Today we're warming our bellies with a hearty, fall inspired pumpkin curry!
How can it be November 1 already??? I mean, seriously, Thanksgiving is just 3 weeks away. I can't even right now. Time. Slow. Down! I still need to make a fall craft, dip caramel apples, and take more pictures of leaves (not to mention, rake them)!
Let's just slow down a bit. There's plenty of time to think about your Thanksgiving menu. Give yourself one more week before you put that task on the docket. How was your Halloween? Did you dress up? Did you trick-or-treat, or....better yet...pass out candy?
Mine was very low-key. Low-key as in I didn't dress up, didn't host a party, and didn't attend a party. Ryan had a work meeting on Halloween night (boo!), so despite being in a home this year, we did not pass out candy. BUT...before you start thinking I'm a total Halloween party pooper I'll tell you what we DID do. We were lucky enough to host my sister, her husband, and her husband's sister over the weekend. We did a few Halloweenie things - like seeing Boo! A Madea Halloween (hilarious), making/decorating Halloween-themed cookies (delish), and having a YouTube watching session of best Halloween pranks ever played (fascinating). So there's all that. I'd say we had a pretty good time!
In the midst of all the fall things we like to do, make time to try out this pumpkin curry. I made it and enjoyed it over the course of the first truly chilly week we've had in MO, and it really hit the spot. I'm a huge fan of Thai food, and this 30 Minute Green Curry is a weeknight favorite for me. However, I wanted to make a fall version and throw some winter squash into the mix (yes, pumpkin is a winter squash!).
This isn't your typical pumpkin-flavored dish that includes the highly recognizable combo of cinnamon + nutmeg + cloves + ginger. No no no. Here we're talking pumpkin + Thai spices. Curry paste. Fish sauce. Fresh aromatics. Coconut. It's all there, and it's all good! This easy curry will warm you from the inside out and just gets better with time as all the flavors develop and meld together.
Feel free to sub tofu for the chicken if you want to make this vegetarian!
A few things you will need for this recipe:
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Fall Pumpkin Curry with Chicken
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons Thai Kitchen Red curry paste
- 1 medium shallot
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 1 ’’ piece of fresh ginger peeled
- ½ cup water
- 2 14.5 ounce cans coconut milk (I use one light and one full fat)
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 2 tablespoons dark maple syrup
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast diced into ½’’ cubes
- 2 small red bell peppers cut into ¼’’ wide and 2’’ long strips
- 3 cups fresh green beans trimmed and cut into 2’’ long pieces
- 2 dried kaffir lime leaves
- Garnish: fresh Thai basil or regular basil
- 1 ½ cups Jasmine rice cooked according to package directions, for serving
Instructions
- Place the curry paste, shallot, garlic, ginger and water in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth a smooth paste forms. Transfer to a bowl.
- Place the pumpkin, coconut milk, fish sauce, and maple syrup in blender, Blend until smooth and set aside.
- In a large Dutch oven or large heavy-bottomed pan, brown the chicken in a bit of oil for 5-7 minutes. Transfer to plate.
- Add curry paste to the hot pan and saute 1 minute
- Add the chicken, bell pepper, green beans, and kaffir lime to the curry mixture. Toss to coate.
- Slowly pour the pumpkin mixture into the pot while stirring. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 5-7 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the veggies are tender to your liking.
- Serve the pumpkin curry over hot Jasmine rice.
- Curry reheats very well for leftovers and will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Scott says
I'd like to put this in the slow cooker. What do you think - any changes you might suggest?
Whitney Reist says
Hi Scott - thanks for stopping by! While I haven't tried this recipe in a slow cooker, I'd recommend cooking the chicken in the pumpkin/coconut milk + curry paste mixture on LOW for 4-6 hours. Add the green beans and the bell pepper the last hour to ensure that they aren't too mushy. Hope that works - my preference is to cook this on the stovetop, however, because you really don't want it to boil or the ingredients may separate a bit. Let me know how it turns out for you!