Rukmini Iyer's Bengali Five-spice Roasted Squash with Carrots & Pumpkin Seeds Recipe

Name: Rukmini Iyer's Bengali Five-spice Roasted Squash with Carrots & Pumpkin Seeds Recipe
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 1 h
Cuisine: Asian, Indian
Ingredients: 600g squash, cut into 3cm wedges; 300g carrots, peeled and halved (purple are nice if available); 1 red onion, cut into eighths; 2 cloves garlic, grated; 1 inch ginger, grated; 5–6 tablespoons Greek yogurt; Juice of ½ lemon; Handful pumpkin seeds; 2 teaspoons panch phoron (page 87), or ½ teaspoon each of nigella, mustard, fennel, black cumin and fenugreek seeds – or use what you have to hand; 3 tablespoons neutral or olive oil; ½–1 teaspoon mild chilli powder, to taste 1 heaped teaspoon sea salt flakes

Instructions

Prep:10minCook:50min

I make so many versions of roasted squash – this one with a garlic, ginger and Bengali five-spice crust is a new favourite. You can find panch phoron (literally ‘five-spice’) in larger supermarkets in the spice aisle or in the Asian food aisle – it’s a lovely aromatic mixture of fenugreek, black cumin, nigella, mustard and fennel seeds – easy to make up yourself in equal quantities (page 87), but I usually buy a packet of ready-mixed. Extracted from: India Express – Fresh and Delicious Recipes for Every Day. By Rukmini Iyer Published by Square Peg £22 hbk Photography by David Loftus

Updated at: Tue, 23 Dec 2025 01:08:39 GMT