How to Cook Spaghetti Squash

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How to Cook Spaghetti Squash

Since I have been on a Paleo/Primal/Low Carb eating plan I have been looking for new foods to eat.  I have eaten Spaghetti Squash in restaurants before and new I liked it, but I had never cooked them.  I always assumed that it would be difficult to fix.  Wow!  Was I ever wrong!  It is so easy to fix!

First, you need to find Spaghetti Squash.  None of the stores seemed to have them.  Maybe they normally do, but when I looked there weren't any.  I found mine at a Farmer's Market.  I bought 2 and paid $2.00 each for them.

The lady I bought them from told me how to cook them.  I also talked to a couple of friends to get the opinions on how to cook them.  

The lady told me to cut the squash in half, remove the seeds, and put face down on a baking sheet and cook for an hour.

My friends told me to basically do the same thing, but cook for 8 minutes in the microwave.

Well, now I will tell you exactly what I did and what I have learned.

Cutting a spaghetti squash isn't the easiest thing to do.  I struggled to cut in in half without losing a finger or two.  That skin on that thing is really trying to protect what's inside.  I fought with that old squash trying to get it to hold still long enough to force the knife through the rind.  I did conquer that **!!!** spaghetti squash. 

Since then, I have learned a better method.  Poke some holes into that booger and stick it in the microwave for a couple of minutes and the skin will soften up.  Then you can just slice right through it.  No fight!!

When you get it cut in half.  Just scoop in the there and remove the seeds and the mushy stuff around the seeds.  I chose to cook mine in the microwave.  If I had been using the oven to cook something else I would probably have put it in the oven.  Since I was just making the squash I just placed it face down on a paper plate and cooked it in the microwave.  I cooked it for 8 minutes.  I have seen different times for cooking.  8 minutes worked great!  When I pulled it out of the microwave it looked like this.

Are cooking it, I let it set and cool for a few minutes.  I just wasn't in the mood to burn my hand.  That thing was hot.  As soon as it cooled down so that I could handle it without burning my hand off, I got a fork and started digging out the insides of the squash.

You just pull the fork side to side to shred the insides of the squash. 

It is amazing to see it all start coming out of there looking like spaghetti.  I cleaned out both halves and it just took a few minutes.

My spaghetti strands were ready to use.  I put half of it into the refrigerator in a baggie for later use.   It should last a 3-5 days in the refrigerator.  You should refrigerate it as soon as you can so it doesn't start growing bacteria.  I still haven't gotten my husband to give it a try, so I was eating alone. 

I used fresh marinara sauce on my spaghetti squash.   I was amazed at the different ways you can eat it though.

1.  Cover with a marinara sauce or spaghetti sauce.

2.  Use 1 tsp. Olive Oil, Parmesan Cheese, Salt and Pepper.

3.  Add fresh veggies, Parmesan Cheese, Salt and Pepper.

4.  Add butter, garlic, Parmesan Cheese, and Red Pepper Flakes.

5.  Or give it a Mexican feel by adding black beans, salsa, cheese and chili powder.

I bet you could come up with your own ideas to flavor it too!  

I talked to a couple of friends about cooking my squash and they have gone out and bought them too.  One friend had never tried it before and she said it was great.  Someone at work brought her one. She is working on a low carb diet too.  They other friend is going Primal and she said she hadn't eaten spaghetti squash for a long time but she went shopping for one too.  She said I forgot about spaghetti squash, I love those!

The best thing about Spaghetti Squash it that it is healthy no matter how you are eating.  It is real food not something that is processed beyond recognition.  So there you go, that's how you cook spaghetti squash.  Are you ready to try?