Lightly seasoned, roasted butternut squash is deliciously healthy and easy.
Chef's notes
Butternut squash, a popular winter squash, with its nutty and sweet flavor doesn
Butternut squash is good with just a little seasoning or you can dress it up by adding cilantro, brown sugar, herbs or even maple syrup.
Steps
1
Roasting the Squash
Ingredients
1 whole butternut squash
2 tbsp grapeseed or olive oil
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
Preheat oven to 400° F (200°C).
Peel the squash, cut it in half, scoop out and discard the seeds. Dice the squash into roughly 1" -inch cubes.
Place the squash into a bowl. Add the olive oil, salt and pepper and toss to evenly coat.
Pour the squash onto a parchment-lined baking tray. Roast for 15 to 20 minutes. The squash is ready when a knife easily slides into the center. Once done, taste for seasoning and adjust, if needed.
The First 3 Are On Us
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Great vegetable dish - it was so tasty and buttery. Make sure to not over cook butternut though because then you loose that bright color in the cubes and I love that this dish.
Is this possibly a typo in the recipe? The recipe alternatively calls for 1/2 tsp. table salt, which would be equal to about 1 tsp of Kosher salt, not 1 tbsp. Plus, 1 tsp of Kosher salt seemed just about right for my taste. Otherwise, the recipe was great. It was quick, easy, and delicious.
Really enjoyed this easy vegetable, but oh so delicious. Added maple syrup after cooking, tossed and served. Very nice. I just saw the comment about the curry and the maple syrup. Will try that next time. Almost wanted to run to the store and buy another butternut squash for tonight. S
I was so intrigued by this recipe that I decided to try the traditional Aboriginal Three Sisters garden this year. I grew a heritage dwarf corn that has a "real" corn flavour, pole beans ( I didn't like the variety) next to the corn and squash at the perimeter. The butternut keeps well and is delicious, my usual pie pumpkins produced record yields and I tried a French pumpkin, which is still green and sitting in 3 10-pound lumps on my kitchen floor.
What I find interesting is that my extended family usually boil pumpkin and squash and don't peel them first but scrape the flesh after it's cooked. So I decided to do a test...
I boiled 1 small pumpkin, roasted 1 butternut squash and another pumpkin. Results: the squash cooks faster than the pumpkin with less pulpy strings, with more flavour and better colour. Peeling them first requires more work up front but I think a better product in the end. I wasn't too carefully about consistent size of the pieces, it matters with roasting but not so much with simmering on the stove top.
So now to the less-than-truthfull part of the story... My spouse eats carrots, green beans, peas, lettuce and cucumber. No other vegetables and won't even try anything else. He loves pumpkin pie, so I roasted up a butternut squash and carrots, with maple sugar and ginger. He asked me what it was and I turned towards the sink and said "carrots", which was partly true. This morning he asked me to make the carrots again...looks like I can add squash to then menu soon....next is sweet potatoes :).
I'm so pleased - Merna
Great commentary on the process you used to prepare the squash- I'm sure that is helpful for many students at Rouxbe to hear your journey and process of experimentation.
And kudos to your husband for "branching out" - even if he was blissfully unaware of the delicious "trick" you pulled on him! I'm a big fan also of delicata squash. No peeling necessary as the skin is very tender and soft. Cheers!
Are we allowed to use oil when cooking butternut squash? I’m preparing it now for baking tonight for my class but I was surprise to see oil in the recipe. Thanks.
Hi Mary and thanks for your question. This recipe works well with one of the plant-based cooking oils suggested - olive or grape-seed. I hope you share your results and thanks again for learning with Rouxbe! Chef Kirk
I was having trouble getting the desired color on my roasted veggies - even at very high heat (like 475 degrees). I was roasting on parchment in a non-convection oven. I have an oven thermometer and the temperature was pretty spot on. I tried roasting on a silicone mat instead of parchment and the result was much better! The veggies were cooked through and got that nice caramelization I had been looking for! My squash roasted for about 20 minutes at 400 degrees. I used 2 TBSP of olive oil and felt it was too much; will take down to 1 TBSP next time. I dressed the squash with a drizzle of maple syrup and fresh cilantro. Delicious - but very sweet - almost dessert like!
