Sunday, October 28, 2012

Pumpkin Curry

Today we found ourselves with a massive bowlful of pumpkin flesh leftover from carving up our usual Hallowe'en pumpkins, despite having made Pumpkin Lasagne for our Hallowe'en Film Club guests last night.


Wanting to try something a little different, and having Bailey (who really doesn't like pumpkin) to please, I decided to do a nice and easy pumpkin curry.


We'd picked up some little pots of Mrs Shah's Curry Mix at this year's North West Food Lovers Festival to help us make some lazy curries for days like today.


We liked the Mrs Shah's very much although we came to regret our decision to confidently go for 'Hot' straight away despite being warned by (who I presume was) Mr Shah that it was very hot. The curry was indeed rather hot, so much so that Bailey had to give up on his halfway through and I had to dilute mine with yogurt.


Despite the heat, I loved our Pumpkin Curry, which allowed us to enjoy a bit of seasonal Hallowe'en fun and  we thought that pumpkin actually made a surprisingly excellent curry ingredient! Happy Hallowe'en!


Recipe:
2 onions
2 cloves smoked garlic
2 peppers
The flesh of a pumpkin
1 pot of Mrs Shah's Curry Mix (or a blend of spices of your choice)
2 tbsp tomato purée
A handful of coriander

Start by cutting the onions into chunks and adding to a large pan over a medium heat. Fry for a few minutes while finely chopping the garlic. Add to the pan.


Cut the peppers into strips and add to the pan to fry for a few minutes.


Chop the pumpkin into chunks and cover the pan to allow all the veg to soften and the pumpkin to a go a little liquid as this will form the sauce.


When the pumpkin has softened, add the spices to the pan and stir well. Add the tomato purée. Turn the heat down on the curry and allow to simmer gently with the lid on for a while. Check regularly and stir well each time.


When all the veg is lovely and soft and a sauce has formed, turn the heat up again to thicken up the sauce while you cook your rice - I made turmeric rice.


Sprinkle the curry with half of the coriander and mix it in. Serve the curry up with rice and sprinkle with the remaining coriander. I ate mine with blobs of yogurt!


6 comments:

  1. Looks good! Nigel Slater has a recipe for its use in a laksa as well if you need ideas for next year :)

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    Replies
    1. Oh thanks - yes I'll definitely be looking for exciting pumpkin ideas for next year given that Bailey isn't a fan of the taste but we love hollowing them out!

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  2. I often use pumpkin in curries, but in Japan they are what I think you would find in the UK called 'kabocha pumpkin' or 'kabocha squash' ('kabocha' being the Japanese word for pumpkin). I think it goes well with prawns in an Indian curry, and sometimes, for a very quick curry, I use a carton of Thai green curry soup as a base, throw in come chopped pumpkin, simmer for maybe 10 minutes (or until it's almost soft) then pop in some salmon or tofu, simmer for a couple of minutes and it's ready. Very yummy, very quick and easy and really good on a cold evening. It's quite a soupy curry, so I usually have it in a bowl without rice. I recommend it!

    Rachel

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    Replies
    1. That sounds delicious Rachel! Thanks so much for the idea. I have heard of kabocha but never seen it - what do you reckon, could I get it down my Japanese supermarket?

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    2. I checked online and found this article

      http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/foodanddrinkadvice/8783914/Autumn-is-the-time-for-all-types-of-squash.html

      and it seems Waitrose might have them (I had thought as much anyway) or you could order them from Hampshire (!!!). M & S might have them too. Since you have a local Japanese supermarket I'd start there - even if they don't have it they might know where to get some.

      If you can find some, I also make a kabocha and paneer curry with Indian spices or brush slices with a little olive oil and cook in a frying pan (probably good roasted), sprinkle with a little sea salt and then have the slices with a salad or just munch on them as they are. Extra yummy (but not healthy) dipped in a little wasabi mayonnaise!

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    3. I love paneer and the wasabi mayo tip sounds insane! Mmmmmmmmm.

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