I simplified the name of this recipe to call this a Kabocha squash bowl with golden raisin dressing, but really it is so much more. Golden raisins and kalamata olives make a sweet-and-salty combination that will blow your mind. I learned it from one of my chef friends and have been dying to put it on sweet winter squash ever since. The thing is, if it was just on squash it wouldn’t be a meal, so I decided to use kabocha squash to turn this sauce into the plant-based bowl of my dreams!
What is a gastrique?
To put it simply, a gastrique is a French-style sweet-and-sour sauce. You caramelize sugar (or sometimes honey), combine it with equal parts vinegar, and reduce it slightly to make a tart, slightly thickened syrup. It’s very similar to an agrodolce, but toasts down the sugars first. It is also not mean to serve as a stand-alone dressing, but instead is meant to compliment sauces of fattier dishes, such as duck or beef.
This recipe is hard to perfectly fit into a gastrique because it does not caramelize the sugars, but it’s the most similar rendition of what this sauce/dressing is. This dressing cooks down a few ingredients, caramelizes some honey and then finishes with red wine vinegar.
So the Kabocha Squash Bowl with Golden Raisin & Kalamata Olive Dressing has a partner in gastrique!
Ingredients for this vegan kabocha squash bowl
- 1 cup rice of choice, uncooked
- 2 1/2 pounds kabocha squash, cubed
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 large red onion, 100 grams
- 5 garlic cloves
- 1/2 cup Kalamata olives, 60 grams
- 1/4 cup golden raisins, 50 grams
- 1/2 teaspoon red chili flakes
- 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar, plus more for finishing
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 14-ounce cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 2 cups tender herbs, such as cilantro, parsley, mint or chives
- Flaky salt
What is the best way to save and reheat this kabocha squash bowl for meal-prep?
What is nice about this bowl is that it doesn’t have a proper dressing, so you can combine everything and it will keep very well in the fridge. I recommend only storing the herbs separately, but if you’ve already mixed them in, that’s totally fine, too. They just might get a little wilty!
To store this, portion it into an air-tight container and keep in the fridge. It will keep for 4-5 days.
This recipe is not my favorite thing to freeze, but if you’d like to, it will keep for 4 months.
Looking for other plant-based recipes?
Looking for substitutions?
When a recipe is like this one (lots of ingredients, but still just a simple grain bowl!), I like to provide subs. Here are ways to switch out the ingredients in this recipe:
- RICE – swap this for farro, bulgur wheat, buckwheat, pearl couscous, or whole wheat orzo!
- KABOCHA SQUASH – any winter squash, like delicata, acorn, butternut or honeynut will do. You could also opt for sweet potato instead.
- RED ONION – switch up for shallots or white onion!
- GARLIC – you can omit this or use 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder.
- KALAMATA OLIVES – you can replace these with finely chopped capers, or 3-4 flat-packed anchovies.
- GOLDEN RAISINS – can be subbed with regular raisins OR dried cranberries OR dried cherries!
- RED WINE VINEGAR – use a champagne vinegar, apple cider vinegar or sherry vinegar!
- HONEY – swap with agave nectar or maple syrup!
- CANS OF CHICKPEAS – any canned bean variety will work! You can also swap your protein here for a fried egg.
- HERBS – you can switch these up for arugula or any leafy greens, just make sure to dress them like the recipe calls for!
And that’s it for this Kabocha Squash Bowl with Golden Raisin & Kalamata Olive Dressing
If you make it, please tag me on Pinterest or Instagram so I can see! It’s my favorite thing to scroll through stories and see what you all are making.
