Curry recipe with pumpkin and spinach – comfort food for the autumn

I am crazy about curries. The tastiest curry I ever ate was in Singapore at Samy’s Curry Restaurant. This month, I give a delicious curry recipe for chilly autumn days when you can use a bit of comfort food.

At Samy’s, I suspected from the Ferraris in front of the door that the restaurant was a bit too ‘fancy’. Once inside, I was pleasantly surprised: plastic furniture rusty ventilators, wooden shutters and of course fluorescent lighting. The servers walk around with big silver dishes, full of the tastiest curries that you have ever tasted. They were served on banana leaves, and you ate with your hands.

Curries are good in the UK as well, made with a classic autumn product: the pumpkin. This vegetable really lends itself to much more than just soup: roast them in the oven and make a lovely risotto with it. Or try this delicious vegetarian curry. Perfect for eating on the sofa on a rainy autumn evening! Oh and – if you dare – eating with your hands!

Enjoy!

Tom

Curry recipe – ingredients

1              pumpkin (ca. 1 kg)
1              onion, in half rings
4 tsp       sunflower oil
15 g         butter
1              jar Korma curry paste (Patak’s)
400 ml    coconut milk
3              tomatoes, coarsely chopped
1              can chickpeas (400g), drained
100 g       cashew nuts, unsalted
200 g       fresh spinach
pepper
salt
1              container fresh coriander

Curry recipe – preparation

1. Cut the pumpkin into 4 pieces. Scoop out the seeds with a spoon. Remove the peel and cut the pumpkin into pieces of ca. 3 cm.
2. Heat the oil and butter in a large pan on medium heat. Add the pumpkin and onion and cook ca. 5 minutes, stirring regularly until the vegetables start to soften.
3. Add the curry paste, together with a little hot water and let it cook for about 2 minutes.
4. Add the coconut milk, stir well and let it simmer, covered, for about 10 minutes.
5. Add the tomato and chickpeas, stir well and again let it simmer, covered, for about 10 minutes.
6. In the meantime, roast the cashew nuts in a dry pan to a nice golden brown.
7. Add the spinach to the curry, stir well and flavour with salt and pepper. Garnish with coriander and the cashew nuts.

Tip
Serve the curry with basmati rice, lime slices and pappadums.

Photo: Tom Nooijen, Damask tablecloth and Aubergine napkin Cottona.