Squash, chickpea & coconut curry
- Preparation and cooking time
- Prep:
- Cook:
- Easy
- Serves 4
Ingredients
- 1 kabocha, red kuri, crown prince or butternut squash, peeled, deseeded, cut into 2cm-thick slices
- 3 tbsp coconut or rapeseed oil
- 5 tbsp tamarind sauce
- 1 tsp chilli flakes
- 2 tbsp desiccated coconut
- 1 tsp black mustard seeds
- 1 tbsp dried or fresh curry leaves
- 1 red onion, sliced
- thumb-sized piece of ginger, grated
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- 1 green chilli, sliced
- 1 lemongrass stalk, lightly bashed
- 400g can chickpeas, drained
- 1 large tomato, sliced
- 1 tbsp roasted curry powder (see recipe, right)
- 1 tsp turmeric, freshly grated if possible, or use 1 tsp ground
- 400ml can coconut milk
- 3 large handfuls of kale
- small bunch of coriander, leaves picked
- 2 tbsp toasted coconut flakes (optional)
- flatbreads, to serve
For the roasted curry powder
- 10g basmati rice
- 20g coriander seeds
- 15g cumin seeds
- 10g black peppercorns
- 5g fenugreek seeds
- ½ tsp cloves
- ½ tsp green cardamom pods, seeds only
Method
- STEP 1
For the curry powder, heat a small frying pan over a medium heat and toast the rice, stirring, until it starts to brown. Tip in the rest of the spices and toast for 3-5 mins until brown but not burned. Using a spice grinder or pestle and mortar, blitz or grind to a fine powder. Pass through a sieve. Will keep for up to three months in an airtight container.
- STEP 2
Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Toss the squash with 1 tbsp of the oil, a pinch of salt, 3 tbsp of the tamarind sauce, the chilli flakes and coconut. Spread out on a baking sheet and bake for 35-40 mins, or until tender.
- STEP 3
Heat the remaining 2 tbsp oil in a wok over a high heat. Fry the mustard seeds for a minute or so until they sizzle and pop, then add the curry leaves and cook for a few more seconds until they crackle. Add the onion, ginger, garlic, chilli, lemongrass and a pinch of salt and stir for a few minutes until the onion softens. Tip in the chickpeas, tomato, curry powder and turmeric and keep stirring for 5-8 mins, until the tomato breaks down.
- STEP 4
Pour the coconut milk into the wok and stir, cooking for about 5 mins until slightly reduced. Add the remaining 2 tbsp tamarind, taste for seasoning, then add the kale, stirring for a couple of minutes until softened. Divide the squash between bowls, ladle in the curry sauce, then top with the coriander and coconut flakes, if using. Serve with warmed flatbreads.
