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AI-generated photograph: Golden chunks of roast butternut squash half covered in a thick, glossy chocolate brown walnut and pomegranate sauce in a cream ceramic bowl, scattered with ruby pomegranate seeds and small mint leaves

Home · Recipes · Fesenjan of roast squash, walnut and pomegranate stew

Persian · Dinner

Fesenjan of roast squash, walnut and pomegranate stew

ground walnuts · pomegranate molasses · roast squash

AI-generated photograph

Fesenjan is a Persian khoresh, a slow stew, of ground walnuts simmered until their oil rises and the sauce turns dark, then sharpened with pomegranate molasses so it is sweet and sour at once. It is usually made with chicken or duck; ours is vegan, with roast butternut squash, and is served with chelow, Persian steamed rice.

Contains: tree nuts, as written. This recipe contains tree nuts, from the walnuts. The squash, onions, spices, pomegranate and pomegranate molasses contain none of the 14 allergens. Most pomegranate molasses is just pomegranate, sometimes with sugar or citric acid, but check the label, as a few brands add other things.

Ingredients

  • 1 butternut squash (about 1.2kg), peeled, seeded and cut into 4cm chunks
  • 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 250g walnut halves
  • 2 onions, finely chopped
  • Half a teaspoon ground turmeric
  • Half a teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 120ml pomegranate molasses (a thick, sharp syrup of boiled down pomegranate juice, sold in most large supermarkets)
  • 1 tablespoon caster sugar, plus more to taste
  • 1 teaspoon fine salt
  • Seeds of half a pomegranate (or an 80g pot of pomegranate seeds), to serve
  • A few sprigs of fresh mint, to serve

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Let's cook

  1. Heat the oven to 180C (160C fan). Spread the walnuts on a baking tray and toast them for 8 minutes until they smell nutty. Leave them to cool.
  2. Turn the oven up to 220C (200C fan). Toss the squash with 2 tablespoons of the oil and a pinch of the salt on a large tray and roast for 30 to 35 minutes, turning once, until soft and browned at the edges.
  3. While the squash roasts, grind the cooled walnuts in a food processor until they look like damp sand with a few small pieces left. Stop before they turn into butter.
  4. Heat the other 2 tablespoons of oil in a large heavy pan on a medium heat. Add the onions and cook for 10 minutes until soft and golden. Stir in the turmeric and cinnamon for 30 seconds, then the ground walnuts, and stir for 2 minutes.
  5. Pour in 700ml water, bring to a gentle simmer, and cook partly covered for 40 to 45 minutes, stirring often and scraping the bottom, as walnuts catch easily. The sauce will darken and a little walnut oil will rise to the top.
  6. Stir in the pomegranate molasses, sugar and the rest of the salt. Simmer for 20 minutes more until the sauce is thick, glossy and a deep brown. Taste it: it should be clearly sour and gently sweet. Add a little more sugar or molasses to balance it to your taste, and a splash of water if it is too thick.
  7. Fold the roast squash into the sauce and warm it through for 5 minutes without stirring too hard, so the pieces keep their shape.
  8. Spoon into a warm bowl and scatter over the pomegranate seeds and mint leaves. Serve with chelow.

Tips

  • Pomegranate molasses varies a lot between brands. Add 80ml first, taste, then add the rest if you want it sharper.
  • It keeps covered in the fridge for up to 3 days and gets darker and deeper as it sits. Reheat gently until steaming hot, adding a little water, as it thickens.

Swaps

  • With chicken: brown 8 skinless, boneless chicken thighs and simmer them in the sauce for its last 40 minutes, instead of the squash, until the juices run clear and the thickest part reaches 75C. Then it is not vegetarian.
  • Cheaper: use 200g walnuts and roast 1 large aubergine, cut into chunks, with the squash for more body.

Our own recipe. The photograph is AI-generated.

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