How in the world do you cook spaghetti squash??? Or any winter squash for that matter??

Help!

Spagetti squash is pretty easy. Cut it in hald lengthwise and clean out the seeds. Place it cut side down in a microwave safe dish. Add a bit of water and cover with saran wrap. Nuke until you can pierce the back of the squash with a fork. Then, take your fork and run it up and down the length of the cut side. That will pull out the "spagetti".

Acorn and butternut squash can be cooked the same way, but I like to finish them in the oven with some brown sugar (or maple syrup), pecans, and butter (pre dieting days). Nuking the squash gets the cooking started, otherwise it'd take forever to roast.

Zuchinni and summer squash I prefer to have grilled. I cut them lengthwise and brush them with Italian dressing. Then I grill them...I could live off of this in the summer!

Spaghetti squash - yumm. I stick a fork in it a few times and then I microwave it for a few minutes on high to soften a little. I then cut it in half, lengthwise, scoop out the seeds and the stringy stuff. I place it in a pan, skin side up with about an inch of water, bake at 400, covered for about an hour til it's very soft. You then scoop out with a fork the thready strands. I like to make it with portabello mushrooms, onions, chicken breast strips, garlic and a little marinara sauce.

Acorn & butternut squash. Cut in half. Place in pan, cut side up. Season to your likings, either sweet or savory. Put about an inch of water in the pan, cover and bake at 400 degrees til soft, about an hour and 1/4.

You can also make butternut squash soup. Or roasted butternut squash with other veggies such as parsnips, carrots and sweet potatoes.

the harder winter squashes make some wonderful chili. peel and cube them (about the size of the last joint of your thumb) Put them in the chili raw, cook the living daylights out of it. ('cause thats how chili rolls) oh. you have no idea, it is sooo good.

My mom's husband had tried to convince me that spaghetti squash tasted JUST like spaghetti....is it true? I'm VERY sensitive to tastes and I really want to be getting more veggies in my diet, so it would be GREAT if it were true!

No. It's definitely NOT identical to spaghetti. It gets it's name because it's stringy and strand like when cooked.

But it IS a great substitute. Healthy and low cal and filling. You can use it in the same manner as spaghetti though. Serve it up with sauteed mushrooms, onions, marinara sauce. Add some sauteed chicken breast strips and you've got a GREAT meal.

I would definitely give it a try.

I agree with Robin. It's NOT identical. You'll be disappointed if you are expecting it to be indentical. However, it has a very mild, bland taste on its own and you load it with flavorful sauces and use almost no calories for the "spaghetti".

I also use it as a substitute for rice occasionally - red beans and spaghetti squash doesn't have the same ring as red beans and rice, but I can get full without using a lot of calories - or as a filler in mexican style casseroles. We planted some last year and I have loads of spaghetti squash in the freezer.

what kind of tastes are you sensitive to? Like I'm a texture person, If it's the wrong texture, or grainy (like corn bread or anything with cornmeal in it) I can't eat it.
spaghetti squash has a mild taste, almost like nothing. It's crunchy, which is nice, and you can eat a metric ton of it for very few calories.

Now you see, I don't care for it crunchy. But that's just me. I find I need to cook it throroughly, til it's completely soft. No crunch.

Eh, I don't care for it crunchy either. I cook it until it's very soft and caramelized. You can try it crunchy, but if you don't like it that way, put it back in the oven and cook it for longer.

soft?! ack. who are you women! Crunchy is where it's at. That falls under my category of things that are the wrong texture. That and its a sin to over cook things.

I bet you eat your steaks well done

I need help with Spaghetti squash!!

Is it microwavable? FOR EXAMPLE! - What I'd LIKE to try and do with it, is have spaghetti squash with some ground turkey-tomato sauce on top, and I'm wondering if I made it ahead of time, could I refrigerate it for a few hours and microwave it to eat at work?

Or would that make it mushy or weird or I dunno - insight please!!

Yes. You can make it ahead of time and then reheat it later on. Enjoy!

One of my favorites for lunch is to make a batch of chili and a batch of spaghetti squash (in the microwave). Then I put a gob or the chili over the squash in my luncheon Pyrex container which goes to the office fridge, then to the microwave. Absolutely delicious.

Your "turkey-tomato sauce" sounds yummy.

That's a really big help! Thank you both very much!