Pumpkin Fest Part Six : Pumpkin, Prawn and Pak Choi Curry

Althought it seems my love for this season knows no bounds, I admit there are a few drawbacks. Here in the UK it is awfully rainy and grey, and it seems to have got very cold much earlier than last year which has brought above a wave of colds and flu bugs. But as usual I like to may light of a bad situation, so a blocked up nose to me means that a nice hot bowl of curry and rice is required so the spice can blast away the illness.

I have however mentioned before that I cannot stand too much spice, I tend to choose fragrant and creamy over fiery, so Thai curries are some of my favourites. I know that I have not made my own spice mix here and this seems a bit naughty, but I am lucky enough to live in a town with a large Chinese community so I can buy big tubs of authentic curry paste from one of the four Asian supermarkets within walking distance of my flat (along with anything else that catches my eye, whether I know what it is or not...).

Every supermarket now sells Thai curry pastes too which you could also use, be it red, green or yellow - I went for green as it my favourite and added a little more ginger of the ground variety. I love ginger so much, I would perfume myself with it if I could.

So if you're feeling a little under the weather and need to blast away the cold, or if you are just a curry fan like me, do give this one a go, it's so easy to prepare you would be silly not to. You really don't need to stick to my quantities as this is just how I like it, you can add as much or as little of everything as you'd like.


Pumpkin, Prawn and Pak Choi Curry
Serves 4 as a main meal, along with some basmati or jasmine rice

Ingredients
1 tbsp olive oil
3 red onions, cut into chunks
3-4 tbsp curry paste (depending how spicy you like it)
1/2 tsp ground ginger (optional)
650g roasted pumpkin, cut in largish chunks
1 pack/175g baby sweetcorn
400ml coconut milk (I used canned)
250g king prawns, fresh or defrosted from frozen
200g pak choi, leaves seperated

Method
In a large pan cook the olive oil, red onions, curry paste and ground ginger (if using) over a medium heat until fragrant - 2-3 minutes. Add the pumpkin chunks and baby sweetcorn, cook for a further 5 or so minutes and then add the coconut milk, stir and cook with the lid on for around 10 minutes.

Next add the king prawns, stir them in and put in the pak choi leaves in a layer on top of the curry. Put the lid back on the pot and cook for a further 5 minutes. By now the pak choi will have wilted and you can gently stir them into the curry.

Ladel into bowls and serve with rice and, if you would like, an ice cold beer to combat the heat.