Easy Pumpkin Chicken Curry from Scratch

A plate of jasmine rice and chicken pumpkin curry with coriander.

4.94 from 45 votes

Easy Pumpkin Chicken Curry from Scratch

This easy pumpkin chicken curry is made of juicy, tender chicken morsels simmered in a deliciously aromatic sauce that is full of warm spiced flavor. It's well- spiced but not spicy and can be bulked up with healthy veggies, all in one pot. Plus it's super flexible: it can be made with coconut cream, regular cream, pumpkin puree or none of the above!

Prep Time10

Cook Time22

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: singaporean, Southeast Asian

Servings: people

Calories: 229kcal

Author: Zen

Ingredients

2 Tablespoon vegetable oil If your chicken looks like it's sticking to the pan when browning it, you may need more oil,
21 oz boneless, skinless chicken thighs (595g but feel free to round up to 600g) cut into 1 inch pieces: I prefer dark meat (chicken thighs) as it won't dry out unlike chicken breast
1 red onion peeled and minced. Substitute: shallots or yellow onions.
2 garlic cloves peeled and crushed
1 Tablespoon Ground fresh turmeric Substitute: turmeric powder
1 Tablespoon Ground Cumin If your spices are old, lightly toast them in a dry pan to awaken the fragrance before grinding.
2 teaspoon Ground coriander seeds As above.
1 Tablespoon Sambal oelek There may be no need to use salt as it's a salted chili sauce. (You can get this from the Asian supermarket, make your own from chillies, vinegar and salt or use 1 of these sambal oelek substitutes)
14.1 oz pumpkin (400g) Cut into ¾ inch cubes. Substitute: butternut squash
1⅗ Cups chicken stock (About 375 ml) If substituting with a bouillon cube, use 1 chicken bouillon cube mixed into 1⅗ Cups of hot water.
1 bunch fresh coriander leaves coarsely chopped. Don't throw away the roots and stems- you can pound that with pepper and garlic to make a Thai sauce!
¼ Cup coconut cream or regular heavy cream Optional, for a creamier sauce. You can also use pumpkin puree as a substitute or leave out entirely.

Instructions

Heat up vegetable oil in a pan. Place half the chicken pieces in a large skillet and lightly brown them on medium heat (gas stove) or medium-high heat (induction stove.) (About 2-3 minutes.)
Tip: use a bit more oil if the chicken looks like it's sticking. You'll need to give it a stir.
Plate and repeat with the rest of the meat.
In the same pan, sauté onion, garlic and ginger (if using.) (About 1-2 minutes.)
Once you can smell the aromatics and the onion is translucent, reduce the heat to low.
Add the ground spices and stir 2-3 times i.e. the turmeric, cumin and coriander seeds (The heat is low so as not to burn the spices.)
Add the sambal oelek red chili sauce, stir for 20 seconds (or till aromatic), then add the chicken pieces, pumpkin cubes and stock.
Turn the heat to medium-low. Cover the pot and simmer for 15 minutes or till the pumpkin is fork tender. Taste and season (only if necessary.)
Note: make sure the fire is not too hot or the chicken will dry out! If the pan looks too dry, top up with a bit more chicken stock or water.
Switch off the fire, stir in the fresh cilantro.
Optional: for a creamier curry, add the coconut or heavy cream and stir through before switching off the fire.
Serve with white rice on the side and enjoy your Asian feast!
Optional: you can add some freshly ground black pepper if you want.

Notes

Optional: 2 Tablespoon ginger, minced or grated: I've made this dish without ginger when I was out before and it still tasted amazing

Note: the nutritional information is an estimate automatically calculated using the WPRM recipe maker and I am not responsible for its accuracy.

Nutrition