Many online recipes for how to cook spaghetti squash in the oven will tell you to poke holes in the squash and bake it at 350 F… but I think this is a huge mistake!
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With spaghetti squash, most people seem to fall into one of two categories:
There are those who LOVE spaghetti squash as a lower-calorie replacement for spaghetti. And there are those who shun it, believing that if you’re going to eat pasta, you should enjoy the real thing.
But I feel that looking at spaghetti squash as a pasta “substitute” in the first place does the vegetable an unfair disservice.
The unique taste and texture of spaghetti squash ought to be appreciated in their own right, not compared to carb-filled noodles.
No matter how many websites you find that claim their spaghetti squash recipe “tastes just like the real thing,” spaghetti squash will never be pasta.
And that’s completely okay!
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Another thing to keep in mind if you think you hate spaghetti squash is that it might just be the way you’ve been cooking it.
So many tutorials for how to cook spaghetti squash will tell you to poke holes in the vegetable, add water to the bottom of the pan, and either cook the whole thing or two halves at 350 F or 375 F.
I think this is a mistake because the extra water and lower temperature mean you end up with watery, steamed spaghetti squash instead of sweet, roasted spaghetti squash, especially if you don’t cut the squash in half to give the moisture inside the squash a place to escape.
And watery strands will, in turn, also water down whatever sauce you choose to put on your spaghetti squash after cooking. If you’ve made spaghetti squash this way and do prefer steamed strands, that’s fine…
But I much prefer it roasted, so if you’ve had spaghetti squash in the past and think you aren’t a fan, it might be worth giving the vegetable one more chance.
The following recipe is my favorite method for how to cook a spaghetti squash that yields non-watery results every time.
It calls for roasting the spaghetti squash at 460 F, which is higher than any other recipe I’ve ever seen and works beautifully to caramelize the natural sugars in the squash and zap away extra moisture, leaving you with perfectly cooked spaghetti squash that is ready to be dressed up however you wish or even eaten by itself.
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How To Bake Spaghetti Squash
Start by carefully cutting the spaghetti squash in half, lengthwise.
EDIT: Many readers say that cutting it width-wise is even better because you get much longer strands. I haven’t tried that yet, but I am intrigued! (Have any of you tried it?)
Place the squash—flat sides up—in a baking pan. If desired, scoop out the seeds and brush the squash with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. I usually opt to scoop out the seeds after baking.
Place the pan on the middle rack in a non-preheated oven, and turn the oven to 460 F.
Most spaghetti squashes will take around 40-50 minutes to fully roast, depending on the size of the squash; but if you have a small squash, it’s a good idea to check it after 20-30 minutes or so.
Scoop out the strands, and add tomato sauce, cheesy sauce, alfredo sauce, Mushroom Stroganoff, salad dressing, pesto, or any other sauce you’d add to pasta.
You could also top the spaghetti squash with a Coconut Curry, vegetable stew, or Vegetarian Chili like you’d do with rice. It is the perfect blank canvas for thousands of recipes.
Below are a few of my favorite sauces to use with spaghetti squash.
Spaghetti Squash Recipes:
Cauliflower Alfredo Sauce (Reader Favorite)
Try any of the above sauces over spaghetti squash. Or there are also recipes on my blog for spaghetti squash lo mein, spaghetti squash parmigiana, avocado alfredo, and numerous others.
Or you can keep things simple by seasoning the baked spaghetti squash with salt and olive oil or buttery spread – it makes the perfect accompaniment to sautéed kale and a toasted English muffin, as seen in the photo below.
(Above, roasted spaghetti squash with sauteed kale and a homemade English muffin, using my favorite English muffin recipe from my cookbook.)
I’ve written up the recipe for how to cook spaghetti squash in the oven and am also including instructions for how to cook spaghetti squash in the microwave for those of you who would rather not cook it in the oven.
My preference is for the oven-roasted spaghetti squash, but the microwave version will work if you are short on time and want something quick and easy.
How To Cook Spaghetti Squash
Ingredients
- 1 large spaghetti squash
- optional olive oil, salt, etc.
