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Spaghetti squash is a healthy, mild-flavored vegetable that shreds into spaghetti-like strands once it's cooked. Although there are lots of ways to cook spaghetti squash, baking the squash gives it a richer, caramelized flavor. Once you bake the squash in the oven, scrape it into strands and serve the squash with your choice of sauce or herbs.

[Edit]Ingredients

A spaghetti squash
of olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Makes 2 to 4 servings

[Edit]Steps

[Edit]Baking a Spaghetti Squash in the Oven

Move a rack to the middle of your oven and preheat the oven to . Adjust your oven rack before you turn the oven on. Let the oven preheat while you cut the squash.^[1]
- If you'd like the squash to have a more caramelized, roasted flavor, preheat the oven to . Since it will cook faster, reduce the cooking time by 5 to 10 minutes.
Cut a spaghetti squash in half lengthwise. Hold the squash against a cutting board and carefully use a chef's knife to cut through the squash lengthwise. To make it easier to cut, don't try to slice through the stem. Once you cut lengthwise around the entire squash, use your hands to pull the halves apart.^[2]
- To prevent your cutting board from slipping, lay a damp kitchen towel underneath it.
Scoop out the seeds from each squash half. Take a spoon and scrape the seeds and stringy parts from each piece of squash. Ensure that you just scrape the stringy bits that are attached to the seeds so you don't scrape into the flesh of the squash.^[3]
- Discard the seeds or roast them like you would pumpkin seeds.
Put the halves in a pan and drizzle the squash with of olive oil. The olive oil helps the squash from sticking and gives the squash a mild flavor as it roasts. Turn the squash so they're cut-side down in a roasting pan or baking dish.^[4]
- Feel free to season the squash with salt and pepper at this point.
Bake the spaghetti squash for 30 minutes or until the halves are soft. Put the pan in the oven and cook the squash halves until they're tender. To test if they're done, insert a butter knife into the flesh. If you're able to insert it and remove it easily, the squash is done. If the butter knife is difficult to pull out, bake the squash for another 5 minutes and check it again.^[5]
- It might take up to 10 to 15 minutes extra for large squash halves to cook.
Remove the spaghetti squash and let it cool for 5 to 10 minutes. Once the spaghetti squash is completely tender, wear oven mitts and take the pan out of the oven. Don't try to immediately shred the squash since it will be difficult to handle right away.^[6]
Drag a fork against the cooked squash flesh to create strands. Wear an oven mitt to hold 1 spaghetti squash in 1 hand. Then, take a fork and gently scrape from 1 end of the squash to the other. This makes lots of thin strands of spaghetti squash. Keep scraping until you reach the thin, hard shell.^[7]
Toss the strands with sauce or season them with herbs before serving them. Transfer the strands of spaghetti squash to a serving bowl and spoon your favorite sauce or curry over them. If you prefer, sprinkle grated cheese, fresh herbs, and a drizzle of olive oil over the strands instead.^[8]
- Try spaghetti squash with a homemade spaghetti sauce, creamy alfredo sauce, or peanut sauce.
- Put the cooked spaghetti squash into an airtight container and refrigerate it for up to 1 week. For longer storage, freeze the squash for up to 3 months.

[Edit]Trying Variations

Bake a whole squash if you want to cut down on prep time. If you don't want to cut through the hard raw squash, bake it first so it's easier to cut the cooked squash. Poke holes all over the squash with a metal skewer and put the whole squash on a baking sheet. Roast it at for 60 to 70 minutes. Then, carefully cut the soft squash in half lengthwise and remove the seeds.^[9]
- Wear oven mitts to turn the squash halfway through the cooking time.
- Although this method is easier to prep, the squash won't be as flavorful because the squash will steam instead of caramelize.
Bake a whole squash in your slow cooker for 3 to 4 hours for a hands-off method. Hold the squash in place on your cutting board and carefully cut slits across it. Put the whole squash in the slow cooker and place the lid on it. Then, cook the squash on "High" for 3 to 4 hours or "Low" for 6 to 8 hours. Once the squash is soft and cool enough to handle, slice it in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds.^[10] of water. Place the squash in the basket and secure the lid. Then, pressure cook the squash on high for 20 minutes. Use the quick pressure release feature and cut the squash once it's cool enough to handle.}}
Stuff the squash halves before you bake them. To make spaghetti squash into a complete meal, lay the squash halves on your roasting sheet cut-side up. Remove the seeds so you can fill them before roasting. Try stuffing the squash halves with:^[11]
- Shredded chicken and sautéed vegetables
- Creamed spinach with cheese
- Cooked ground beef with black beans and corn
- Spaghetti sauce with cooked ground beef and parmesan
Cut the squash into rings before baking it if you'd like long strands of squash. Slice across the spaghetti squash to make wide rings. Use a spoon to scoop out the seeds from each ring and place the rings on a foil-lined sheet. Brush the rings with a little olive oil and bake them at for 35 to 40 minutes or until they're soft.^[12]
- To separate the strands, use your fingers to pull away the peel from each ring. Then, use your fingers or a fork to tease away the long strands.
- Cutting the squash into rings also speeds up the baking time compared to whole squash.