Squash, coconut and chilli

foldermain | vegan | winter

squash-coconut-chilli

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall

A simple and quick curry with plenty of colour and texture perfect for a cold winter evening. Go for a fairly mild variety of chilli, so you can put plenty of it in for colour and texture without blowing everyone's head off.

Prep 10 min
Cook 25 min
Serves 4

Ingredients

800g–1kg butternut squash
2 tbsp sunflower oil
1 onion, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
2–4 mild or medium red chillies, deseeded and sliced
1 good tbsp curry powder or paste
400ml tin coconut milk
a squeeze of lime or lemon juice
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

  1. Peel and deseed the squash, then cut it into bite-sized chunks.
  2. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over a medium-low heat. Add the onion and cook gently for about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and chillies and cook for another couple of minutes. Stir in the curry powder or paste and cook for a minute or two. Now add the squash, with some salt and pepper, and stir well. Cook for a further 2 minutes or so.
  3. Pour in the coconut milk, stir well and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook gently for 20–25 minutes, stirring carefully every now and then. You want the squash to be perfectly tender and yielding, but not mushy or falling apart.
  4. When the squash is cooked, add more salt and pepper if needed. Finish with a good spritz of lime or lemon juice. Ladle into bowls and serve with rice and/or naan or flatbreads.

Note: Green beans, whole or cut into 4–5cm lengths, added to the curry about 8–10 minutes before the end of cooking, will add colour and texture.

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