Pad fak (ผัดฟัก) - Stir fried squash with eggs and Thai basil

We're coming to the end of kabocha squash season as I write this. Pair that with the fact that my regular supermarket (OK, Marks and Spencer Foodhall) is now stocking a wider range of East and Southeast Asian (ESEA) ingredients including fresh Thai Basil, I knew I had to make this.

Generally, I'm a big fan of a stir fried veg with scrambled egg. It's a great side dish but also works well as a one rice dish meal when I'm lazy. The options of what you can use are endless which always keeps it interesting. With squash though, Thai basil is a must. The fragrance of the herb works so well with the sweetness of the squash, especially when you use a sweet, smooth squash like kabocha!

For the stir fry you need:

-1 tbsp vegetable oil

-3 cloves garlic, minced

-300 g squash, chopped into roughly 2 X 1 cm pieces

-100 ml water

-1 tbsp light soy sauce

-egg scramble mix: -3 large eggs

-1 tbsp water

-2 tbsp light soy sauce

-25 g Thai basil

• Fry the garlic in oil until the fragrance is released.

• Add the squash and fry for about a min before adding the water and soy sauce.

• Put the lid on your pan and cook the squash until a fork goes through the pieces.

• While waiting for the squash to cook, beat together the eggs with the water and soy sauce.

• Once the squash is cooked, make a space in the centre of the pan. Pour the eggs into the space and leave to cook partially. Once the bottom of the egg pool has cooked, gently scramble the eggs throughout the whole pan.

• Mix in the washed Thai basil leaves and turn off the heat.

• Enjoy!