I have had spaghetti squash before, and I feel like I ALWAYS have this problem. I micriwaved my spaghetti squash for about 10 minutes, cut it in half lengthwise, and then microwaved the halves face up for at least another 20 minutes. 30 minutes total in the microwave--that's a LOT of cooking! And yet, when we sat down to eat tonight, it was still crunchy
How do you tell if it's done when cooking the squash? The outside of the squash was soft, and the skin along the cut edges was beginning to brown, so that's when I stopped cooking it. The strands scraped out with a fork very easily, so it seemed cooked enough until we actually crunched into the strands at dinner. Yuck.
I now have a big pot of spaghetti squash strands mixed with pasta sauce and ground turkey breast on my stove. Is there any chance of revival? If I cook it in the microwave now that the strands are already separated (covered so the tomato sauce doesn't spatter all over my microwave), will it cook it more so it's not crunchy?
Jill,
I cut the squash lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. I then put both halves face down in a microwavable pan that has about 1 cup of water in it. I then microwave for 10 minutes. That is all it takes to cook the squash. I then scrape out the "strands" and combine them with my sauce. Sometimes I toss them with a bit of olive oil and finish by stir-frying a bit to crisp the squash. And of course - my favorite way is to take the strands and combine them with other veggies for a roasted veggie bake.
Hey Jill - I think you could salvage what you've made already by nuking your concoction a few more minutes...maybe try just 2 min or so and check it. I would add a couple tablespoons of water to it too. Good luck!
Jill,
I cut the squash lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. I then put both halves face down in a microwavable pan that has about 1 cup of water in it. I then microwave for 10 minutes. That is all it takes to cook the squash.
I've tried it face down in a pan of water, and the same thing still happened--crunchy. 10 minutes is never even close to long enough for me (and my microwave is not weak!). Maybe spaghetti squash and I just weren't meant to be
Don't give up on it - it's so good! I know it's more time consuming, but maybe next time you could try it on a weekend (or whenever you have more time) and bake it in the oven for 40 min or so until soft. Not as convenient as the microwave, but it might turn out better.
Don't give up on it - it's so good! I know it's more time consuming, but maybe next time you could try it on a weekend (or whenever you have more time) and bake it in the oven for 40 min or so until soft. Not as convenient as the microwave, but it might turn out better.
heh, I've tried the oven before, too, and baked it for about an hour--still crunchy!
Maybe I'm expecting too much--maybe it's always going to be a bit crunchy no matter how long I cook it?
I need help with my spaghetti squash!
