Baked Spaghetti Squash Recipe

If there's one thing we really like about spaghetti squash, it's that it is a great vegetable for those of us whose produce always dies in the bin before we get around to using it. As recipe developer Miriam Hahn tells us, "you can buy one and leave it on the counter for up to 4 months, and it will be totally fine to use." She considers this long-lasting squash to be "one of nature's little miracles" as well as a "wonderful vegetable full of vitamins, minerals, and fiber." There are myriad ways to cook spaghetti squash (including in the microwave), but here we're using an oven for a classic baked spaghetti squash.

Spaghetti squash gets its moniker because it falls apart into stringy, noodle-like bits when cooked — not because its flavor or texture bears any resemblance to that of pasta. Rather than being seen as a spaghetti substitute, though, this squash can and should be appreciated for its mild, sweet flavor that goes well with a variety of seasonings and sauces (including, yes, sauces typically served with pasta). While you will need a sharp knife to saw through spaghetti squash's thick shell, Hahn notes that "cutting it crosswise," as she does here, "is much easier than trying to cut it lengthwise." Ring-shaped slices also cook more quickly than longer ones and lead to longer strands.

You'll just need five ingredients for this simple baked squash dish: the squash itself, oil to cook it with, and some spices to flavor it with. While Hahn uses avocado oil for cooking, she does so, she says, "because it has a high smoke point and won't break down into carcinogenic particles." If you don't have avocado oil in the pantry, you won't need to make a special trip to the store because any other neutral-tasting oil with a high smoke point should also work.

To season the squash, Hahn uses salt, pepper, and garlic granules. She feels that granules "have so much more flavor [than garlic powder] and the texture is such that it won't clump together," but adds that "if you only have garlic powder on hand, you can definitely use that."

Cut the ends off the squash, then chop it crosswise into rings about an inch thick. You will then need to scrape the seeds out from each ring. "I like using a grapefruit spoon for this," Hahn says.

Put the squash rings on a baking sheet. Hahn lines hers with parchment paper, although she tells us "the parchment paper really just speeds up cleanup," so you can skip it if you don't mind a little extra scrubbing. Brush the squash with half of the oil, then sprinkle it with half of the spices. "You can get creative with the seasonings on the squash," Hahn advises; she's keeping it simple here because she usually eats her squash with a sauce of some sort.

Bake the squash in an oven set to 400 F for 15 minutes, then flip the rings over and cover them with the remaining oil and seasonings. Cook the squash for 15 more minutes, then take it out of the oven and let it cool for 20 minutes. Before you eat the squash, remove the peeling and shred the strands with a fork.

Hahn suggests topping the squash with a sauce such as salsa, peanut sauce, or marinara. You could also season the strands with butter and a sprinkling of brown sugar and cinnamon. (In this case, you might want to pass on the garlic.) Spaghetti squash has a mild flavor that's not too dissimilar to other types of winter squash like butternut and acorn, so any way you like to eat those types of vegetables should work here, as well.