ground black pepper

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This sautéed spinach is one of the easiest and most delicious side dishes you can make — and all you need is three simple ingredients — spinach, garlic, and olive oil. The key to making great sautéed spinach is to gently cook the garlic until it’s soft, sweet, and mellow and then let the spinach steam on top of the garlic until it's tender and infused with all that rich, garlicky flavor.

Sautéed Spinach and Garlic in a bowl topped with lemon zest.

A quick, flavorful sautéed spinach recipe with garlic and olive oil—simple, healthy, and absolutely delicious.

I love a recipe that transforms raw vegetables into something truly crave-worthy. Spinach is one of the world's healthiest vegetables — and when it’s cooked properly, it can also be incredibly delicious.

Why You'll Love This Sautéed Spinach!

As simple as can be – Just 3 ingredients: spinach, garlic, and olive oil
Quick – Ready in about 15 minutes
Goes with everything – From roast chicken to pasta
Nutritious – Spinach is packed with vitamins and fiber
Irresistibly good – Garlic and spinach are a perfect match

Important note: if you can, it’s worth buying organic spinach - especially if you live in the U.S., because spinach often appears near the top of the Environmental Working Group’s “Dirty Dozen” list, meaning it can carry high levels of pesticide residue. Totally up to you — but something to be aware of.

How To Make Sautéed Spinach

This simple technique ensures tender spinach and perfectly mellow garlic every time.

All you need are these 3 ingredients plus salt and pepper:

Good quality olive oil - one that you like the flavor of. When you're using so few ingredients, the quality of each ingredient is very important.
Fresh garlic - you may be surprised and even skeptical when you see how much garlic this recipe calls for. But the cooking technique brings out the best in the garlic and the overall flavor of the dish is deliciously balanced.
Fresh or frozen spinach - Fresh spinach will give you a silkier texture but both fresh and frozen spinach work well in this recipe. The recipe card will explain both methods.

Step One: Heat olive oil and lots of thickly sliced garlic in a heavy skillet, over low heat. The idea is to let the garlic melt for a few minutes, over gentle heat. This will soften the garlic and mellow its flavor.

simmering garlic in a cast iron skillet for sautéed spinach with garlic

Step Two: Once the garlic has softened a bit, pile the spinach on top. Don't worry if there's a huge mountain of spinach coming up out of your skillet. Spinach is 90% water. It will shrink a lot when it's cooked.

Add a teaspoon or two of water and cover the pot with a lid. Cook the spinach and garlic, covered, for a few minutes, undisturbed. The water will wilt and steam the spinach and finish softening and mellowing the garlic. When you remove the lid you'll have tender spinach infused with the mellow nutty flavors of gently-cooked garlic.

Season the sautéed spinach with salt and pepper, to taste. Enjoy this healthy and totally delicious side dish.

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Fresh vs Frozen Spinach

You can make this recipe with either fresh or frozen spinach — here’s how they compare:

Fresh spinach gives a lighter, silkier leafy texture
Frozen spinach is very convenient and makes a good substitute when fresh spinach isn't available.
If using frozen, thaw and squeeze out excess water before cooking (see recipe card for precise instructions)

Tips for Perfect Sautéed Spinach

Start the garlic in cold oil – helps it soften slowly to avoid burning and bitterness
Melt the garlic in olive oil before adding the spinach – prevents bitterness
Add very little water – spinach is 90% water, much of which will be released as the spinach cooks, so you'll end up with tender, saucy, garlicky spinach
Let it steam before stirring – helps it wilt evenly
Season at the end – with so much liquid being released and then evaporating, it's risky to add salt until the end. Season, to taste. The salt and pepper will make all the delicious flavors of this dish shine.

What to Serve with Sautéed Spinach

This sautéed spinach is a fantastic side dish with virtually everything. It's a must with Chicken Piccata. It's also perfect with Lasagna, Chicken Parmesan and Eggplant Parmesan. But don't limit it to Italian food. I love sautéed spinach on the side with steak, roasted chicken, pork and fish. This dish truly deserves a spot in your weekly recipe repertoire.

Sautéed Spinach and Garlic - a quick, delicious healthy side dish recipe with directions for using fresh or frozen spinach.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you substitute frozen spinach for fresh?

Yes — You won't get the delicate leafy texture with frozen spinach that you get with fresh, but you'll still get a delicious healthy dish. See the recipe card for all the details on to thaw and sauté frozen spinach.

Is frozen spinach as healthy as fresh?

Interestingly, frozen spinach is often just as nutritious — sometimes even more so than fresh spinach. Frozen spinach is flash frozen right after harvest, which preserves all of its nutrients whereas fresh spinach is harvested and then transported to the grocery stores which can sometimes take weeks or more.

How do you keep the garlic from getting brown and bitter?

You need to "melt" the garlic in olive oil over low heat until it's tender and translucent. When you add the spinach and a bit of water on top, you can raise the heat a bit and the garlic will continue to cook gently under the canopy of spinach, without burning or turning bitter.

How much does spinach shrink when it's cooked?

Spinach is 90% water. As it cooks, it collapses as it releases most of that water and reduces its volume by almost 90%. In other words, if you start with 10 cups of spinach, you will likely end up with about 1 cup.

If you want to eat more spinach, give this delicious Sweet Pea and Spinach Soup a try. If you're a vegetable lover, visit and follow my Exceptional Vegetables Pinterest Board. It's filled with tempting vegetable-centric recipes that I collect from blogs and culinary sites across the word-wide web.

Other delicious healthy side dish recipes:

Here's the recipe for Sautéed Spinach and Garlic. If you try this recipe I hope you'll come back to leave a star rating and a comment. I'd love to know what you think!

Recipe

Sautéed Spinach with Garlic and Olive Oil (Simple and Delicious!)

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 4 reviews

Author: Lisa Goldfinger
Total Time: 20 mins
Yield: 4-5 Side dish servings 1x
Diet: Dairy-Free, Gluten-Free, Low-Carb, Vegan, Vegetarian

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Description

A simple, delicious and healthy side dish of tender spinach sautéed with garlic.