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Butternut squash and paneer curry

You can replace the creamed coconut with coconut milk if you like. You could also replace the butternut squash with any other pumpkin or sweet potato. It's a rich recipe, and my family really enjoyed it.
Tip: when I use cinnamon sticks, I often fish them out, rinse them and reuse. They are expensive the real thing (a cheaper version is cassia bark) and they have more use in them than one go, in my opinion.
Course: Main Course, vegan main course, Vegetarian main course
Cuisine: Anglo-Indian, Indian
Keyword: Butternut squash and paneer curry, Curry

Ingredients

For the butternut squash:

  • 1 butternut squash, skinned, de-seeded, chopped into 2 inch squares,
  • 3 tbsps olive oil
  • sprinkle ground or whole cumin
  • sprinkle sea salt

For the curry:

  • 3 tbsps vegetable oil or ghee
  • 1 tbsp mustard seeds
  • 2 brown onions, diced
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 1 tbsp cumin, ground
  • 1 tbsp coriander, ground
  • 2 black cardamom
  • 2 kashmiri chillies, or more, to your taste, whole
  • 1 tsp turmeric powder
  • 1 star anise whole
  • 4 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 1 cube frozen ginger or 2 inches fresh ginger, chopped
  • 1 tbsp tomato paste
  • 100g creamed coconut paste (half a standard pack), chopped up
  • 2 tbsps tamarind paste
  • 250 ml water
  • 1 block paneer, chopped into squares 1/2 inch
  • 1 tbsp heaped of vegetable stock
  • salt to taste
  • 1 pinch mango powder, (amchoor)

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 180c. Prep the butternut squash.
  • Put the butternut squash onto a baking tray tossed in the olive oil, sprinkled with sea salt and cumin. Roast for 20 mins or so, until soft and cooked through. Remove from the oven. Set aside.
  • In a deep saucepan on a medium heat, heat up the vegetable oil or ghee
  • Add the mustard seeds and let them pop.
  • Then add the onion, soften.
  • Add the spices: cinnamon, cumin, coriander, cardamom, chillies, turmeric, star anise. Cook for a couple of minutes
  • Add the garlic, ginger, tomato paste, creamed coconut and tamarind paste. Allow to cook a few minutes.
  • Add the water, stir until the sauce thickens up, perhaps 10 minutes.
  • Add the paneer, cook in the sauce for 5 minutes or so.
  • Add the vegetable stock, salt, mango powder.
  • Finally add the butternut squash chunks. Stir into the sauce without breaking up the chunks. Allow the squash to absorb the sauce.
  • Serve with rice and yoghurt and wedges of lime or lemon. Garnish with fresh coriander.