Sweet and Sour Butternut Squash or Pumpkin

By Tara Parker-Pope

Sweet and Sour Butternut Squash or Pumpkin
Total Time
About 20 minutes
Rating
4(119)
Comments
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This dish from Madhur Jaffrey, the well-known Indian cookbook author, belongs to a category of Bangladeshi foods known as bharats. Part relish and part vegetable dish, they add extra flavor to a meal. “We are beginning to find peeled and seeded butternut squash in our supermarkets now, making this dish a snap to make,” Ms. Jaffrey says. Use mustard oil for an authentic Bengali taste, or substitute olive oil. Mustard oil and other Asian ingredients and seasonings like asafetida and urad dal can be found in Indian food stores and specialty shops.

Featured in: Well's Vegetarian Thanksgiving 2010

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Ingredients

Yield:4 to 5 servings
  • 3tablespoons mustard oil or olive oil
  • A generous pinch of ground asafetida
  • ½teaspoon whole brown or yellow mustard seeds
  • 4cups (1¼ pounds) peeled and seeded butternut squash or pumpkin, cut into segments ¾- to 1-inch in size
  • ¾ to 1teaspoon salt
  • 1½teaspoons sugar
  • ⅛ to ¼teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 1tablespoon plain yogurt
  • 2tablespoons chopped cilantro
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (5 servings)

133 calories; 9 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 5 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 15 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 4 grams sugars; 1 gram protein; 295 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Pour the oil into a frying pan and set over medium heat. When hot, add the asafetida and mustard seeds. As soon as the mustard seeds start to pop, a matter of seconds, add the squash. Continue to cook, stirring, for about 3 minutes, or until the squash pieces just start to brown.

  2. Step 2

    Add ¼ cup of water, cover, turn heat to low, and cook for about 10 minutes, or until the squash is tender.

  3. Step 3

    Add the salt, sugar, cayenne and yogurt. Stir and cook, uncovered, over medium heat until the yogurt is absorbed and no longer visible. Sprinkle in the cilantro and stir a few times.

Ratings

4 out of 5
119 user ratings
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Comments

judy

I didn't have the asafatida, so I substituted some onion and garlic. Obviously not the same but was tasty. Doubled down on the cayenne pepper. Added pine nuts before serving.

Michele

You won't believe how good this is with so few and such simple ingredients! I substituted onion powder, a quarter teaspoon, for the asafetida, and paused the cooking between steps 2 and 3 to finish the rest of dinner. Definitely not a high-maintenance dish and good, I imagine, with anything. We had it with pan-fried fish. Yum.

Robbin Isaacson DeWeese

This is delicious. Did some research about asafetida. Be sure to wipe the container before putting it in the cupboard, then put that container into a sealed jar because its very pungent scent will perfume your home in a way that could be less than delightful.

Frank

This was wonderful! Plan on using this as a thanksgiving side instead of sweet potatoes. Did have some very old asofoeteda so will either find some new powder or use the substitutions others have used. I was generous with both the mustard seeds and cayenne, but we like spicy food. The yogurt tended to break when I stirred it in so will let the dish cool a little bit more next time. I think some lime slices and extra yogurt would go well—both tend to cut the heat/spice

Scott Middleton

Great flavors, but the squash was not even close to cooked after 3 10 minutes. Have others found this as well?

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