Pumpkin Rice Deluxe
Updated November 20, 2025
- Ready In
- About 1 hr
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
Advertisement
Ingredients
½ pound sugar pumpkin or other pumpkin or winter squash, such as kabocha, butternut or red kuri, peeled and deseeded
1 cup basmati rice
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium leek, trimmed, halved lengthwise, rinsed and thinly sliced
3 celery stalks, thinly sliced, leaves reserved
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 ½ teaspoons finely grated fresh turmeric or ½ teaspoon ground turmeric
4 fresh thyme sprigs
¼ cup roasted peanuts
3 scallions, thinly sliced
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
83 grams carbs; 23 milligrams cholesterol; 519 calories; 5 grams monosaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 6 grams saturated fat; 16 grams fat; 5 grams fiber; 442 milligrams sodium; 11 grams protein; 2 grams sugar
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered by
Preparation
- Step 1
Cut the pumpkin into manageable chunks for grating, if needed, then finely grate it on a box grater (or using a food processor with the grating disk) until you have 1 heaping cup. Dice the remaining pumpkin into ½-inch pieces. Set both aside.
- Step 2
Rinse the rice until the water runs clear. Drain and set aside.
- Step 3
Melt the butter in a large lidded pot or Dutch oven over medium-high. Add the leek and half the sliced celery, and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened and golden brown in parts.
- Step 4
Add the grated pumpkin, drained rice and turmeric. Toast the rice for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring frequently, until the grains are coated. Stir in the diced pumpkin, 1 ½ cups of water (or the suggested amount, if the rice package directions differ) and season with salt and pepper until the cooking liquid tastes like a well-seasoned broth.
- Step 5
Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium-high, add the thyme, cover and cook over medium-low for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and keep covered for an additional 10 minutes, until all liquid is absorbed.
- Step 6
Fluff the rice with a fork and remove the thyme sprigs. Stir in the peanuts, scallions, remaining sliced celery and reserved celery leaves.
Private Notes
Comments
Look, we're all thinking it (canned pumpkin), so I did us a favor and tried it (canned pumpkin). I used half a 15 oz can of puree. It worked great and I didn't have to grate a freaking pumpkin. If serving this on its own, I would use a broth instead of water -- it needs that for flavor.
@Anjali Both appreciate your helpful feedback on using the canned pumpkin and the delivery of your feedback - I actually had to stifle my laugh to not wake up my husband!
@Anjali thanks for the chuckle and for taking one for the team and experimenting with the canned pumpkin. I may try this now.
Genuinely one of the worst things I’ve ever cooked. Very uneven mix of seasonings resulting in a strange flavor, weirdly sweet and mild like baby food. I never throw away food but after the second meal (made about six servings) my wife and I looked at each other and scraped the leftovers in the trash.
I followed Anjali’s advice and used half a can of canned pumpkin instead of freshly grated, and chicken broth instead of water. Thought this dish had excellent flavor. I’m absolutely obsessed with leeks so doubled that, but the celery ended up really being the star! I let the rice crisp up on the bottom to get a soccarat, which added a welcome texture. I might try adding some chopped green olives or capers next time, just for a pop of salt but it’s definitely not needed.
This is a keeper. I used better than bouillon in my water for the liquid. I love all the veggies and the raw celery gives a great bite. People, just get a small acorn squash or honeynut squash. They are small and simple to peel with a T-peeler and grate. It took me less than 5 mins to prep the squash. Don’t complicate things.