Description
This Slow Cooker Chicken Pumpkin Curry is a flavorful and comforting dish featuring tender chicken and sweet pumpkin simmered in a rich coconut curry sauce, enhanced with red curry paste, fish sauce, and fresh lime juice. Perfectly paired with rice and garnished with fresh cilantro and toasted cashews, this recipe offers a warm, satisfying meal ideal for cozy evenings.
Ingredients
Scale
Curry Sauce
- 1 (14-ounce) can full-fat coconut milk, shaken
- 2 tablespoons red curry paste
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce or tamari
- 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
Main Ingredients
- 1 ½-2 pounds sugar pie pumpkin or butternut squash, cut into ¾-inch pieces (about 4 cups) or 2 (14-ounce) cans pumpkin puree
- 1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken breast
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 red bell pepper, sliced
- 4 cups loosely packed baby spinach
- 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice (from 1 lime)
For Serving
- Cooked rice
- Lime wedges
- Minced fresh cilantro
- Toasted cashews
Instructions
- Prepare the slow cooker sauces and ingredients: In the slow cooker pot, combine the full-fat coconut milk, red curry paste, fish sauce, soy sauce, and light brown sugar. Stir until well mixed to create the curry base.
- Add pumpkin and chicken: Nestle the pumpkin pieces and the boneless skinless chicken breasts into the slow cooker pot, ensuring they are fully submerged in the liquid. Cover the pot with the lid.
- Cook until tender: Set the slow cooker to cook on high for about 4 hours or on low for 8 hours, or until the pumpkin is tender and the chicken is cooked through completely.
- Shred the chicken: Using tongs or a slotted spoon, carefully transfer the cooked chicken breasts onto a cutting board. With two forks, shred the chicken into bite-sized pieces.
- Blend the pumpkin: Season the remaining curry liquid with 1 teaspoon kosher salt. Using an immersion blender or a regular blender, blend the pumpkin until the mixture is completely smooth. (If pumpkin puree was used instead of fresh pumpkin, this blending step can be skipped.)
- Return chicken and add bell peppers: Return the shredded chicken to the slow cooker, then add sliced red bell peppers. Cover and cook on high for about 30 minutes, or until the bell peppers begin to soften.
- Add spinach and lime juice: Stir in 4 cups of loosely packed baby spinach and 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice. Allow the spinach to wilt slightly in the residual heat.
- Serve: Serve the curry hot over cooked rice. Garnish with lime wedges, minced fresh cilantro, and toasted cashews to add fresh, crunchy texture and flavor.
Notes
- You can substitute pumpkin with butternut squash if preferred or use canned pumpkin puree for convenience.
- Adjust the red curry paste quantity based on your preferred spice level.
- This curry can also be made in an Instant Pot for faster cooking; pressure cook on high for 20 minutes with a natural release of 10 minutes.
- For a nuttier flavor and extra crunch, garnish with toasted cashews just before serving.
- This recipe serves 6 and is perfect for meal prep as flavors improve after resting.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving (about 1 cup curry with pumpkin and chicken, excluding rice)
- Calories: 350
- Sugar: 6g
- Sodium: 600mg
- Fat: 18g
- Saturated Fat: 14g
- Unsaturated Fat: 4g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 20g
- Fiber: 4g
- Protein: 30g
- Cholesterol: 75mg
