This is my go-to vegetable curry recipe. It's easy to make, but it packs a punch of flavor from turmeric, ginger, more delicious spices & fresh chiles.
This coconut curry recipe is everything I want on a weeknight. Scratch that – it’s everything I want… any time. I’ve been eating it as leftovers for lunch, dinner… I even ate a bowlful for breakfast the other day.
The recipe is particularly Monday night-friendly because it’s quick to make yet packs a punch of flavor. It’s filled with cozy, nourishing vegetables that will help you recover from a weekend of maybe… I dunno… too much pumpkin cake?
The ingredient shot above makes this recipe look more complicated than it actually is. Once you’ve chopped the vegetables and measured the spices, you’re only about 20 (mostly hands-off) minutes from a creamy, delicious hot curry dinner on the table.
I find this recipe really fun and soothing to make. There’s nothing better than this moment when the coconut milk and spices hit the vegetables. Of course, this moment will happen on the stove and not on the countertop, I just had to move my pot near the window to show you:
The ginger, cumin, coriander, turmeric, cardamom… it all smells so good! You’re going to have to take my word on it unless you can smell through your screen.
How to Make Coconut Curry
Most of the steps of this recipe are actually pictured above – it’s really that simple. Here’s all you need to do:
- Heat coconut oil in a medium pot over medium heat, add a chopped onion and cook until it softens.
- Stir in the butternut squash (or sweet potato) and chiles, and cook for 5 minutes more.
- Add the cauliflower, coconut milk, and spices, and simmer until the veggies are tender.
- During the last five or so minutes, stir in the green things and add squeezes of lemon and lime to brighten everything up.
So healthy!
Vegetable Curry Recipe Variations
This butternut and cauliflower curry recipe is very flexible, so I encourage you to use it as a template. Here are some ideas to change it up:
- Use different veggies. If you don’t have butternut squash, use sweet potatoes. If you don’t have cauliflower, then use broccoli. Green beans, carrots, bell peppers, and potatoes would be great here as well.
- If you want more heat, spice it up. Add extra chiles or more turmeric, ginger, cardamom, cayenne, or red pepper flakes.
- Vary how you serve it. You can serve this curry with basmati rice, brown rice, cauliflower rice, or even quinoa. You can also customize it with any type of protein that you like in your curry, or you can just make the recipe exactly as it’s written, a.k.a. my favorite version 🙂
If you love this vegetable curry recipe…
Then be sure to try my Curried Red Lentil Dip, Curried Cauliflower Soup, or Curried Lentil Soup!
Easy Coconut Curry
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1 cup chopped yellow onion
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ½ teaspoon grated fresh ginger
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ¼ teaspoon coriander
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric
- ¼ teaspoon cardamom
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 2 cups cubed butternut squash
- 3 red Thai chiles, or 1 serrano, or ½ jalapeño, thinly sliced
- 2 cups cauliflower florets
- 1 can full-fat coconut milk
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice, plus lime wedges for serving
- 4 cups fresh spinach
- ½ cup fresh or frozen peas
- Freshly ground black pepper
for serving:
- 2 cups cooked basmati rice
- a few big handfuls of fresh basil or cilantro
- Naan bread, optional
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until soft and well-browned, about 10 minutes, reducing the heat to low halfway through.
- In a small bowl, mix together the garlic, ginger, cumin, coriander, turmeric, cardamom, and salt. Set aside.
- Add the butternut squash and chiles to the pot, stir, and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the cauliflower and then add the coconut milk and the spice mixture. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.
- Add the lemon juice, lime juice, spinach, peas, and stir. Taste and adjust seasonings, adding additional lime juice, salt, and pepper, as desired.
- Serve the curry over the rice with fresh basil, naan bread, if desired, and lime wedges on the side.
I have made this 3 times since you put it on your blog. It is a new fall/winter staple! THANK YOU!!
Yay, I’m so so happy to hear that! So sweet of you to come back to let me know!
I made this for dinner last night and it was fantastic! Perfect dish for a chilly fall night. I loved how colorful it was. I found a beautiful dark yellow cauliflower at the farmer’s market that went great with the turmeric and the orange squash. I liked that it was very flavorful but not heavy. I ate the leftovers for lunch today and it was just as good the second time!
