Googie’s Kitchen presents Slow Cooked Butternut Squash and Bean Madras

Gluten Free – Nut Free – Vegan

Butternut Squash and White Bean Madras but before we begin if you are new to my blog and love recipes and blog posts then I upload three times a week on a Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 7 am (GMT). So don’t forget to like this blog and follow me on here for loads of FREE recipes and more.

Last week I made a Turkey Madras with potatoes and spinach. It was delicious and everyone in the family enjoyed it. I had a small amount of the madras paste left and I’m not one to let food go to waste. So I decided to use the paste in a vegan curry.

Food waste however, is a global issue. In the UK alone, we throw away 7 million tonnes of food and drink every year, the majority of which could have been eaten. The average UK household loses £470 a year on wasted food.

My maternal grandmother, Nanny as we like to call her, spent a few years in the orphanage after her parents passed away when she was small. In this community you were not allowed to leave the table until you had eaten all of your dinner. I’m not suggesting that we make children do this again, but I do think we could save more food if we put more thought into our dinners.

In this house we try not to waste food and I always try to use any leftovers. Occasionally there is food waste, but on average I would like to think that we are good at eating all the food we buy. Trust me, having a grandmother who grew up in the orphanage has helped me not to waste food. The leftover madras sauce was also great in this dish and is well worth a try. Below is a video and recipe for you.

Do you ever make extra of a meal and freeze it? What are your favourite meals to freeze? Let me know in the comments below and please feel don’t forget to like, comment and follow me.

Serves 4

Equipment needed

• Sharp Knife
• Chopping board
• Small mixing bowl
• Tablespoon
• Teaspoon
• Garlic Press
• Large Saucepan
• Saucepan
• Plastic brush
• Stirring Spoon
• Olive oil or sunflower oil
• Colander

Ingredients needed for the sauce

• Butternut Squash x 1 large
• Onion x 1 large
• Garlic x 2 cloves
• Carrots x 2 medium
• Courgettes x 2
• Yellow Pepper x 2
• Butter beans x 1 400g tin
• Cannellini beans x 1 400g tin
• Chicken Stock x 500mls or vegetable stock if vegan
• Spinach x 1 bag
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Yogurt or coconut yogurt if vegan

Ingredients needed for the madras paste

• Ground black pepper x 1/2 – 1 tsps
• Chilli powder x 1 tbsp
• Garam masala x 2 tsp
• Ground cinnamon x 1/2 tsp
• Ground tumeric x 2 tsp
• Ground coriander x 8 tsp
• Ground cumin x 8 tsp
• Ground ginger x 2 tsp
• Garlic x 3 cloves
• Apple cider vinegar x 2 tbsp
• Sunflower oil x 5 tbsp

Method for the madras paste

• Start by putting all the madras ingredients into the small bowl.
• When you put the garlic into the mix, crush it in the garlic press.
• Once all the ingredients are in the bowl, mix them together and set aside.

Method for the sauce for the hob

• Peel and slice the onion and garlic.
• Next peel and cut the butternut squash in cubes.
• Now peel and slice the carrots and courgettes.
• Deseed and cut the yellow pepper into half centimetre pieces.
• Set the vegetables aside.
• Put the large saucepan on a high heat.
• Add the oil by spreading it across the base with a plastic brush.
• Once the pan is hot add the onions.
• Then a few minutes later add the garlic.
• Fry until the onions become translucent.
• It should take around three to five minutes before this starts to happen.
• Put the vegetables into the saucepan and fry for a further two minutes.
• Now add in two – three tablespoons of madras paste to the saucepan.
  • Any leftovers can be stored in a jar in the fridge for up to a week.
• Keep frying for two minutes or until all the vegetables are covered in the paste.
• Now add in the chicken stock or vegetable stock and the butter and cannellini beans.
• Add salt and pepper to taste.
• Stir all the ingredients together.
• Bring to the boil and then leave to simmer for 40 minutes.
• Meanwhile, put the other saucepan on the hob.
• Fill it with boiling water from the kettle and add the quinoa.
• Once the quinoa is cooked, drain and leave in there until ready to serve.
• Finally add the spinach into the madras.
• Stirring it into the curry until it has wilted.
• It should take a few minutes.
• Once the spinach has wilted, serve with the quinoa and enjoy.
• If it’s too spicy then add a little yogurt or coconut yogurt if making it vegan.

Butternut Squash and White Bean Madras is a delicious dinner and it’s also great if you have any leftovers as you can freeze it. All the ingredients in this dish are freezable. Occasionally I make double of this meal and then freeze the rest to have as a quick midweek meal. Also, I have used chicken stock in this recipe but you can use vegetable stock and make this recipe vegan. However you decide to enjoy this dish, as always, enjoy.