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Spaghetti squash is one of my all-time favorite things, but I always hate taking the time to cook it. Enter… Instant Pot! The first time I tried cooking it in the Instant Pot, I was so impressed that I’ll never go back to the oven. In today’s video, we share the technique and also put together a quick (and delicious) meal at the end!
Here’s a little preview of the amazing “Cheesy Taco Squash” dish Brian threw together! More below >>
To start out, you need to cut your spaghetti squash in half. Sometimes I can do this easily on my own, but be careful with your knife, especially if you have zero knife skills like I do. Ask a responsible adult, or try microwaving it for a few minutes to help soften it a bit before cutting in half.
Once you’ve got it cut in half, it’s just as simple as scooping out all of the seeds until you have two nice, clean halves!
And now you are ready for the Instant Pot!
You’ll need to put a steamer rack or trivet in the bottom of the Instant Pot. The key is to have the squash elevated a bit off the bottom.
Just arrange your halves similar to the photo above, and you’re ready to cook! I use high pressure for about 8 minutes and release the pressure manually. You can follow along with the recipe and print it out below.
Check out the video here to watch me demonstrate this process!
Instant Pot Spaghetti Squash
Ingredients
- – 1 medium spaghetti squash (make sure it is small enough to fit inside of your Instant Pot)
- – 1 cup of water
Directions
- OPTIONAL: Microwave spaghetti squash for about 3-5 minutes to help soften it and make it easier to cut. I find that depending how ripe it is, I can cut it without doing this step.
- Once cool enough to handle (if you microwaved), slice the spaghetti squash in half lengthwise and remove the seeds.
- Pour about a cup of water into the Instant Pot. Place a steaming rack or trivet in the bottom and arrange spaghetti squash halves on top of rack/trivet.
- Secure the lid and make sure the valve is set to sealing. Pressure cook on high for 6 to 8 minutes. Cooking times will vary depending on the ripeness of your squash and preferred texture.
- Once pressure cooking cycle is over, carefully release the steam manually by switching the valve to venting. Do not put your hand over the vent at any time – the steam will burn!
- Remove squash halves once pressure is released. Let squash sit with cut sides up until it is cool enough to handle. Use a fork or spoon to remove squash and discard the skins.
- Use a strainer and/or paper towels to remove excess moisture and enjoy in your favorite dish!
After I finished cooking the squash (well, actually two of them), Brian put together a super simple meal that was sooo tasty!
He made what I call “Cheesy Taco Squash” using simple ingredients we had on hand:
– Our favorite cheese sauce, which is the Chipotle Butternut Squash Cheesy Sauce from Healthspan Solution. We used about 1 1/2 cups for two medium spaghetti squashes. You can use your favorite cheese sauce recipe or check out the recipe for the one we used here.
– A can of no salt added pinto beans
– A liberal amount of Sky Valley taco sauce
– Chives to garnish (just because we had them on hand, so WHY NOT?)
I’ve already made this dish again a few times since we filmed this video less than a week ago. It was that good!
We hope you enjoyed this little tutorial / simple recipe video. As always, thank you for following along!
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Brian, thank you for the much easier way to cook spaghetti squash!!! I already loved my instapot, and now i can cook spaghetti squash anytime i want!!!! I couldn’t wait to tell my daughter about it!!
It’s so easy to cook it this way! I make it almost every week now 🙂
The cheese sauce you used in this recipe. Does it stay pourable? Other cheese sauces I have made congeal when refrigerated.
Is that cheese sauce refrigerated after making?? How long does it last in the refrigerator.
It does thicken up when refrigerated, but you can always thin it out with a bit of water. It lasts for 7-10 days in the fridge in a glass container.
Do you use instapot for other squash also or just spaghetti squash? I love Lolas hot sauce and has peppers vinegar lime and salt only 10 mg / serving which I believe is a teaspoon. Thank you guys for all your delicious realistic recipes and ideas! looking forward to making this! Looking forward to any new recipes. Thank you!
We haven’t tried other squash in the Instant Pot, but we need to!
Hello, I can’t believe I have not written to you guys yet. I’ve been watching you practically since Day 1 (and making sure I watch the few I missed!)
You have been so helpful on my journey. I so appreciate all that you do and love watching! Jenn