This hearty curry is perfect for colder months and one of the most delicious things you can do with a pumpkin. Inspired by a gloriously memorable trip to Sri Lanka where I ate a lot of Pumpkin curry and wondered why the vegetable doesn’t feature much in other South Asian curries.
Sri Lankan Pumpkin Curry
4
servings10
minutes1
hourIngredients
2 tbsp mustard oil
1 tsp black mustard seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp fenugreek seeds
20 curry leaves
4-6 dried red chillies
1 cinnamon stick
3 green cardamom pods, left whole but lightly crushed
1 large onion, thinly sliced
5 garlic cloves, minced
4 piece piece of ginger, cut into thin matchsticks
1/2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp curry powder
1 small/medium-sized pumpkin, cut into 1 inch chunks
4 large tomatoes, roughly grated, skin discarded
2 x 400g tins of coconut milk
1 tbsp coconut flour
1 lime, juice of
Coriander to garnish
Spiced toasted pumpkin seeds to garnish
Directions
- Pour the mustard oil into a large saucepan over a high heat. Add the mustard, cumin and fenugreek seeds, curry leaves dried chillies, cinnamon and cardamom pods, then lower the heat to low-medium.
- Once the seeds begin to pop and the curry leaves go crispy, add the sliced onion along with a generous pinch of salt and cook until softened and golden. Add a splash of water if it begins to catch.
- Add the ginger and garlic, then fry for a couple of minutes. Next add the turmeric and curry powder, then fry for 30 seconds.
- Now add the pumpkin, grated tomato pulp, coconut milk and coconut flour. Mix well, bring to the boil then cover with a lid and reduce the heat to a simmer for 50-60 mins, or until the pumpkin is soft and cooked through. Check and stir occasionally, adding a splash of water if it begins to dry out.
- Remove the lid for the final 10 minutes of cooking to allow the sauce to thicken up. Taste for seasoning and add salt accordingly, along with the lime juice.
- Garnish with coriander leaves and toasted pumpkin seeds.
