What spices go with spinach

A long-established European convention. Nutmeg's sweet warmth offsets spinach's mineral, slightly metallic edge, and the pairing extends to creamed spinach and to spinach in dairy-based dishes generally.

How: Grated fresh over creamed spinach at the end

Add alongside: Cheese, Black pepper

• A few strokes of a grater. Nutmeg becomes cloying quickly.

Saag in its many forms. Spinach is mineral and slightly bitter, and cumin bloomed in fat gives it a base to sit on — without it, spiced spinach tastes green and thin.

Add alongside: Garlic, Turmeric, Chilli powder

The Levantine answer, and a different idea from the European one. Spinach fatayer are seasoned with sumac and onion rather than with dairy: the sourness cuts the mineral edge directly instead of smoothing it over with fat.

Add alongside: Onion, Sesame seed, Black pepper