Isn’t it incredible when sometimes even the most simplest of the foods can make your day? For us, it happens whenever the kumro chokka (Bengali sweet pumpkin curry) with porotas is on the menu. This sweet pumpkin and potatoes stir fry is simply flavoured yet so soulful. While the masalas that go in this one are the regulars, what makes a difference is the kalo chana or black chickpeas. And also, the addition of fresh grated coconut. Not just more flavours, but these two ingredients also add beautiful textures to the dish. And since I am a huge fan of textures in food, I love this chokka. This Bengali recipe is made with ripe, orange colored pumpkins, making this side dish slightly sweet to taste. And that is one of the signature flavours of this dish.
Moreover, there is also some sugar that goes in too, like most Bengali foods, especially the ones with pumpkins. The sugar helps reinforce the vegetable’s sweetness. And believe me when even the spice lover in me is telling you that the sweet in here really tastes delicious. The heat in this pumpkin recipe comes from the addition of fresh chilis, since I have not used any chili powder. The kumro chokka is a very simple Bengali recipe that comes together rather quickly. This yummy side dish pairs extremely well with Indian flatbreads, especially with luchis and parathas. And so it makes for a hearty Bengali breakfast/brunch recipe, as well.
Also see,
Doi begun (Bengali aubergine in yoghurt curry)
One pot recipe
This beautiful, mildly spiced and sweetish kumro chokka (Bengali sweet pumpkin curry) is a one pot recipe. You cook the potatoes and the ripe pumpkins, together along with the masalas. The potatoes, however, go in the cooking pot a little earlier than the kumro, so that both the vegetables remain firm yet throughly cooked. This recipe is my paternal grandmother’s and it is under her guidance, over a call, that I made this one. While it did turn out delicious, her touch is what was missing. 🙂 I keep emphasizing on the fact that you need ripe pumpkins for the recipe because that’s the deal maker in this recipe. The inherent sweetness of the ripe veggie plays a big role in bringing about the flavour of the final dish.
I had tried making the chokka with butternut squash too, but we did not enjoy the taste of it. And that is because it doesn’t have that natural, sweet taste like the kumro’s.
Serving suggestions
The kumro chokka (pronounced as chow-kaa) tastes best with luchis or fried flatbreads. In fact, it tastes so good that a lot of Bengali festivities have this on their menus. However, they taste great with some ajwain (carom seed) parathas too and that’s how we had this batch of the chokka. This yummy, mildly spiced potatoes and ripe pumpkin recipe is a keeper. Do try it and let me know hoe you enjoyed it.
You could share pictures with me over on Instagram and/or drop me a line with your feedback in the comment section below. I’d love to hear from you. 🙂
Eat hearty!
Kumro chokka
Equipment
- Shallow cooking pot
Ingredients
- 500 g kumro/ripe pumpkin diced
- 250 g potatoes diced
- 1 tsp paanch phoron*
- 1 dried red chili
- 1 tsp turmeric powder
- 1½ tsp cumin powder
- 1 tsp coriander powder
- 1 tsp bhaja moshla**
- 1 tbsp freshly grated ginger
- 2-3 fresh chilis slit
- ¼ cup black chickpeas soaked overnight or canned
- ¼ cup freshly grated coconut
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 2 tbsp mustard oil or any oil of choice
- 2 tbsp ghee
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Heat mustard oil until it smokes, then lower the heat and add the dried chili and paanch phoron. When they tun aromatic add, the potatoes and stir on medium heat until slightly browned
- Then add in the chickpeas along with the ginger, spice powders and 2-3 tablespoons of water. Mix well and cook for couple minutes
- Add the pumpkins, chilis, sugar and salt. Give it a mix and then add the turmeric, cumin and coriander powders. Stir well, cover and cook over medium flame, until the vegetables are completely cooked but still remain firm, so keep an eye
- Stir, intermittently, and add splashes of hot water so that the potatoes and/or pumpkins do not stick to the pot, while cooking. Mine took about 15 more minutes from here to cook through
- When done, turn the flame off and add the grated coconut, ghee and the bhaja moshla. Mix gently and keep covered for 5 minutes
- Serve the lip smacking and comforting kumro chokka with parathas, pooris and/or rotis. Enjoy!
Notes
- *Paanch phoron is a Bengali whole spice mix made up of equal quantities of nigella seeds, mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, fennel seeds and cumin seeds. You will need only a teaspoon of this for this recipe
- **To make the bhaja moshla, dry roast dried red chilis and cumin seeds together, until fragrant. Cool these down completely and then grind it to a fine powder
- tbsp - tablespoon
- tsp - teaspoon
- g - grams
