Kumro Bati Chorchori - Simple Stir-Fried Pumpkin/Butternut Squash

Kumro Bati Chorchori

Kumro (pumpkin) Bati (dish/one-dish) Chorchori (stir-fried vegetable) is a delectable Bengali preparation with pumpkin or butternut squash. In North America, the latter is far more readily available and makes a good substitute for pumpkin.

Types of Pumpkin

A cross-section of each type of pumpkin makes it recognizable in the supermarket. Butternut squash is a hard winter vegetable which I generally avoid because it is so difficult to peel and chop. 

Chopped Butternut Squash

Imagine my surprise and delight when I came across this 3 lb. bag of chopped butternut squash at our membership supermarket. It takes away all the intimidation presented by this hard vegetable and makes it more of a staple in my kitchen.

Frozen Cubes 

After heating and tempering the oil, these frozen cubes of butternut squash were taken straight from the freezer into the frying pan. Once they thawed, they cooked in a jiffy with minimal spices.

Stir-Fried Butternut Squash

The dish was ready in less than 20 minutes! Makes a colourful and lovely side dish, served with hot, steamed Basmati rice or any Indian bread.

Ingredients:

1/2 (3 lb.) bag of frozen, chopped butternut squash
1 russet/baking potato, peeled and diced (optional)
4 Tbsp. vegetable oil

1/2 tsp. panch phoron (Bengali 5 spice seeds)

5 shukno lonka (dried red chilies)

1 hot green chili, minced

1 tsp. ginger paste

1 tsp. Kashmiri mirch/paprika

1/4 tsp. turmeric
1/2 tsp. panch phoron powder
salt & sugar to taste

2 Tbsp. cilantro, minced

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a skillet, temper with dried chilies, panch phoron and green chilies; set aside 2 fried dried red chilies for garnishing.
2. Add ginger paste, paprika and turmeric and stir-fry until oil resurfaces.
3. Stir in frozen butternut squash and diced potatoes, sprinkle with salt to taste and panch phoron powder.
4. Cover and cook until vegetables soften.
5. Adjust salt and sugar to taste and garnish with cilantro and dried red chilies before serving.