Sometimes I will go to an Asian grocery store or find a new vegetable that I have never heard of. Sometimes (especially if in a small Asian Market) I don’t even have the english name for it. I take it home and google the name until I get a sense of how to use it. A few weeks ago, I came across a Blue Kuri Squash. I had never heard the name before, but it looked a little familiar – one of those squashes that sits in the produce area and gets passed over due to it’s weirdness or, if lucky enough to be taken home, sits upon the dining room table as part of a holiday setting only to be thrown out when it gets wrinkly and soft.

Such a sad squash situation!

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoons of coconut oil
• 1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
• 1-3 garlic cloves, crushed and finely chopped
• 2 inch piece of fresh ginger, finely grated (about 1 tbsp)
• 1 ½ tablespoons of Thai green curry paste
• 2 tablespoons Indian curry powder
• 12 oz. of coconut milk
• 5 cups of chicken broth
• 2  tablespoons fish sauce
• 1-2 tablespoons sweet chili sauce
• 1/2 Blue Kuri Squash, cubed into 1 inch cubes
• 1 fillet of salmon, cut into large chunks (apx. 2 pounds)
• 12 oz. bag spinach
• 1 tablespoon honey (helps counter all the bitterness of curry spices)
• sprinkle of salt
• Cilantro and scallion for garnish

Heat the oil in a large enamel cast iron pot, or dutch oven. Place the onions, garlic, and ginger in the oil and sauté for about 3-5 minutes.

Add the curry paste and curry powder, stir to combine and sauté for another minute.

Add the coconut milk, chicken broth, fish sauce, chili sauce, Kuri squash, and stir. Bring everything to a boil, lower the temperature and simmer for about 10- 20 minutes, or until the squash has cooked through.

Add the salmon, honey and salt. Simmer for 5 minutes or until the salmon  has cooked through (do not cook too long or the salmon will be tough and the squash will be mushy). Taste and adjust seasoning as needed (it needs to have a good salty, sweet, tart, and spicy balance). Serve with chopped cilantro and scallion, along with lime wedges.