Indian-Inspired Pumpkin Curry (cozy fall dinner)
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Tender cubes of spiced roasted squash meld into a warming pumpkin curry with pieces of sweet apple, aromatic ginger, garlic, spices, and crunchy pecans! This delicious pumpkin curry makes the perfect plant-based autumn dinner, featuring savory, sweet, and earthy spices for a rich and comforting meal. Get ready to fall in love with every cozy bite!
This pumpkin curry brings together two of my favorite things about fall: rich pumpkin flavor and warming, earthy spices simmered into a cozy curry. It’s the kind of dish that feels instantly comforting the moment it hits the stove.
Pumpkin purée and coconut milk create a velvety, silky-smooth sauce, and the natural sweetness of the pumpkin is the perfect backdrop for all those fragrant spices. Every spoonful is creamy, balanced, and deeply satisfying.
Ingredients notes
Fall is our favorite eating season, and this pumpkin curry recipe makes the most of the season’s most iconic vegetable. Earthy and warming spices meld with the pumpkin for a feel-good dinner. Gather these items:
- Winter squash: Kabocha, acorn, cinderella, or butternut are all great varieties to use in this recipe.
- For roasting: Olive oil, cinnamon, and cayenne.
- Coconut pumpkin curry: Coconut oil, onion, ginger, garlic cloves, apples, pureed pumpkin, stock or water, coconut milk, maple syrup, lime juice, sea salt, and toasted pecans.
- Spices: Curry powder, garam masala, coriander, and turmeric.
What’s the best type of pumpkin to use?
There is a wide variety of pumpkins; which ones are best for cooking? Leave the bigger, hefty pumpkins for carving—they tend to lack flavor. You’ll want smaller pumpkins! Our first choice would be a small Cinderella pumpkin.
Another good choice for winter squash is butternut squash; it’s widely available and delicious. You can also often find them peeled and cubed, which can save you time in the kitchen. Acorn squash and kabocha squash are two other winners – both have edible skin that doesn’t need to be peeled.
What to serve with pumpkin curry
A side of naan bread and a warm serving of steaming coconut rice, turmeric rice, or basmati rice is the ideal partner for soaking up all that creamy goodness of this pumpkin curry! For a lighter option, opt for cauliflower rice! Sprinkle some cilantro on top!
Round out the meal with a fresh salad. Balance out the richness with a crisp and refreshing, like this kale salad or this asparagus salad. Or, stay in the theme of enjoying Autumn’s bounty and serve with some brussels sprouts or asparagus.
You can also add some roasted chickpeas on top for some extra crunch and protein!
Watch how to make pumpkin curry
Indian-Inspired Pumpkin Curry (cozy fall dinner)
Ingredients
The Roasted Pumpkin
- 1 lb winter squash (kabocha, acorn, cinderella, or butternut are all great varieties to use in this recipe)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon EACH: cinnamon and cayenne
Coconut Pumpkin Curry
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- 1 medium onion (chopped)
- 2 tablespoons chopped ginger
- 4 cloves garlic (smashed)
- 3 medium apples (divided)
- 15 ounce can pureed pumpkin
- 2 cups stock (or water)
- 15 ounce can coconut milk
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- Juice from 1 lime
- Sea salt (to taste)
- ½ cup toasted pecans
The Spices
- 2 tablespoons curry powder
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon coriander
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
Instructions
- Turn your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Cut the squash into slightly larger than bite-sized pieces and put them on the baking sheet. Toss with the oil, cinnamon, and cayenne. Roast for 20 minutes in the oven, or until the squash is soft.1 lb winter squash, 1 tablespoon olive oil, ¼ teaspoon EACH: cinnamon and cayenne
- While the squash is roasting, heat the coconut oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and let it cook until it is golden. While the onion is cooking, add all the spices to a small bowl.2 tablespoons coconut oil, 1 medium onion, 2 tablespoons curry powder, 1 teaspoon garam masala, 1 teaspoon coriander, ½ teaspoon turmeric
- Add the ginger and garlic to the onions and cook for 1 minute. Add the spices to the pot and stir for 1 minute.2 tablespoons chopped ginger, 4 cloves garlic
- Add 1 apple (cored and coarsely chopped), the pumpkin, and 2 cups of stock to the pot. Cover the pot (the curry will splatter) and cook for 10 minutes.15 ounce can pureed pumpkin, 2 cups stock
- Carefully transfer the curry to your blender and blend until smooth. Return the curry to the pot.
- Add the coconut milk, maple syrup, and lime juice to the pot and stir well. Season to taste with sea salt. Stir in the remaining 2 apples (cored and diced) and the roasted squash and keep the curry on the heat for a couple minutes to soften the apples. Serve with toasted pecans on top.15 ounce can coconut milk, 2 tablespoons maple syrup, Juice from 1 lime, Sea salt, ½ cup toasted pecans
Video
Notes
Nutrition
We have thoroughly tested this recipe for accuracy. However, individual results may vary. See our full recipe disclosure here.
Hiya, the 1lb squash bullet point, is that roughly 1lb squash whole or 1lb squash flesh (not including seeds)? And the apples, here in the UK you get a packet of 4 large roughly 6oz converted and a 6 pack of smaller apples, half the size. Which size apples do you typically use? And lastly are they the sweet variety such as Pink Lady or sour Granny Smith type. Sorry for all the questions but I don’t do bitter as the comments suggest and I’m sure you’re recipe wasn’t bitter :). TIA
I weigh the squash before I cut it. And I normally buy sweeter apples (like Pink Lady – they’re the best!) so if you can find those, they’ll work great. I would opt for a medium to large-sized apple. 🙂
This one wasn’t as good as I had hoped — like another reviewer, mine also came out sort of bitter and we did indeed use the maple syrup. I also think there was too much sauce (so it was more like a pumpkin soup with pumpkin pieces in it) and there was not enough pumpkin (maybe double the amount next time — the ratio was off); it tasted like something was missing flavor-wise in the sauce but we could not put our finger on what it was. It wasn’t bad at all but I’d make a few adjustments next time!
I’m sorry to hear it wasn’t a hit.
This was a lovely, simple, quick recipe. I omitted the maple syrup since I didn’t have any on hand. The only thing is it came out a tad bitter. Not sure what went wrong there. Could have been an off sweet potato or perhaps it wasn’t balanced enough from using light coconut milk, or perhaps it needed the sweetness of the maple syrup. Overall a good recipe, served with coconut oiled rice and it was a hit.
I suspect it was probably because of omitting the maple syrup. Happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe!
Fabulous recipe. Just wondered whether or not you peeled the apples.
I don’t peel the apples. 🙂
Hello,
Thank you so much for your recipes! I have been subscribed for a while now, but I never had the chance to comment on your recipes. This one was absolutely delicious, although I made it a little too runny! I made it with a butternut squash and it was amazing!
Awwww thank you so much for the comment!!!