Pumpkin and Luncheon Meat Combo

I had a small quarter of pumpkin the other day and we all know how sweet pumpkins are. But I was bored of stir-frying pumpkin with dried prawns and needed a change. After rummaging through my kitchen cabinet, I found a can of luncheon meat and I thought “why not?”. The sweetness from the pumpkin would complement the slightly saltish luncheon meat and that could be a good combo. So, what I did was to cut both ingredients into equal sized cubes and stir-fried them to make this pumpkin and luncheon meat combo. It turned out quite alright

For this recipe, I cut the pumpkin and luncheon meat into cubes. You can cut them into slivers if you prefer it that way. Somehow, I could not resist the use of dried prawns to give it a slight seafood bite. If you are unable to get hold of dried prawns, I would recommend just omitting it altogether. Do take care with the seasoning as the taste depends on how sweet your pumpkin is and how salty your brand of luncheon meat is. So, use salt judiciously. Otherwise you will have to take extra helpings of steamed white rice and a double dose of water to flush them out

This is my recipe for Pumpkin and Luncheon Meat Combo

Ingredients

• 100 grammes pumpkin (cubed)
• 100 grammes luncheon meat (cubed)
• 1 tablespoonful of dried prawns (rinsed and pre-soaked for 30 minutes in 150 ml water. Keep water)
• 4 cloves garlic (chopped finely)
• 4 shallots (sliced finely)
• 5 tablespoons cooking oil

Seasoning

• Salt / Light soya sauce and white pepper powder to taste

Method

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in wok and fry luncheon meat till golden brown. Remove and set aside.

Add 2 tablespoons oil into wok and fry shallots till golden brown. Remove and set aside.

Add garlic and pre-soaked dried prawns into wok and fry till aromatic and until garlic becomes golden brown. Remove and set aside.

Add 2 tablespoons oil into wok and fry pumpkin for 1 minute. Then add water previously used to soak dried prawns. Cover with lid and allow water to dry up. Uncover lid, stir well and add more water up to half the height of pumpkin. Repeat covered cooking process till pumpkin slightly soft. Then add fried luncheon meat, fried dried prawns, fried garlic and water. Add seasoning to taste.

Stir until water slightly evaporated and pumpkin has been cooked to your desired softness.

Remove from wok and garnish with fried shallots.