With this installment, I used up the last bit of our precious home-made pumpkin purée stored in the freezer. The series closed with a golden key, by the way. This curry is a winner! Pumpkin & shrimp is actually a very traditional combination in the Brazilian dish called “camarão na moranga”. You can see a photo of the completed dish here. Think about a shrimp stew served inside a small pumpkin, carved to hold the stew in all its tasty glory. I intend to make the Brazilian version sometime, but for now I’ll share this variation that I adapted from Bon Appetit magazine.
PUMPKIN SHRIMP CURRY
(adapted from Bon Appetit, November 2011)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 shallot, diced
1 tablespoon minced ginger
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 can of diced tomatoes (15 ounces)
Pumpkin purée (15 ounces can, or homemade)
2 cups vegetable broth
1 cup unsweetened coconut milk (light is ok)
1 + 1/2 teaspoons curry powder
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 cup green peas (frozen is fine, no need to defrost)
1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
cilantro leaves to taste, minced
lime zest to taste
Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the diced shallot and ginger; lower the heat and sauté until soft, stirring often, about 8 minutes. Add garlic; cook for 1 minute. Stir in the tomatoes and pumpkin puree, and cook on medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until the pumpkin is golden brown, about 10 minutes. Add vegetable broth, coconut milk, curry powder, and cayenne pepper; simmer gently for 20 minutes. Add peas, shrimp, and lime juice. Simmer until shrimp are cooked and peas are warm. Serve with steamed rice. Top with cilantro, and lime zest.
ENJOY!
to print the recipe, click here
Comments: I made a few modifications on the original recipe. It called for only one tomato, diced. I don’t think that’s enough, I love a more tomato-ey curry, so I added the full 15-ounce can, draining most of the liquid. As I reduced the sauce, it seemed a bit too chunky, so I worked my immersion blender to smooth things out lightly. My final modification was to use green peas, whereas the original recipe added pieces of cooked butternut squash. I thought it would be too monochromatic and boring. Plus, not much contrast between the taste of pumpkin and butternut squash. The green peas brightened up the colors and added great flavor. So, I patted myself on the back, and told Phil I am a great cook. And also very modest. He said he knew both things already… He’s a keeper, my friends. A keeper… 😉
ONE YEAR AGO: In My Kitchen, April 2012
TWO YEARS AGO: A Dutch Tiger
THREE YEARS AGO: Banana Bread
(bragging mode on: this recipe tied for first place in The Quest for the Best Banana Bread, at Eat, Play Love! ;-))
Bewitching Kitchen 
What a delightful prawn recipe! Methinks I shall make when I can cook my own pumpkin puree which would taste so much more real!
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Indeed, a home made puree makes it special…
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This looks great! I wonder how it would be with some other type of squash, like butternut or acorn? I love my immersion blender and use it all the time. It’s so much easier than having to put hot liquid into a food processor or counter-top blender. I’ve read some horror stories about people mangling their hands while using one, but I don’t quite see how that happens, do you? http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/16/dining/immersion-blenders-can-be-a-danger-in-disguise.html?smid=pl-share It would not occur to me to try to pry food out of the blade without first unplugging the device! Anyway, be careful in the kitchen, folks! I have my share of scars from knives, but that’s another story.
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Pretty scary stuff! I would never touch the blade of the immersion blender unless it is unplugged… what scares me the most in the kitchen is the mandoline, I use it very carefully, so far I’ve been able to keep all my fingers 😉
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This is a wonderful recipe. But thank you for freezing stuff like pumpkin puree!!! It’s so versatile!!! I keep everything!!! Which is also why my husband gets bummed when I can’t recreate a recipe for him because I used leftover this and that!!!! But it’s so smart!
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I am like you, tend to save everything and re-use it, sometimes in very “non-traditional” approaches. Give you an example, I have some pulled pork in the freezer, believe it or not I intend to mix it with some tomato sauce with a hint of orange and use it over pasta. there you go… would not blog about it, but I’m sure it will be tasty 😉
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Wow, what a brilliant idea to add pumpkin puree to the mix. Luxurious and rich!
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Very luxurious indeed, and without any cream or excessive fat – love that!
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What an interesting combination – shrimp and pumpkin – I would have never thunk it, but why not? And does it ever look delicious too. Your little peas floating in the heavenly curry sauce look so happy ;-). Love the little cayenne kick too here – this recipe is right up my alley Sally!
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Hope you try it and enjoy it too, Kelly!
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Sounds like a great way to use the last of my pumpkin puree. The frosty pumpkin struesel bars were amazing (sweet coconut and caramel etc) but I need to avoid all those sweets. 🙂 If you get tempted, here’s the post with the recipe etc.
http://a-boleyn.livejournal.com/133854.html
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Tempting indeed… tempting indeed…. I would probably sample a small bite and take the rest to the department, everyone will love me 🙂
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You are a good cook!!! I’m certain of that. 😉 I know Mike and I would love this stew. We both adore pumpkin and love shrimp. The kids are still coming around to squash. I’m hoping one of these days…I think I would have to skip the peas though. I just can’t handle them and I’ve tried, oh, how I’ve tried. I think it’s one of those leftover things from when I was a kid. Perhaps another green addition though because I like the color contrast for sure. I agree Phil is a keeper…so is that banana bread! 🙂
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Maybe pieces of asparagus could be good too? Or green beans? Kale? Or you can just skip it altogether… 🙂
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I like the asparagus idea! 🙂 The kids will eat that too.
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This is a great curry, Sally, and even better it it helps to clear the freezer of some of that pumpkin puree that seems to have just re-appeared out of nowhere. I do like all of your changes, too. The dish needs some color, like green, to brighten and offer contrast. Peas are perfect for the job.
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It is a very versatile dish, and as Michael (below) mentioned, you can go in many directions with it – the pumpkin being the basic flavor…
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Is it fate that Libby’s Pumpkin Puree in the 15 oz. can just went on sale at my local market for $.99 cents? I usually stock up on canned pumpkin after the holidays so I can make our favorite pumpkin roll throughout the year.
I’m on my third batch of this wonderful recipe Sally. Thanks so much for posting this! I’m heading back to the store to buy ten more bucks worth of canned pumpkin.
Very creamy, and not too heavy. Lends itself to the addition of other greens like spinach, green beans, etc.
Thanks again.
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Wonderful to know you enjoyed it so much! I was also amazed by how well the pumpkin puree complemented a curry…
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I’ve had really good curried pumpkin soup before. That’s why I gravitated to this recipe and tried it as soon as you posted it. The two flavors really do mesh like magic… as I’m sure your bewitching instincts told you. ;~>
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