Butternut Squash Red Curry (Gaeng Fukthong)

Serves four

• 250 ml Coconut milk
• 2 tbsp Red curry paste
• 400 g Butternut squash (peeled and chopped into small bite-size chunks)
• 200 g Carrot (peeled and cut into small bite-size chunks)
• 200 g Broccoli florets
• 100 g Courgette (cut into small bite-size pieces)
• 2 tbsp Fish sauce (use 2 teaspoons soy sauce for a vegan alternative)
• 1 tbsp Palm sugar
• 5 Kaffir lime leaves (thinly sliced)
• 2 Green or red chillies (diagonally sliced)
• 5 Basil leaves
• 1-2 Coriander leaves, to garnish

Nutritional information
Per serving: 255 Kcal

Environmental Impact

Per serving: 
120 grams CO₂ equivalence - carbon footprint
240 litres - water footprint

This recipe’s environmental sustainability level is: Very high.

To eat sustainably at each meal, our advice is to keep within 1000 grams of CO₂ equivalence (carbon footprint) and 1000 litres of virtual water (water footprint). Remember that animal protein (meat, cheese, fish and eggs) have a greater impact than grains, beans, pulses and vegetables. Vegetable sides generally have a low environmental impact, equivalent to around 100 grams of CO₂, including dressing.

Method

In a pan, bring 50ml of coconut milk to a boil over a medium heat. Add the curry paste and cook until the red oil splits and rises to the surface. This should take about 5 minutes.

Once the curry paste is completely dissolved, add the remaining coconut milk. Season with fish sauce (or soy sauce) and palm sugar to create a slightly salty but well-balanced flavour.

Add the chopped butternut (and tough vegetables like carrots) and cook for about 8 minutes on medium heat until tender but with a bite. Add other vegetables like broccoli and courgette. These only take 3-4 minutes to cook.

Once all vegetables are cooked to your liking, add the kaffir lime leaves and chillies and cook for another 30 seconds. Turn off the heat and add the basil leaves.

Ladle into a serving bowl and garnish with coriander leaves. Serve with jasmine rice.

The Chef’s Advice

This dish is all about cooking with local vegetables. We typically cook this curry with pumpkin, which is abundant in Thailand, but when I first moved to England, butternut squash is everywhere and became my substitute of choice. Thai curries are all about the herbs and spices – as long as you get that balance right, you can forget about the meat!

Nutritional Advice

Soups and stews like chilli are an excellent way of making sure you get your five-a-day.

Environmental Advice

Choose seasonal ingredients, local or traditional varieties.

Fruits and veggies have a low environmental footprint, especially when grown in season. Eating fresh, seasonal produce means that what we’re eating will have been grown in a way that works with the weather and doesn’t require lots of energy to grow or store and is lovely and fresh.