Indian-style roast squash salad

Name: Indian-style roast squash salad
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 1 h 15 min
Yield: Serves 4-6
Cuisine: Indian recipes
Ingredients: 50ml olive oil; 1-2 summer squash, peeled and cut into wedges; 200g long-stem broccoli; 300g cooked grains (you can use ready-cooked pouches of pearl barley or bulgur wheat); Handful flatleaf parsley, roughly chopped; Handful coriander, roughly chopped; 2 spring onions, sliced; 1 garlic clove, finely chopped; 1 tbsp za’atar; Squeeze lemon juice; Extra-virgin olive oil to drizzle; For the tikka spice mix; 2 tbsp cumin seeds; 2 tbsp coriander seeds; 5 cloves; 13cm piece cassia bark, broken into small pieces (or 3 cinnamon sticks, broken into pieces); 4 green cardamom pods; ½ tsp black peppercorns; 1 tsp garlic powder; 1 tsp onion powder; 1 tbsp amchoor (dried mango powder); 1 tsp black salt; ½ tsp ground turmeric; 1 tbsp sweet paprika; 1 tbsp kashmiri chilli powder (see Know-how); For the tempered yogurt; 250g greek yogurt; 1 tsp clear honey; 2 tbsp vegetable oil; 1 tsp mustard seeds

Aktar Islam
Michelin-starred chef

Published: 23 Jul 25
Updated: 23 Jul 25

Aktar Islam’s Indian-style squash salad is a festival of flavours and textures: roasted or barbecued squash, griddled broccoli, nutty grains and golden sweetcorn bhajis. This flexible recipe includes instructions to cook the squash and broccoli both on the barbecue or using your oven and hob.

Why it’s so good: “This is a proper centrepiece salad, with each element delicious in its own right,” says Aktar. “A spiced yogurt forms the base for herby dressed grains, which are topped with roast squash, charred broccoli and crisp sweetcorn fritters. It’s surprisingly simple and most of the prep can be done ahead.”
Make ahead: You can make the yogurt and cook the squash and broccoli up to a day in advance. The bhajis and the grains are best made within a few hours of serving.
Don’t waste it: The tikka spice mix will keep for 3 months in an airtight container.

Browse more brilliant barbecue recipes, including Aktar’s showstopping sea bream and short ribs.

Serves 4-6
Prep time 25 min. Cook time 50 min

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Ingredients

50ml olive oil
1-2 summer squash, peeled and cut into wedges
200g long-stem broccoli
300g cooked grains (you can use ready-cooked pouches of pearl barley or bulgur wheat)
Handful flatleaf parsley, roughly chopped
Handful coriander, roughly chopped
2 spring onions, sliced
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 tbsp za’atar
Squeeze lemon juice
Extra-virgin olive oil to drizzle

For the tikka spice mix

2 tbsp cumin seeds
2 tbsp coriander seeds
5 cloves
13cm piece cassia bark, broken into small pieces (or 3 cinnamon sticks, broken into pieces)
4 green cardamom pods
½ tsp black peppercorns
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tbsp amchoor (dried mango powder)
1 tsp black salt
½ tsp ground turmeric
1 tbsp sweet paprika
1 tbsp kashmiri chilli powder (see Know-how)

For the tempered yogurt

250g greek yogurt
1 tsp clear honey
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
Handful curry leaves
3 dried kashmiri chillies, roughly chopped (see Know-how)

For the sweetcorn bhajis

340g tin sweetcorn
1 onion, finely chopped
1 green chilli, finely chopped
1 tsp curry powder
1 tbsp cornflour
1 tbsp rice flour
1 tbsp plain flour
Vegetable oil to shallow-fry

Method

Make the tikka spice mix by toasting all the whole spices in a dry pan until fragrant. Transfer to a spice grinder or blender, add the ground spices, then whizz to a powder.
Mix 2 tbsp of the spice mix with the 50ml olive oil, then use this to coat the wedges of squash. Transfer to a sheet of foil with a pinch of salt and wrap up tightly. Either cook the squash on a barbecue with a lid (via indirect heat, not directly over the coals) or in a 180°C/ 160°C fan/gas 4 oven. Cook for 20 minutes, open the parcel and cook for a further 10 minutes.
To make the yogurt, mix the yogurt, honey and a pinch of salt in a bowl. Heat the oil in a small pan over a medium-high heat until smoking. Add the mustard seeds, curry leaves and chillies. Pour the hot oil over the yogurt and mix to combine.
To make the sweetcorn bhajis, drain the sweetcorn (reserving the liquid) and mix with the remaining ingredients (except the oil) in a bowl. Add a splash of the brine if needed to help create a very light batter – the sweetcorn should just hold together. Pour enough oil into a frying pan to cover the base, put over a medium heat until shimmering hot, then shallow-fry spoonfuls of the sweetcorn mixture, in batches, for about 5 minutes until crisp. Set aside.
Char the broccoli in a griddle pan or on the barbecue. Put the cooked grains, herbs, spring onions, garlic, za’atar and some lemon juice in a bowl and toss to combine, then dress with olive oil and season to taste with salt and more lemon juice.
Spread the tempered yogurt over a serving platter, pile on the herby grains, then the broccoli, squash and bhajis.

Recipe from August 2025 Issue

Nutrition

Nutrition: per serving

Calories: 345kcals
Fat: 18g (3.8g saturated)
Protein: 10g
Carbohydrates: 31g (9.2g sugars)
Fibre: 7g
Salt: 0.2g

delicious. tips

Mild and fruity, dried kashmiri chillies are a Subcontinent staple. Buy them in South Asian stores or online. The ground powder is also available in M&S.

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