Thai butternut squash curry also known as Fug-Tong-Gaeng-Dang is fresh tasting, easy to cook mid-week comforting curry. Comforting, satisfying, and flavorful, your heart would want more on a cold Fall day. It’s creamy, spicy, and intensely flavored.
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Coconut milk-flavored butternut squash curry is packed with Thai flavors and the curry pairs well with jasmine rice, normal white rice, brown rice, and quinoa.
This curry is healthy, warm, and cozy… everything you want on cold winter days.
This recipe calls for Red curry paste and for convenience I have used store-bought curry paste. Feel free to use homemade Thai curry paste if you like. If you want vegan butternut squash curry skip the fish sauce in the recipe.
What you’ll love about this curry
Honestly, everything
- Tastes amazing
- Simple recipe
- Easy to make
- 30 minutes or less on the clock
- Healthy and nutritious
- Well-balanced dinner that is packed with flavors
- It’s spicy, has subtle sweetness, is sour, and has an umami taste
How to make it
- Saute diced onion in vegetable oil until it begins to brown. Add celery sticks and grated ginger and continue to saute.
- Cook butternut squash cubes in the pan for a few minutes before you add the curry paste. Add curry paste and curry powder along with little salt to butternut squash (mind you you will be adding fish sauce later so keep in mind to add less salt or skip it at together).
- Mix until all the curry paste is evenly coated into squash.
- Add vegetable broth and allow squash to cook well. Once the butternut squash is cooked through, pour coconut milk/cream, add in fish sauce and sugar, stir.
- Add baby spinach (I used normal spinach, chopped into small pieces), mix thoroughly well.
- Tear a few Thai basil leaves and sprinkle it over the curry. That’s it, flavor-packed Thai basil curry is ready to be served with hot rice (jasmine, white rice, or brown rice).
Thai curries are easy to make if you use the curry paste from the jar. If you prefer to use homemade Thai curry paste, use it.
How to serve it
This creamy delicious curry is best enjoyed with rice or some type of flatbread like naan bread to soak up all the flavorful curry sauce. Serve this Thai curry over a bowl of rice and some naan bread on the side, you can also add some crackers like prawn crackers for crunch element and added taste.
How to store leftovers
Any leftover Thai butternut squash curry can be stored in air tight container in the refrigerator for 4-5 days. Bare in min curry with thicken when cooled, while reheating add splash of water to loosen the curry.
You may also freeze the curry, but there will be some change in texture consistency when frozen. Defrost by thawing the curry in the refrigerator overnight and reheat with few splashes of water.
Useful tips
- Traditional Thai curry uses lemongrass, I couldn’t get it so used ginger as substitute. Use lemongrass if you have access to it.
- Cut squash into even cubes so it cooks uniform.
- Smash some of the butternut squash cubes in the curry sauce to give it body and thickness.
- Add salt only if needed, bare in mind there is salt from vegetable stock and Thai red curry paste.
- Skip fish sauce to make vegan curry.
- Note on curry paste: some Thai curry paste are spicier. Depending on your palate and heat tolerance levels start with less curry paste, cook it taste and then add more if needed.
More recipes
- Sweet Potato Fries
- Roasted Tomato Basil Soup
- Thai Pumpkin Soup
- Thai Potato Pumpkin Curry
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Thai Butternut Squash Curry
Ingredients
- 1 small butternut squash cubed
- 1 cup tightly packed baby spinach or normal spinach chopped
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil or coconut oil
- ¾ cup onions chopped
- 3 tablespoon celery chopped
- 1 ½ teaspoon ginger grated
- 2 tablespoon Thai red curry paste
- 1 tablespoon curry powder
- Salt to taste
- 1 teaspoon fish sauce
- 2 teaspoon brown sugar
- ¾ cup vegetable stock
- 1 cup thick coconut milk or coconut cream
- Handful Thai basil leaves torn toughly
For garnish
- Roasted and crushed peanuts
- Roasted cashews
- Fresh coriander leaves
- Lime wedges
Instructions
- Heat oil in a pan. Add onions and saute until nicely browned.
- Add celery sticks and grated ginger and continue to saute.
- Cook butternut squash cubes in the pan for few minutes before you add the curry paste.
- Add curry paste and curry powder along with little salt to butternut squash (mind you we will be adding fish sauce later so keep in mind to add less salt).
- Mix well until all the curry paste is evenly coated into the squash.
- Add vegetable broth and allow squash to cook well.
- Once the butternut squash is cooked through, pour coconut milk, add in fish sauce and sugar, and stir.
- Add baby spinach (I used normal spinach, chopped into small pieces), and mix thoroughly well.
- Tear a few Thai basil leaves and sprinkle them over the curry. That’s it, flavor-packed Thai basil curry is ready to be served with hot rice (jasmine, white rice, or brown rice).
Video
Notes
Nutrition
About Jyothi Rajesh
Thank you for stopping by.
Jyothi Rajesh is the founder of the food blog, Curry Trail. She lives in Bangalore, India and is the mom of two beautiful kids. Her passion is creating and sharing delicious and easy recipes for the home cook. She’s been blogging since 2007 and many of her recipes have appeared in both online and print publications over the years. Learn more about Jyothi Rajesh.
Comments & Reviews
Kimberly says
Really good flavour! The store didn’t have red curry paste so I used green. I also added mushrooms because I had some in the fridge. Everyone loved it, will make again for sure!
Jyothi Rajesh says
I’m so glad you loved the curry Kimberly! Thank you
Linda says
I absolutely loved this recipe. Is there anything I can do to make it a bit less sweet?
Jyothi Rajesh says
Linda you can leave out brown sugar (or reduce the amount) it to make it less sweet.
Mari says
This is by far THE most delicious butternut squash recipe I have ever had in my entire life. No exaggeration. I’m a big food person and have eaten my way through parts of the world – no question about it this recipe is by far the best way I’ve enjoyed butternut squash. The spice, the sweet, the savory, the coconut flavor and then the basil…there are endless layers of flavor and I legitimately can not stop eating it. I’m Persian so I served it over Basmati rice with a Salad Shirazi (very simple Persian cucumber, onion, tomato, lemon, pepper, olive oil and salt). A side salad like this or a side serving of yogurt, in my opinion, goes SO well with this dish. I’ve shared this recipe with one of best friends who is a chef just now because it’s THAT good! – Mari
Jyothi Rajesh says
Yay! So glad you are liking the recipe! Thanks so much for sharing!
Kamila says
Absolutely delicious! 😊
2views says
Great flavors! Easy to make but too longer than I expected to cook squash thoroughly. Definitely will make again
jyothirajesh says
Glad you liked it. Thank you