One Pot Pumpkin Curry - a simple 30 minute dinner recipe that is full of flavor! Sweet pumpkin simmers in a fragrant red curry sauce with tofu or your protein of choice.
Welcome to your new favorite weeknight meal!
This pumpkin curry is full of fresh and deep curry flavors, tender pumpkin, soft tofu, and the most luxurious coconut-y curry sauce. It is warming on the crispest Fall day.
Reasons to love this recipe:
- Ready in 30 minutes, with one pot, and 10 ingredients.
- Can be made vegan with tofu, or use chicken or prawns instead!
- Is packed with healthy fats, protein, and veggies!
Ingredients in this recipe:
- Avocado oil - or coconut, grapeseed, etc.
- Shallots - they add the best flavor, but if you have to you can sub onion.
- Garlic
- Ginger - I like to keep ginger in my freezer at all times. You can grate it straight from frozen and it never goes bad!
- Thai red curry paste - like a Thai restaurant bottled up their secret sauce and sent you home with it. I like Thai Kitchen or Maesri brands best.
- Squash or pumpkin - curve ball. Our pumpkin curry may not contain any pumpkin. I actually prefer it with kabocha or butternut squash. They have a better texture and flavor.
- Coconut milk - Full fat coconut milk from a can. It adds richness and silkiness to the curry.
- Tofu - or try chicken or shrimp
- Zest and juice from one lime
- Coconut sugar - or brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 kafir lime leaf - Kafir lime leaves can admittedly be hard to find. But when you do, grab a bunch and toss them in your freezer -- they're gold! They add the best flavor to curry. If you can't find them, its best to omit rather than replace. Their flavor is completely unique.
How to make curry:
First, heat the avocado oil in a large Dutch oven or pot over medium high heat. Add in the shallots and cook, stirring occasionally, until they are translucent.
Add in the garlic, ginger, and curry paste. Cook, stirring constantly until fragrant, about 2 minutes. This step blooms the flavors in the curry paste bringing them to life.
Next, add in the coconut milk, a little at a time, until well mixed. Add in the squash, tofu, lime zest, coconut sugar, salt and lime leaf. Bring the mixture to a simmer. Cover and simmer until the squash is fork tender.
Remove the curry from the heat and stir in the lime juice. Remove the lime leaf, if using, and serve over rice!
More Fall Favorites!
One Pot Pumpkin Curry
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 20
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Entree
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Thai
- Diet: Vegan
Description
One Pot Pumpkin Curry - a simple 30 minute dinner recipe that is full of flavor! Sweet pumpkin simmers in a fragrant curry sauce with tofu or your protein of choice.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil
- 3 shallots, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons grated ginger
- 2 tablespoons Thai red curry paste
- 6 cups cubed squash or pumpkin (I like kabocha or butternut squash best!)
- 2 (13.5) oz. cans coconut milk
- 1 block extra firm tofu, cut into squares
- Zest and juice from one lime
- 2 tablespoons coconut sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 kafir lime leaf (optional)
- Optional garnishes: cilantro, pumpkin seeds and chili flakes
Instructions
- Heat the avocado oil in a large Dutch oven or pot over medium high heat. Add in the shallots and cook, stirring occasionally, until they are translucent, about 5-7 minutes.
- Add in the garlic, ginger, and curry paste. Cook, stirring constantly until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add in the coconut milk, a little at a time, until well mixed. Add in the squash, tofu, lime zest, coconut sugar, salt and lime leaf. Bring the mixture to a simmer. Cover and simmer until the squash is tender, about 10-15 minutes.
- Remove the curry from the heat and stir in the lime juice. Remove the lime leaf, if using, and serve over rice!
Notes
- Most grocery stores have red curry paste. You can also check your local Asian market or order it online.
- Kafir lime leaves can also be found at your local Asian Market. Look in the produce or freezer isles. If you can't find these leaves, omit rather than try to replace them in the recipe. Their citrus flavor is so unique that nothing else comes close.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: ¼ recipe
- Calories: 267
- Sugar: 10g
- Sodium: 1013mg
- Fat: 14g
- Saturated Fat: 10g
- Carbohydrates: 31g
- Fiber: 4g
- Protein: 5g
Do you think I could use a pumpkin purée instead of cubed?
Hi Kendra, puree may work, just know it will alter the recipe quite a bit. I usually use pre-cubed frozen butternut squash. It makes it so easy!
Do you defrost the frozen cubed squash before adding to the pot?
Hi Jamie, While I've done it both ways (defrosting the squash before use or adding frozen squash straight to the curry), defrosting the squash in the fridge overnight works the best.
What size cans of coconut milk?
Hi Amy, the standard 13.5 ounce can is the way to go :) I now have the recipe card updated to include this information as well. Thank you for catching this!
Thank you for the reply. Our grocery store has two sizes and I didn't want to assume. :)
I made this recipe as is for dinner this evening (minus the hard-to-find Kafir lime leaves) and it was delicious! Even my young preschool kiddos realized it tasted yummy after a bit of coaxing (because of how it looked). Thank you for taking the time to share. Will be having this again. 👍🏻👍🏻
So glad you enjoyed it Amy! It makes my day to hear it :)
Oh! Also, in your picture it looks like you have a cilantro garnish on the dish so I added it to mine as well. Perhaps you intended to add that in your ingredient list? I almost forgot to add it, and My husband and I both agreed that the cilantro was excellent with this!
Wonderful! Adding it to the ingredient list now :)
how many grams of tofu and how many grams of frozen pumpkin to add to the recipe