Spaghetti squash is one of nature’s many miracles. It easily separates into strings when cooked, making it the perfect substitute for pasta when you’re trying to cut back on carbs.
By utilizing your pressure cooker, you get the best of both worlds with this method. It’s quicker than the slow cooker and you get a perfectly cooked squash every time!!
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Health Benefits of Spaghetti Squash
Instant Pot Spaghetti Squash is low-calorie but contains fiber which fills you up and aids digestion, making it a great recipe for weight loss!
It also is a good source of vitamins and antioxidants which can help prevent diseases such as heart disease or certain types of cancers, when part of a healthy balanced diet.
Do I Need to Peel or Cut the Squash?
You only need to cut the squash in half lengthwise, no need to dice it or cut it any more than that. Cutting it lengthwise will be easiest way to get the longest strands out and most closely resemble spaghetti.
You do not have to peel the squash in this recipe. You’ll scrape out the strands from the inside, so you can just discard the rind once you get all the yummy insides out.
How Do I Know When the Squash is Done?
The squash is done once a fork can easily scrape up the “spaghetti” strands. It should be relatively soft inside.
Using your pressure cooker takes a lot of the guesswork out! Just 10 minutes should be a good amount of time to cook a smaller squash or a larger squash to perfection.
If it ends up still being kind of hard to scrape after 10 minutes, just add a little more time to the pressure cooker. About 5 extra minutes should do the trick!
If you accidentally overcook the spaghetti squash, it will turn a little mushy. It will still be perfectly fine to eat, but it will lose some of its texture and just might not really resemble spaghetti anymore.
How Long Does Spaghetti Squash Last?
Spaghetti squash, like butternut squash and many other winter vegetables is a great thing to keep in your pantry, because it lasts for a month or more at room temperature! This is when it’s raw, before cutting or cooking. It needs to be refrigerated once cut and/or cooked.
Once cooked, spaghetti squash will last 5-7 days in the refrigerator, which makes it great for meal prep since you can serve it so many different ways!
How to Serve Spaghetti Squash
Spaghetti squash can replace the texture of spaghetti pasta so you can top it with any pasta sauce. Here are a few options
If you’re looking to cut back on your carb intake these are great options for a complete meal.
You can use it as a healthy side dish for orange chicken and similar recipes.
Looking for more ideas? Check out What to Serve With Spaghetti Squash for 20 amazing side dishes.
If you don't have time to cook and you want a simple side, this Instant Pot Spaghetti Squash recipe is also great simply tossed with a little butter or heart-healthy olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper. I like to add a little bit of garlic powder or minced garlic too, for added flavor!
More Low-Carb options
If you liked this recipe and want to add more veggies to your mane, check out these healthy recipes:
You can also try one of these Lemon Cucumber Recipes.
Instant Pot Spaghetti Squash
Ingredients
- 1 spaghetti squash
- 2 cups water
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Pour 2 cups of water into the Instant Pot. and
- Place the trivet in your Instant Pot.
- Cut the spaghetti in half and place both halves on the trivet.
- Close the lid and cook on high pressure for 10 minutes.
- When cooking time ends, do a quick pressure release.
- Take out the squash and place on a plate.
- Use a fork to scrape out the strands.
- Add salt and pepper to taste and serve.
Cleaning out the seeds is important before cooking I've found
Thanks for the tip!