Don't Throw Away Butternut Squash Shoots. I Made This Simple Recipe

As I promised in my previous Garden Journal post, I'm sharing recipes for butternut squash tops, as well as recipes for squash blossoms.

I have a thriving butternut squash plant. Because it's so thriving, it needs proper pruning to prevent the main plant from producing excessive shoots from side branches.

So, I did some pruning. I didn't throw away the pruning results. Because the leaves are still young, so are the shoots of the butternut squash plant.

Look at the young butternut squash leaves. Their beautiful patterns. ♥️ I'm amazed at how nature works.

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Well, I'm going to make a stir-fry with butternut squash shoots. With tofu as the protein. Just simple but delicious for vegetable lovers.

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The Ingredients

• 200 grams of tofu
• 100-200 grams of butternut squash shoots and young leaves
• 3 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
• 3 cloves of shallots, thinly sliced
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• (optional) chili pepper
• 2 tablespoons coconut or vegetable oil
• a little water

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Cooking Instructions

The most important part of this dish is cleaning the shoots and young stems of the butternut squash. They have sharp hairs, so you have to remove the thin layer of skin from the young stems.

Do this carefully and patiently 🙂 I recommend playing your favorite music while shaking your legs and hips while singing. It's so much fun in the kitchen that you don't even notice the work of preparing the ingredients. At least, that's what I always do, hehe.

After cleaning, I cut the young stems of the butternut squash into smaller pieces so they're easier to eat later.

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Don't forget to thinly slice the spices, garlic, shallots, and chilies, or paprika if you're using paprika instead of chilies.

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Heat the vegetable oil. Here I used coconut oil. It will enhance the aroma and flavor of the dish. You can certainly use your favorite type of vegetable oil to sauté the butternut squash shoots. Add the sliced ​​garlic and shallots. Sauté briefly, then add the chilies.

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Add the young stems of the butternut squash, as they mature more quickly. Add a little water to prevent the bottom of the pan from burning.

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After about 3 minutes, add the tofu pieces and young leaves of the butternut squash. Then cook for about 5 minutes more. Add a little more water.

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When ready to remove from heat, add the seasoning. You can also add some mushroom stock. 🙂

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Serve

Serve while warm. Can be paired with warm rice.

Or you can enjoy it with other tubers for a filling meal.

The flavor of the young shoots and stems of Butternut Squash is very distinctive. They have a slightly chewy texture that's distinctive but delicious. It's close to mushroom flavor, in my opinion, because the texture is somewhat similar.

Have you ever cooked pumpkin or squash shoots? What's your favorite dish to use the prunes from these plants?

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Best Regards, Anggrek Lestari

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