Hi Susan, I’m so glad you loved it as much as I do!
I made this for lunches this week and it was super delicious, I will definitely be adding it to my regular meals list. I added white beans to it for protein and served it with buckwheat which worked really well. This combination of spices is my favourite! Thanks you 🙂
Hi Naomi, I’m so glad you loved it!
I rarely leave comments on recipes but I made this two days ago (sans butternut squash, since I discovered at the last minute that I apparently had already used it for something else, so used some baby carrots instead). I just ate leftovers over basmati rice and they were *so freaking delicious*–even better than when freshly made!
Hi Ruth! Thank you for commenting, I love hearing the feedback – I’m so glad you loved the recipe and it’s leftovers!
I have cardamon pods, not ground spice so not sure how to use them….? Help pls!!!
Hi Kim, open up 3 or 4 of them, crush/chop up the little seeds inside (discard the pods), and add them with the butternut squash in step 3. Hope that helps!
made this tonight and had leftover yellow raisins from another recipe. Threw them in and they were a really tasty burst of sweetness that perfectly complemented the other flavors.
Ooh, I love the pop of sweetness – glad you enjoyed the recipe!
❤️❤️❤️ I made this recently and it was delish!! I added mushrooms, cashews and .5 cup of veggie stock. Will definitely make it again. Thank you!! 😊
Hi Fran – I’m glad you loved it! ❤️❤️
Thanks for this tasty recipe….
I made this tonight, just as written with the jalapeno chili. So, so, good! I will be making this for all of my fall pot luck dinners. Thank you!
Hi Cathy – I’m so glad it was a hit! 💛💛
You’ve out done yourself with this one, Jeanine! I made this tonite with the squash, Serrano pepper, broccoli, carrots and spinach, then tossed in some shredded chicken=EPIC!! Anticipating it will be good for tomorrow’s lunch as well. So good. Keep it up!
Hi Vickie! Ha, yay, I’m so glad it was such a hit! I really love this spice combination together! I hope you had a terrific lunch the following day 🙂
Made this last night. It was astoundingly good. No Thai chiles in my market. Used one Serrano and one Fresno chile. Thank you so much for a perfect meal.
Hi Suzie! I’m so happy to hear that you enjoyed it so much!
This is great! I love curries and as a coincidence, I have all the ingredients in my fridge! Except the butternut, but I’ll use sweet potatoes! Many thanks for this, will make it on Friday eve, but already loving it right now! 🙂
I hope you love it!
We did love it, it’s delicious! 🙂 Thanks so much for the recipe!!
Do you think this would freeze well?
Hi Sandie, yes it freezes very well!
Cooked it tonight and served with bastami rice. Added roasted cashews. So delicious. A+ keeper. Thank you.
Hi Gil, so glad you loved it!
This dish looks amazing, I’m going to try this out tomorrow night!
Any ideas on how to sub out the coconut milk if I don’t have it on hand?
Hi Danielle, it’s the base of this recipe so I’d just wait to make it until you can get a can of coconut milk, there isn’t a sub 🙂
I used whole cow’s milk just fine!
This recipe is amazing! My friend is allergic to coconut so I subbed vegetable broth for cooking the vegetables in and then added a couple of tablespoons of heavy cream at the end. Love!!!!
Hi Becca, I’m so glad you both loved it!
Mmmm, this curry is so cozy!!
Super yum, great winter soup!
do you use raw butternut squash or do you cook it beforehand?
Hi Amy,
Start with raw squash – it cooks in the recipe for 25 minutes (on the stove). I just moved the pot near the window for the photo because my stove area is a little dark.
This look delicious but agree with Susan, may need some protein such as tofu or cashews. Looking forward to making soon!
It’s a super flexible recipe – any of those things would be delish!
I make something almost identical to this dish. I include garbanzo beans which are a great source of protein and also add great flavor and texture. I also toast my spices before adding. I like to sprinkle with cillantro and crushed peanuts (more protein). Its a great dish!
I can see why you would like this so much – it sounds wonderful. I would definitely add protein to this, simply because I can’t survive on high carb/low protein meals. I’m looking forward to trying it.
Hi Susan, I hope you enjoy it! It’s so flexible, any protein you like would work here.