While I was cooking, the smell of this curry brought back fond memories of the week and a half we spent in Bang Saphan Yai, Thailand. The family owned the collection of beach bungalows where we stayed made a different dinner each night we were there, and this curry was one of the best things I’d ever tasted in my life.

Massaman curry usually contains beef and potatoes, and is common in Southern Thailand. Most Thais who aren’t Muslim don’t eat beef, and I don’t anymore either, but I wanted to make a vegetarian (and healthier) version of this rich, spicy curry.

I started off by steaming chunks of sweet potato and acorn squash in a bamboo steamer, and also used tofu, broccoli, carrots, onions, and tomatoes. With light coconut milk, fresh curry paste and all those vegetables, it has great flavor without being too rich. I think next time I may use kabocha or butternut squash instead, because their texture is a little more solid.

Recipe:
1 sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1″ chuncks
1 small squash (acorn, kabocha, or butternut), cut into chunks and seeds removed
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tbsp Yellow Curry paste (you can also use store-bought, but I think homemade is better)
1 roma tomato, chopped
1 carrot, thinly sliced
1 small head of broccoli, cut into florets
1/2 small yellow onion, diced
8 ounces extra firm tofu, drained, pressed, and cut into 1 cm cubes
1 16 ounce can light coconut milk
1 tbsp curry powder
1 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp peanuts

Place the squash and potato chunks in a bamboo steamer over boiling water, and steam until tender (or cook in the microwave). Set aside. I think it’s easiest to keep the peel on the squash until it’s steamed, because it’s much easier to remove it after it has cooked.

Heat the oil in a Dutch oven or heavy pot over medium-high. Add the curry paste and chopped tomato and stir-fry until very fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the broccoli, carrot, and onion and cook for another 2-3 minutes.

Stir in the curry powder, coconut milk, sugar, soy sauce, tofu, squash, and sweet potato, and let simmer for 10-15 minutes, or until the broccoli and carrots are tender.
While the curry is simmering, toast the peanuts in a dry skillet until golden brown. Cool, then chop.

Once the vegetables are tender, taste and adjust the seasonings, then ladle over rice and top with chopped peanuts.

I grew up eating a LOT of acorn squash. My mom grew it in the backyard (if I remember correctly, Mom, is that true?) and we kept a box of squash in the basement through the winter, eating it at least once a week. The past few years I branched out and used a lot of butternut and kabocha, and even went so far as to say I liked them much better than acorn. Well, this recipe changes the game a little bit. I think it was a little premature to dismiss acorn from my favorite squash list, because now I’m tempted to put it right up at the top.

This dish is perfect for Fall, which I realize is now over, but since I was in Korea and working with a very limited range of ingredients, I’m perfectly content making Fall foods long into winter. The nutmeg, cinnamon, and golden raisins really enhance the sweet butteriness of the squash, and the bulgar and garbanzo beans make it nice and filling. I found it on the fabulous blog Arugulove, which calls this “the perfect meal.” I have to say, I think I agree!

Recipe:
(adapted from Arugulove, originally from Martha Stewart, October 2009)

3 small to medium acorn squashes halved and seeded
1 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
2 tsp. course salt, divided
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup bulgur wheat
2 1/4 cups water
1/4 cup golden raisins
1/4 cup Italian flat-leaf parsley, chopped
3 tbsp. toasted pine nuts
1 1/4 cups cooked or canned garbanzo beans

Preheat oven to 400 F. Place the squash halves cut-sides down in a greased 9×13 inch casserole dish or roasting pan. Bake until tender, 35 to 40 minutes.

While the squash is in the oven, heat the oil in a large saucepan with a tight-fitting lid over medium heat. Add the onions, cinnamon and nutmeg, and 1 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onions are very soft and fragrant (5 to 7 minutes) adding 2-3 tbsp of water after the first two or three minutes to keep the onions from drying out or burning.

Add garlic, and cook for an additional minute.

Add remaining teaspoon salt and the bulgur, and stir to combine. Add water, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and cook for 15 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the pot sit covered for 5 minutes.

Fluff the bulgar with a fork, and add the raisins, parsley, pine nuts and garbanzo beans. Stir together to combine and adjust seasonings if necessary

When the squash is soft, take it out of the oven. Let it cool a little and scrape out enough of the flesh to form 1/4 inch thick bowls.

Mix the squash flesh into the bulgur mixture. Divide among squash halves, and return them to the oven. Bake until warmed through and tops are browned, about 12 to 14 minutes.

Serves 6.