Vegan Pumpkin Curry with Ginger Crisps
There are many different curry variations. However, we believe that there can never be enough of them, right? On the blog, we already published recipes for vegan madras curry with apple, vegan vegetable curry with rice and vegan falafel curry with naan bread. But there's still one specific autumn curry missing, and you can probably guess our main ingredient. It's pumpkin, of course!
The first thing you might think of when you think of curry is spiciness. In this recipe, it comes in two forms. Number one: chili flakes, which are sautéed in coconut oil right at the beginning to develop their flavor in the best way possible. You can of course reduce the amount if you prefer your curry less spicy. Number two: to give our recipe that special something, we've topped the curry with ginger crisps, which add some sharp spiciness. For the crisps, the ginger is cut into paper-thin slices, tossed in starch, and deep-fried. During the heating process, the ginger loses some of its "raw" spiciness, but still brings a crunchy kick at the end.
The ingenious thing about curries is that you can always adjust the vegetables according to season and your taste. In addition to the pumpkin, sugar snap peas end up on our plate today, but if you prefer other vegetables, you can replace them, of course. If you can't find sugar snap peas, just use thick green beans, leave them out, or use something completely different. If it's not autumn and there are no pumpkins available, you can also prepare this curry with sweet potatoes – it tastes just as fantastic!
Vegan Pumpkin Curry with Ginger Crisps
Ingredients
For the curry:
- 700 g (1.5 lbs) hokkaido pumpkin
- 400 ml (1.75 cups) coconut milk
- 200 g (7 oz) sugar snap peas
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 onion
- 10 g (0.33 oz) ginger
- 2 stalks fresh lemongrass
- 1 tbsp coconut oil
- 4 tsp curry powder
- 1 tsp chili flakes
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 0.5 lime (juice)
- salt
- pepper
For the ginger crisps:
- 30 g (1 oz) ginger
- 2 tbsp potato starch
- 300 ml (1.33 cups) vegetable oil
- salt
Also:
- 250 g (1.5 cups) basmati rice
- 15 g (0.5 oz) fresh cilantro
Instructions
Wash the hokkaido pumpkin and cut 300 g (10.5 oz) of it into small pieces. Cook the pumkin in a saucepan with a little water and a pinch of salt until it's soft. Transfer the cooked pumpkin into a tall container, add coconut milk and blend until smooth.
Dice the remaining 400 g (14 oz) of hokkaido pumpkin and wash the sugar snap peas, then set both aside. Peel and finely chop garlic cloves, onion, and ginger. Remove the outer hard leaves of the lemongrass and crush the stalks with the back of a knife to release its flavors. Wash and finely chop cilantro.
Cook the basmati rice according to package instructions.
Heat coconut oil in a large frying pan. Add curry powder, chili flakes, cumin, cinnamon, and tomato paste and sauté over high heat for approx. 2-3 minutes. Reduce heat slightly and add garlic, onions, ginger, and diced pumpkin. Fry for approx. 5 minutes.
Add the pumpkin coconut milk and lemongrass and let the curry simmer over medium heat for approx. 10-15 minutes, or until the diced pumpkin is soft.
In the meantime, peel and thinly slice the ginger for the ginger crisps. Toss the slices in potato starch until they are covered. Heat vegetable oil in a pot and add some salt. Once the oil is hot, add the ginger slices and deep-fry them for approx. 3-4 minutes until they're crispy and browned. Keep stirring from time to tome. Remove and drain the crisps on paper towels.
Add the sugar snap peas to the curry just before serving to keep them crispy. Season the curry with lime juice, salt, pepper, and, if desired, with the other spices to taste. Remove the lemongrass before serving. Plate and serve the pumpkin curry with rice, ginger crisps, and cilantro.
