Easy Spaghetti Squash Recipe with Pesto

Want an easy and healthy side dish? This easy spaghetti squash recipe dresses the squash “pasta” in pesto and parmesan cheese!

Scraping spaghetti squash into “noodles” feels like a miracle every time, and luckily, it’s really delicious too. This season, Alex and I have made it our mission to master all things spaghetti squash. With Instant Pot Magic, we can do it in just 30 minutes, so of course we do it a lot more often. (Yes, we’re lazy.) Here’s an easy spaghetti squash recipe we made as a healthy side dish. Tender pumpkin noodles are tossed with basil pesto and drizzled with lightly grated parmesan. WOW! I announced after my first bite. You can do it in the oven or in the pressure cooker: and you’ll want to do it the whole time.

Quick Video: Easy Spaghetti Squash Recipe (1 Minute!)

To demonstrate the method, we made you a short video of Alex making this easy spaghetti squash recipe. It’s always easier to look at what to do than to read about it (at least in our heads!). The full tutorial is below.

How to cook spaghetti squash: 2 ways

The biggest obstacle to spaghetti squash is knowing how to cook it! If you’re already a spaghetti squash pro, you can skip this part. But here are our two favorite ways to cook everyone’s favorite squash:

Method 1: Roast in the oven.

Here’s the standard method: Roast the squash in the oven! This method takes a little longer 1 hour total. Our method shows you how to do it “right”. For the longest pasta, cut the spaghetti squash across the width instead of the length. Because the squash strands run this way, you end up with long, juicy noodles. Then roast it for 40 to 55 minutes, depending on the size and freshness of the squash. You will also need 10 minutes to allow the squash to shed excess moisture.

Go to: Roasted Spaghetti Squash (in a good way!).

Method 2: Pressure cook it.

Because it’s so quick and easy, we’ve made Instant Pot Spaghetti Squash the most! This method takes approx 30 minutes total. Cut the spaghetti squash in the same way. Then you will pressure cook for 8 minutes and quickly release. After that, drain the squash for 10 minutes to release the extra moisture. It ends up taking just under 30 minutes, which we think is life changing.

Go to: Instant Spaghetti Squash.

Tips for this easy spaghetti squash recipe

When you double a spaghetti squash with veggies, it pairs well with Italian flavors, doesn’t it? This easy spaghetti squash recipe uses our favorite Italian sauce, pesto, to make a quick and flavorful sauce. The way the garlic pesto enhances the flavor of the delicately swirling pasta is perfection! And topped with a little snowfall of grated parmesan, it’s pretty much perfect. Our toddler Larson LOVES it so it’s kid friendly too.

Aside from the above cooking methods, there’s not much to this pesto spaghetti squash! Here are some notes about the recipe.

• Make homemade pesto or buy it for quick preparation. Basil and spaghetti squash are available at different times of the year. But if you have a lot of basil, we recommend our recipe for the best basil pesto. Otherwise, any high-quality brand will do.
• Make it vegan! You can easily make this recipe completely plant-based! Make our Vegan Cashew Pesto and Vegan Parmesan.

Other ways to eat spaghetti squash

There’s nothing we love more than watching our 2 year old devour a large plate of spaghetti squash! Luckily, it’s a vegetable that a lot of people seem to like. Here are some of our favorite spaghetti squash recipes:

1. Lasagne: Here’s a deliciously satisfying twist on the pasta-free classic! Try the Spaghetti Squash Lasagna.
2. Spaghetti: What could be nicer than drizzled with marinara and parmesan? Try the spaghetti squash spaghetti.
3. Pan: Turn it into an Italian Cheese and Pesto Casserole! Try the spaghetti squash casserole.
4. Pad Thai: Why not make it your favorite meal? Try the Spaghetti Squash Pad Thai.
5. Macaroni and Cheese: Better yet, let’s move on to the comfort food. Try the spaghetti squash mac and cheese.
6. Spring Roll Noodle Bowl: I haven’t tried it, but we’re pretty sure this bowl of spring roll pasta with spaghetti squash noodles instead of rice noodles would be awesome.

Another great pumpkin to try? Roasted Delicata Squash.

What’s your favorite way to eat? Let us know in the comments below or on Instagram.

This easy spaghetti squash recipe is…

Vegetarian, vegan, plant-based, dairy-free and gluten-free.