This creamy courgette curry is delicately spiced but packed with flavour. A great way to use up a glut of courgettes.
Ah, courgette season. Every year we plant too many. Every year we wait and wait and then they all come at once and we scour the internet for increasingly exotic and inventive recipes to use them up. Well here’s my exotic and inventive recipe to add to the mix… a deliciously light and creamy Courgette Curry.
This isn’t a punch-packing, lip-burning sort of curry. More a delicate and fragrant one, bursting with fresh flavours, green vegetables with ginger and roasted garlic. Perfect for all the family, mopped up with some fresh naan bread.
Courgette Curry: Variations
This is a great coconut curry base to play around with depending on what you have in the fridge / storecupboard, and what’s in season. How about some of these variations:
- Make it lighter by using reduced fat coconut milk and omitting the cream/coconut cream. It will still be delicious!
- Make it quicker by pan-frying the courgettes instead of roasting them. Add them to the pan once the onions have softened, and cook until golden brown and soft, before adding the tomatoes. You can use ready-chopped garlic and ginger from jars or tubes, and even, if you’re really in a rush, use a spice mix (eg. curry powder) in place of the individual spices.
- Make it with whatever is in the fridge – this is a great way to use up leftover vegetables. Boil or roast anything that will take longer to cook, (root veg, pumpkin or squash, green beans, runner beans etc), and fry anything you would usually fry (peppers, mushrooms, etc). Any leafy greens (spinach, chard, kale) can be stirred through right at the end of cooking. Just have a go, you really can’t go far wrong, I promise!
- Make it with storecupboard ingredients if you don’t have many fresh ingredients to hand, this would be lovely made with a tin of chickpeas and a tin of lentils in place of many of the vegetables. You could use garlic and ginger from a jar or tube, and a pinch of dried chilli flakes rather than fresh.
Freezing your Courgette Curry
This curry does freeze well in individual portions, and if you’re trying to get through a glut of home-grown courgettes this is a delicious way to stock your freezer with warming suppers for the winter months.
If you’re making a batch to freeze, I would suggest slightly under-cooking the green vegetables, and roasting the courgettes for a shorter time – perhaps 15-20 minutes, as they can turn a little soggy when defrosted.
Hold back on the fresh coriander and lemon juice, and try to have some on hand when you’re defrosting and eating this. Together they give a burst of freshness that you will lose if you freeze them in with the curry.
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How else can I use up my courgettes?
If you’ve found this page because you’re desperate to use up a big batch of home-grown courgettes, you might also like to take a look at:
- My Roasted Courgette Soup with peas and basil (lots of great feedback from readers who have tried it!)
- For the more adventurous, a recipe for Courgette Kimchi that my blogging friend Kavita reviewed from a new cookery book. I’m definitely trying this, it looks epic!
- This Courgette and Freekeh Salad by another blogging friend Emma looks totally delicious. I’m a recent convert to Freekeh and this is the sort of ‘substantial salad’ I love in a lunchbox in the warm summer months.
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Courgette Curry: Equipment and Shopping List
You will need:
- Baking tray or roasting tin
- Oven
- Large saucepan
- Colander or sieve
- Large frying pan
Shopping List:
- courgettes
- onion
- garlic cloves
- fresh ginger
- green chillis
- waxy potatoes
- green vegetables (I used green beans and Tenderstem broccoli)
- tomatoes
- lemon wedges (optional)
- fresh coriander (optional)
- spices – turmeric, ground coriander, ground cumin
- tin coconut milk
- dairy-free cream or coconut cream
IF YOU LIKED THAT…
…. you might also enjoy these vegan recipes from The Veg Space:
Creamy Courgette Curry
Ingredients
- 2 large courgettes (or 3 smaller ones)
- 3 garlic cloves
- 4 tbsp rapeseed or sunflower oil
- 3 small waxy potatoes
- 100 g green vegetables (I used green beans and tenderstem broccoli)
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- 1 onion
- 2 fresh green chillis
- 3 cm piece fresh ginger
- 2 tomatoes
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 400 ml coconut milk
- 50 ml dairy-free cream or coconut cream
- lemon wedges (to serve)
- fresh coriander (to serve)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200°C (fan) / 400°F / Gas Mark 6.
- Cut the courgettes in half lengthways and then into 1cm thick slices. Put into a roasting tin with the garlic cloves (whole, with skin left on), 2tbsp of oil and season well with salt and pepper.
- Toss together until the courgette slices are fully coated with oil then roast for 30 minutes, turning half way through.
- Meanwhile, bring a saucepan of water to the boil. Cut the potatoes into chunks. Trim and halve the green beans, trim the broccoli or prepare whatever green vegetables you are using.
- Cook the potatoes for 5 minutes then add the beans, broccoli or other vegetables for a further 3-4 minutes until just tender. Drain and set aside.
- Heat the remaining 2tbsp oil in a large frying pan. Add the mustard seeds and cook on a medium heat until they begin to pop.
- Peel and finely chop the onion and add to the pan. Slit the green chillis down the side (leaving them whole) and add to the pan. Peel and finely chop the ginger and add to the pan. Cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Meanwhile, chop the tomatoes. Add them to the pan with the turmeric, ground coriander, cumin and a generous seasoning of salt. Cook for a further 2-3 minutes.
- Add the tin of coconut milk along with a splash of water. Bring the sauce to a gentle simmer and cook for 5 minutes until slightly thickened.
- Add the courgettes, (remove the garlic cloves first), potatoes and green vegetables. Squeeze the flesh of the garlic cloves out of the skin and add to the pan.
- Add the cream, then taste and adjust seasoning if required.
- Remove the green chillis just before serving, and serve with chopped coriander and a squeeze of lemon.
Beth Sachs says
Absolutely delicious! A great way to use up those courgettes from the garden.
Kate Ford says
Great! Yes it is hard to find new ideas when you end up with SO many courgettes in such a short space of time!!
Katherine says
What a gorgeous curry! So many great flavors in one dish.
Kate Ford says
Thanks Katherine – it is really tasty.
Beth says
Yum! This looks so delicious and tasty! My husband is going to love this recipe!
Kate Ford says
Thanks Beth, hope he enjoys it! (and you too!)
Bintu | Recipes From A Pantry says
This sounds absolutely divine and full of flavour – what a great way to use courgette. It is such a delicious and versatile ingredient but totally underused. T
Kate Ford says
Thanks Bintu – yes I’m often a bit stuck for new ideas when we end up with ALL the courgettes every year, and really pleased with how this turned out!
kim says
Loved this recipe! It was easy and had so much flavor. I’ll definitely be making again!
Kate Ford says
That’s so great to hear, thanks Kim!
Desicart says
Very nice recipe. We have to try. So easy, flavorful and delicious.
Kate Ford says
THanks Desicart, let me know how you get on with it!
Nkechi Ajaeroh says
This recipe looks so so fabulous, and I am drooling! I love curries, and I want to make this!