Description
Fluffy, delicious spaghetti squash cooked in the Instant Pot in about 7 minutes! The squash comes out perfectly cooked and makes a wonderful low-carb alternative to spaghetti that you are going to love!
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 medium-sized spaghetti squash – 2-3lbs
- 1 cup warm water
Optional Ingredients For Serving
- butter
- parsley
- chives
- salt and pepper
- freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
Prep the spaghetti squash
- Slice the spaghetti squash in half vertically or horizontally. If it is too hard to cut then cook it in the microwave for 3 minutes to soften it up.
- Once it’s cut then scoop out the seeds using a spoon and discard the seeds.
Cook the spaghetti squash
- Pour 1 cup of warm water into the bottom of the instant pot and place the steaming trivet on the bottom. Place the two halves of the squash into the instant pot on the trivet either facing each other or face-up.
- Place the lid on and secure it. Set the instant pot in manual mode to “pressure cook” on high for 7 minutes. After 7 minutes, let the pressure naturally release. This takes about 5 minutes.
- Once the pressure is released, carefully remove the spaghetti squash (I used tongs since it is pretty hot) and pour out any excess liquid that may be inside. Let it cool for a couple of minutes.
- Using a fork, pull the long strands of squash away from the skin. Continue until you have removed all of the strands. Discard the skins.
- Add the squash to a bowl, top with butter, grated cheese, salt, and pepper, and serve warm.
Notes
- Pick a ripe squash. You want to make sure the squash is not too big so if fits in the instant pot and has more flavor. The heavier the squash the better. You also want to pick a squash that is bright in color with little to not dents of indentations.
- You can slice the squash in half as I did in this recipe or cook it whole (which takes 15 minutes + release time). In my opinion it yields the same result and it is harder to remove the seeds from a cooked squash.
- If you have any trouble cutting the squash, then you can place it in the microwave for 3 minutes to help soften it.
- What to serve with spaghetti squash? You can serve it with butter and herbs along with some cooked protein of choice like these easy baked eggplant meatballs or these butternut squash vegan meatballs.
- Store leftover squash in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat portions in the microwave until heated through.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 7 minutes
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Instant Pot
- Cuisine: American