Hello Andrea,
You can find a recipe for any roasted butternut squash, making certain to cut the squash in half prior to roasting. You can fill it with anything from quinoa to your favorite stuffing recipe to a rice dish, there are so many options.
However, this is a really wonderful recipe that I have tried and really enjoy, as does my family. The recipe is from The Minimalist Baker.
https://minimalistbaker.com/roasted-stuffed-butternut-squash/
I hope you enjoy the recipe, and thanks for writing.
Cheers,
Char
Noriyo A •To add some exotic taste, try putting a sprinkle of curry powder and maple syrup when mixing.
Joe G • Rouxbe Staff •Yes, this should have been "or 1/2 tbsp. of table salt" - not tsp. Great catch.
Patricia S •This is one of my favourites! I like to sometimes use hazelnut or walnut oil instead. It gives the squash a rich nutty flavour....yum!
Merna B •I was so intrigued by this recipe that I decided to try the traditional Aboriginal Three Sisters garden this year. I grew a heritage dwarf corn that has a "real" corn flavour, pole beans ( I didn't like the variety) next to the corn and squash at the perimeter. The butternut keeps well and is delicious, my usual pie pumpkins produced record yields and I tried a French pumpkin, which is still green and sitting in 3 10-pound lumps on my kitchen floor. What I find interesting is that my extended family usually boil pumpkin and squash and don't peel them first but scrape the flesh after it's cooked. So I decided to do a test... I boiled 1 small pumpkin, roasted 1 butternut squash and another pumpkin. Results: the squash cooks faster than the pumpkin with less pulpy strings, with more flavour and better colour. Peeling them first requires more work up front but I think a better product in the end. I wasn't too carefully about consistent size of the pieces, it matters with roasting but not so much with simmering on the stove top. So now to the less-than-truthfull part of the story... My spouse eats carrots, green beans, peas, lettuce and cucumber. No other vegetables and won't even try anything else. He loves pumpkin pie, so I roasted up a butternut squash and carrots, with maple sugar and ginger. He asked me what it was and I turned towards the sink and said "carrots", which was partly true. This morning he asked me to make the carrots again...looks like I can add squash to then menu soon....next is sweet potatoes :). I'm so pleased - Merna
Ken R • Rouxbe Staff •Great commentary on the process you used to prepare the squash- I'm sure that is helpful for many students at Rouxbe to hear your journey and process of experimentation. And kudos to your husband for "branching out" - even if he was blissfully unaware of the delicious "trick" you pulled on him! I'm a big fan also of delicata squash. No peeling necessary as the skin is very tender and soft. Cheers!
Mary M •Are we allowed to use oil when cooking butternut squash? I’m preparing it now for baking tonight for my class but I was surprise to see oil in the recipe. Thanks.
Kirk B •Hi Mary and thanks for your question. This recipe works well with one of the plant-based cooking oils suggested - olive or grape-seed. I hope you share your results and thanks again for learning with Rouxbe! Chef Kirk
Sunnie S •I was having trouble getting the desired color on my roasted veggies - even at very high heat (like 475 degrees). I was roasting on parchment in a non-convection oven. I have an oven thermometer and the temperature was pretty spot on. I tried roasting on a silicone mat instead of parchment and the result was much better! The veggies were cooked through and got that nice caramelization I had been looking for! My squash roasted for about 20 minutes at 400 degrees. I used 2 TBSP of olive oil and felt it was too much; will take down to 1 TBSP next time. I dressed the squash with a drizzle of maple syrup and fresh cilantro. Delicious - but very sweet - almost dessert like!
Lauren L •Hi Sunnie. Thank you for your feedback and we are glad that you are creating and thinking like a chef! Yum! Lauren
Char N • Rouxbe Staff •Hello Andrea, You can find a recipe for any roasted butternut squash, making certain to cut the squash in half prior to roasting. You can fill it with anything from quinoa to your favorite stuffing recipe to a rice dish, there are so many options. However, this is a really wonderful recipe that I have tried and really enjoy, as does my family. The recipe is from The Minimalist Baker. https://minimalistbaker.com/roasted-stuffed-butternut-squash/ I hope you enjoy the recipe, and thanks for writing. Cheers, Char