Simple Roasted Butternut Squash | Trending Ways

Squash is a common food in most Western countries and it is the fruit of Cucurbitaceae, which is in turn part of the cucumber family. Squash comes in various shapes and sizes with different names, such as pumpkin or marrows depending on its stage of ripeness.

Many people find squash to be difficult to cook because they don’t know how to cut them. However, once you do cut them, there are plenty of ways that you can cook squash!

Steps to cook squash

-The first step when preparing squash for cooking is cutting off the stem and flowering end.

-The next step is peeling it; when trying to remove skin from a curved surface like this it tends to curl back under itself and makes it hard to peel off so you can use this trick:

start at the place where the stem was and angle the knife away from you, so it’s close to vertical when cutting through the skin. To take off a thin layer of skin like this, all you need is a sharp and sturdy vegetable peeler.

the hint

To cut into chunks for roasting or steaming, stand it on end and cut along its length in two halves; then take each half and make slices about 2-4 cm (1-2 inches) thick. You can also slice them in rings to make onion rings or spirals to make noodles if that’s what you prefer (for methods of doing either see below).

For cooking cubes for soups or stews, make one crosswise cut to divide the squash in half, then nestle it cut side down on your cutting board and slice through; then turn it upright and make slices.

For cubes or chunks that you want to roast, preheat the oven (on whatever setting) to about 180°C/350°F/Gas mark 4 before starting.

Roasting is probably the simplest way of cooking any type of winter squash. Cut into cubes or rings, toss with oil (or water), spread out evenly on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or aluminium foil, season as desired , and roast for 30 minutes or until soft inside when pierced with a skewer or knife.

A simple seasoning would be sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper with perhaps a drizzle of olive oil.

For cubes or rings to be pan fried, heat up a frying pan with 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil to medium-high heat. Add the chopped squash and cook until golden brown on all sides. Season with salt and pepper and serve immediately .

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