Tip: Cooking Spagetti Squash

I wasn't sure how to cook my spaghetti squash, but I found this great resource. It lists advantages and disadvantages to cutting the squash before cooking as well as simple instructions for how to cook it either cut or whole.

Like all winter squashes, spaghetti squash has a very hard shell and is difficult to cut.

I read somewhere that it is immensely easier, if you just pop the squash in the microwave for 45-60 seconds. This softens it up just a bit to make cutting it a bit easier.

With my abundance of squash this fall, I have used this trick up many times and have found it to be very helpful.

Back to the spaghetti squash...

I washed it.
Zapped it in the microwave.
Cut it in half length-wise.
Scraped out the seeds and pulp.
Put it in a microwave-safe baking dish; covered it with plastic wrap.
Microwaved it for 6-9 minutes.

Removing the strands from

a cooked spaghetti squash

Photo © Charles Islander

Let it sit a few minutes after cooking. This allows it to both finish cooking and cool slightly to make it a bit easier on your fingers.

After the squash is fork-tender, use a fork to scrape the squash out of its shell.

It should separate nicely into strands resembling spaghetti.