The fortified pumpkins of Kakariko Village are an important crop not only to the Shiekah themselves, but to much of Hyrule. These gourds are used in a number of dishes across the kingdom, one of these dishes being pumpkin stew.
Though this soup is a favorite dish of the Shiekah in Kakariko Village, it is the town of Hateno that perfected the pumpkin stew. A recipe developed by Karin’s father can be found in Hateno Village describing the stew. The recipe is as follows:
"For a secret recipe that'll surprise even the most knowledgeable of dads, start with some fortified pumpkins. Throw in some Tabantha wheat to give the stew a nice wheaty flavor, then let some fresh milk and goat butter simmer. And there you have it! A tasty pumpkin stew!"
As with many Hyrulean recipes, this soup comes together with very few ingredients: pumpkin, milk, and butter, with Tabantha wheat to thicken and accent.
"Simply simmer a fortified pumpkin to make this dish. A favorite in Kakariko Village."
For this recipe we will stick fairly true to the Hateno Village recipe…with a few additional touches for flavor. We will use Japanese pumpkin, also known as kabocha squash, along with some canned pumpkin for enhanced color and flavor. The Kabocha will be chopped into chunks and oven roasted to enhance the color and deepen the flavor. It will then be simmered in a stock along with a base of butter and onion. After pureeing the soup, canned pumpkin, soy sauce, and nutmeg will be added to round out the flavor. Lastly, we will finish the soup with milk and a whole wheat flour slurry to thicken it. The leftover roasted Kabocha pieces will be used as garnish.
It’s a simple and fairly straightforward pumpkin stew that focuses on the flavor of pumpkin. The Kabocha and canned pumpkin both shine through, enhanced with the addition of just a few aromatic ingredients. It’s the perfect bowl of stew to enjoy on a cool evening anywhere in the Kingdom of Hyrule.
Ingredients
First, we must prepared the squash. Place the whole kabocha in a microwave and heat on high for four minutes. This will soften the skin. Allow the squash to cool for a few minutes until it is cool enough to handle with your hands. At this point, using a knife, remove the stem and the blossom end. With those two parts removed, it is easier to slice the gourd in half.
1 kabocha squash (about 2–2½ lbs)
1 cup canned pumpkin purée
1 chopped onion
3 ¾ cups vegetable stock
1 ½ cups milk
1 tsp salt, plus additional
½ teaspoon black pepper, plus additional
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp whole-wheat flour
1 tbsp soy sauce
¼ tsp nutmeg
2–3 tbsp chives finely chopped
Olive oil
1 cup canned pumpkin purée
1 chopped onion
3 ¾ cups vegetable stock
1 ½ cups milk
1 tsp salt, plus additional
½ teaspoon black pepper, plus additional
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp whole-wheat flour
1 tbsp soy sauce
¼ tsp nutmeg
2–3 tbsp chives finely chopped
Olive oil
First, we must prepared the squash. Place the whole kabocha in a microwave and heat on high for four minutes. This will soften the skin. Allow the squash to cool for a few minutes until it is cool enough to handle with your hands. At this point, using a knife, remove the stem and the blossom end. With those two parts removed, it is easier to slice the gourd in half.
Slice the kabocha in half, and use a spoon to remove the seeds and fibrous strands from inside the pumpkin. Ensure all are completely cleaned out, even the ones sticking to the inner fruit.
Once the inside is cleaned out, slice each half into six wedges. Using a knife or peeler, peel the skin from six of the wedges (½ of the kabocha), and leave the skin on the other six wedges (½ of the kabocha). Cut all of the peeled wedges into chunks. Cut three of the larger wedges into big chunks and the other three into smaller chunks. Separate the large unpeeled chunks, small unpeeled chunks, and peeled chunks into separate piles or bowls.
Preheat oven to 400°F and set a pot of water over high heat to bring it to a boil. While the oven preheats, toss the small kabocha squash chunks with salt, black pepper, and olive oil. Arrange the them l on a baking tray lined both aluminum foil, keeping the peeled and unpeeled pieces separated on the tray.
Roast the smaller pieces for 20–25 minutes until they develop a deep caramelized tan-orange color.
While they roast, place the large chunks in the boiling water and reduce the temperature to low to maintain a simmer. Blanch the large pieces for 4-5 minutes, and then remove from the water and pat them dry.
Once dry, toss them with salt, black pepper, and some olive oil. Place them on the tray with the other Kabocha squash pieces and roast them for 12-15 minutes. The blanching process partially cooks them so the rinds will maintain some green color when we use these to garnish the soup (better matching the game picture).
Once the squash is fully roasted, and you can pierce the pieces easily with a fork, remove from the oven and set aside.
Now we can build the stew. Melt two tablespoons of butter in a dutch oven over medium heat. Once the butter is melted, add the onions. Allow the onions to cook until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.
After the onions have softened, add in the peeled kabocha chunks and toss them with the onions and butter. Add in the broth, followed by 1 teaspoon of salt and ½ teaspoon of black pepper, and then stir. Place the lid on the Dutch oven and allow the stew to cook on medium-low heat for about 15 minutes, or until the kabocha is very soft.
Once soft, remove the Dutch oven from the heat, and allow it to rest for a minute or two before removing the lid. Blend the base with an immersion blender until smooth, then gradually stir in the 1 cup of canned pumpkin to brighten the color. Return the soup to low heat for five minutes to allow the flavors to meld, stirring regularly to help blend the canned pumpkin into the stew.
With the stew completely puréed and smooth, add the evaporated milk and stir until it is fully incorporated. Return the unpeeled kabocha chunks to the stew and return it to the heat. Turn the heat to low and allow it to cook for 5 minutes.
After 5 minutes, remove the soup from the heat once more and gradually stir in the milk, until fully incorporated. Return the stew to the heat, turning it down to low. Add the soy sauce and the nutmeg, and stir them completely into the stew.
Add 1 tbsp of whole wheat flour to a measuring cup or bowl. Add 1 ladleful of the hot stew liquid to the flour, and whisk until the flour is fully incorporated. Repeat this with one more ladleful of the hot broth. The mixture will thicken and become pasty. This is our slurry to thicken the stew. Add the slurry back into the stew and stir well to fully blend it in.
Allow the stew to simmer for another 5 minutes to fully thicken. Salt and pepper further to taste, if needed. The stew is now ready.
If the stew is too think, stir in an additional ¼ cup of broth to thin it out more.
To serve, ladle some of the soup into a bowl, and arrange six to small seven pieces of the roasted Kabocha squash around the bowl. Top the center of the bowl with two large chunks of the roasted squash, and then garnish the soup with minced chive. Enjoy!
Learn more about the Pumpkin Stew dish from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild at Zelda Dungeon.