And of course feel free to leave any questions, comments or reviews! This is the best place to reach me, and I’d love to hear from you <3
Kabocha Squash Bowl with Golden Raisin & Kalamata Olive Dressing
Equipment
- 1 half sheet pan
- 1 medium sauté pan
- 1 chef's knife
Ingredients
- 1 cup rice of choice uncooked
- 2 1/2 pounds kabocha squash cubed
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 large red onion 100 grams
- 5 garlic cloves
- 1/2 cup Kalamata olives 60 grams
- 1/4 cup golden raisins 50 grams
- 1/2 teaspoon red chili flakes
- 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar plus more for finishing
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 14-ounce cans chickpeas drained and rinsed
- 2 cups tender herbs such as cilantro, parsley, mint or chives
- Flaky salt
Instructions
- Cook your rice according to package instructions. Begin this so it can cook while you prepare the rest of the recipe.
- Position a rack to the center of the oven and preheat to 425°F convection.
- Core and cube the kabocha squash. Transfer this to a baking sheet. Drizzle the squash with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and season with 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt and a few cracks of black pepper.
- Roast the squash at 425°F for 22-25 minutes or until dark on the bottom and softened throughout.
- While the squash is roasting, thinly slice 1/2 of a red onion. Thinly slice 5 garlic cloves, and roughly chop 1/2 cup of kalamata olives, once they are chopped they should be around 1/4 cup. Add all of this to a medium sauté pan.
- Add 1/4 cup of golden raisins, 1/2 teaspoon red chili flakes and 5 tablespoons of olive oil to the pan. Season with 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and place the pan over medium heat.
- Let the pan come to a simmer and cook, swirling often, for 5-6 minutes or until the onions have softened and the garlic is lightly golden on the edges.
- Add 1/4 cup red wine vinegar and 2 tablespoons of honey to the pan. Let the pan continue to simmer, stirring often, until the mixture becomes syrupy, around 4-5 minutes more. Taste and season with salt as needed, then set this aside.
- The rice should now be done. Drain and rinse two 14-ounce cans of chickpeas and add them to the rice. Stir to allow the beans to warm up with the rice.
- When the squash is done roasting, pour dressing directly onto it and mix. Add this to the rice and chickpea mixture and mix all together to create a nice grain bowl.
- Tear up your tender herbs and drizzle with a teaspoon of red wine vinegar, sprinkle with flaky salt and toss to make a quick herb salad.
- To serve, portion into four bowls and top each with a small handful of the herb salad. Top with more flaky salt as you like!
I might consider calling it a chutney, but whatever you call it the katamala olives and golden raisin gastrique/chutney is phenomenal. I tried it on fish and on veggie pizza…just adds such a complex flavor. Thank you for this.
So happy you liked it!
This recipe was awesome, I’ve made it a couple times and my family and friends love it! One change I made is to fully caramelize the onions, and add a small splash of balsamic vinegar. Thank you!
So glad to hear you liked it!!
sounds intriguing – i love raisins – family doesn’t. I’m going to try Dates. good luck with your pantry challenge.
I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about this since I usually don’t like dried fruit in my savoury dishes, but it was so amazing! I’m also doing a pantry clean out and decided to try it to use up the raisins hanging out, but turns out they were actually dried cherries and so it was even better (I’m not the biggest raisin fan so wasn’t sure why i bought them, but turns outs I didn’t, lol). Anyway, all this to say thanks for a delicious pantry clean out meal. Oh and I added Brussels sprouts to roast with the squash and highly recommend it!
So happy you liked it!
Like above, I was also a skeptic of dried fruit in savory dishes, partly because I normally don’t like dried fruit – I find it too sweet and a weird chewy texture. but this recipe made me a golden raisin convert! They plus the sweet honey and squash contrast beautifully against the vinegar and onion tang. I saved a helping the freezer and ate it too quickly and now I’m sad.
Notes:
– I have never found honeynut squash in the Bay Area, CA, so peeled butternut worked just fine
– I did not have red wine vinegar and in the spirit of not buying too much pantry ingredients I used half ACV and half rice vinegar and it was great
– don’t skip the herbs on top, though mine was mostly parsely. The stewed sweet vinegar needs a bright herbaceous opponent.