- sauce or seasonings as desired
Instructions
- *Note that larger spaghetti squashes tend to yield sweeter strands. However, small ones will also work if they are all you can find. To Make: Carefully cut the spaghetti squash in half, lengthwise. (Some readers say that cutting it width-wise gives you longer strands. I haven ‘t tried this yet, but I am intrigued!) Place the squash—flat sides up—in a baking pan. If desired, scoop the seeds out and brush the squash strands with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. You can opt to scoop the seeds out and season after baking if you prefer. Place the pan on the middle rack in a non-preheated oven, then set the oven to 460 F. Large squashes will take around 40-50 minutes to roast fully, but very small ones may take less time, so it’s a good idea to check the squash after 20-30 minutes. Remove from the oven, and scoop out the strands. If you’d like, you can mix the strands with other ingredients and then stuff them back into the hollowed-out spaghetti squash shells. I've found that storing the strands in a glass pyrex and covering only with a paper towel is best, because it allows water to escape instead of getting trapped inside the container and weighing down the roasted squash. If you make this recipe, don't forget to leave a review!View Nutrition FactsMicrowave Method:If you’re short on time and don’t mind more of a steamed-spaghetti-squash result, you can cook your spaghetti squash in the microwave. I do highly recommend trying the oven version at some point, though! To microwave: Poke holes in the spaghetti squash, cut in half lengthwise, and scoop out the seeds if desired. Fill a glass baking dish about 1/4 up with water, then place the squash—flat sides down—in the pan and microwave 10-15 minutes or until tender. Remove from the microwave, and scoop out the strands.Instant Pot Spaghetti Squash:Cut the squash in half, put the steamer insert into the instant pot, add 1 cup water and the squash, and cook on manual for about 8 minutes (more or less, depending on squash size). Thanks to reader Lauren for creating this version and letting us know it works in an instant pot!
Notes
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ABSOLUTELY HANDS DOWN BEST METHOD!!!!!! EVER!!!!!
Bravo 👏👏👏👏👏
I took some amazing pictures of my chicken broccoli/asparagus alfredo bake using this method. Is there a way to submit. Yes I’m pretty proud of my culinary accomplishment tonight hahaha
Typically an epic fail lol
Thank you so much for trying it :). I wish we had that capability… We used to, but it was causing issues with the blog pages being jumpy. Hopefully we will be able to offer it again soon, because I really love seeing reader photos.
I’ve made this about a zillion times now and it is awesome every single time. Cutting across the middle for longer strands DOES work! And it’s easier to cut across the middle of the squash then cutting it lengthwise anyway so win-win! Our favorite toppings are alfredo, pesto, or a combination of the two 🙂
I love your blog. I suffer from an ED and find meal prep very nerve racking. I find your site of recipe options very comforting. I look forward to more recipes.
In my opinion, this is the BEST way to cook squash. Once you try it this way, you will never go back to the way you used to do it. The squashcomes out PERFECT. I am so grateful to have found this recipe. I cook it exactly like the directions, but I do take the seeds out first. When it is ready to come out of the oven, I don’t want to have to do anything else to it but eat it! It is so delicious with just the olive oil & salt. EXCELLENT!
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The ONLY way you should be cooking spaghetti squash. This recipe totally rocked my world when I first tried it years ago, and I have been coming back to your blog ever since. I figured it was high time to leave a review for this one so others know there is no other way to bake spaghetti squash that will stand up to this one!
-A fan
Made it tonight; absolutely delicious!! I’ll never cook spaghetti squash any other way. Game changer. ❤️
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Very easy and came out very good! I have done this in the microwave before (using another recipe) but using this recipe in the oven was much better! Will make again this way.
Thank you so much for trying it!
I made this tonight and my husband has texture issues, but he really liked it. I served it with my home made sauce with sausage added. Delicious, will make again for sure! 😋
I just roasted my spaghetti squash per your instructions and will never go back to steaming again! No extra water to wring out before serving. Many thanks!