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Fried pumpkin with yoghurt-herb dressing and crisp onion

Recipe for fried pumpkin with yoghurt-herb dressing and crisp onion.

By Lisa Featherby
  • 15 mins preparation
  • 15 mins cooking
  • Serves 4
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This light salad works well as a side with roast meat such as chicken, or just on its own with crusty bread.

Ingredients

  • For shallow-frying: vegetable oil
  • 4 golden shallots, halved and thinly sliced
  • 1 kg peeled butternut pumpkin, cut into 3cm dice
  • 1 tsp each ground chilli, ground cumin and ground coriander
  • To serve: sumac and crusty bread
Tamari pepitas
  • 60 gm pepitas
  • 3 tsp tamari
  • 15 gm butter, coarsely chopped
Yoghurt-herb dressing
  • 200 ml Greek-style yoghurt, at room temperature
  • Juice of ½ lemon
  • 2 tbsp each thinly sliced mint and coarsely chopped dill, plus extra to serve
  • ½ tsp ground chilli

Method

  • 1
    For tamari pepitas, preheat oven to 180C. Toss pepitas in a roasting pan with tamari and butter, season to taste, then roast, turning occasionally, until golden brown (4-7 minutes). Set aside to cool.
  • 2
    Reduce over to 140C. Heat 5cm oil in a deep saucepan over high heat until hot. Add shallots and fry, stirring continuously, until golden and crisp (3-5 minutes). Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.
  • 3
    Strain oil, return to pan and top up to a depth of 5cm. Toss pumpkin and spices in a bowl to coat, season to taste and shallow-fry in batches, turning occasionally, until pumpkin is tender and caramelised (4-6 minutes). Remove with a slotted spoon, drain on paper towels, then transfer to a baking tray and keep warm in oven.
  • 4
    For yoghurt-herb dressing, mix ingredients in a bowl and season to taste.
  • 5
    To serve, toss half the pumpkin in a bowl with yoghurt-herb dressing to coat, add remaining pumpkin and fold to just combine. Scatter with sumac, fried shallots, tamari pepitas and extra herbs, and serve with crusty bread.

Notes

Drink Suggestion: Perfumed white wine, such as marsanne. Drink suggestion by Max Allen