Help me make butternut squash edible to me

[rachelmanija]

I have two butternut squashes (hard-skinned yellow squash), delivered to me as an emergency substitution for something I actually like. I can't return them because coronavirus, I don't generally like squash, and my neighbors don't want them.

My exception to the squash hate is when it's a savory dish that tones down the sweetness. The only time I've ever liked pumpkin was a savory dish I had at a banquet in Taipei with, I think, dried shrimp. Please suggest to me a savory dish, ideally some kind of Asian, which I can make with this squash.


I do not have dried shrimp, but I do have fish sauce and furikake. I don't have pureeing equipment.

Comments

[thistleingrey]

I've made this savory pancake, modified. Chives work instead of leek; more leek, or scallion and some onion and a bit of garlic, also work. The second time I microwaved the grated squash bits instead of dealing with the pan, and it was fine. Topping it with furikake or tiny anchovies instead of yogurt sounds pretty tasty to me.

[rachelmanija]

Thanks! That looks good. I have tons of garlic sprouts growing, which also substitute for leeks/chives.

[falena]

I prefer squash in savoury dishes too. My favourite is a veggie pie with porcini mushroom, butternut squash (or pumpkin), eggs and two different kind of cheese. If it sounds like something you might like I can translate my Italian recipe for you.

[rachelmanija]

That sounds delicious. I'd love the recipe, thanks.

[graydon]

Halve the squash, scoop the squash, throw in something -- bacon, butter, olive oil -- that has fat on goodly-dollop scale, and then throw in some approximation of turkey stuffing; leftover rice, cooked small grains, chopped greens (green onions, chives, etc.), bread crumbs, sauteed onions and/or garlic, contrast protein (nuts, shrimp, small-cube cubed leftovers of whatever), as you have those things to hand, then balance both squash halves on a cookie sheet, cover with aluminium foil, and bake at 350 F. "How long?" is this challenging question of squash size and wall thickness; at least 20 minutes per pound of halved-and-emptied squash.

[daidoji_gisei]

I regret that I cannot offer recipes, but I do have ideas.

A miso cookbook I once read had a recipe for squash braised in a mix of broth and miso; I think subbing the fish sauce for miso would be different, but tasty.

Non-Asian, but a place local to me used to make a wonderful vegetable lasagna with cubed butternut squash, spinach and thick white sauce, heavily flavored with rosemary. You may or may not be interested in lasagna, but it could be adapted to a vegetable casserole.

[swan_tower]

Oooh, I might try that. As mentioned below, I've got one that braises kabocha with bacon in soy sauce and water with a bit of sugar; I could totally see a miso variant working, too.

[glinda]

I've had some excellent pumpkin curries over the years, my favourite being Tiyya Gummadi. (It talks about making a puree with dessicated coconut at the start, but if you do the onion/garlic/ginger paste starter instead and then substitute coconut milk for the cow's milk, it'll still taste good.) Also on the strong flavours front, squash works well in chilli con carne too, if I'm making veggie chilli with re-fried beans, I find that squash adds some much needed texture/structure to the dish.

[isis]

I don't have a recipe offhand, but curried squash and garbanzos in coconut milk is an excellent dish.

[helen_keeble]

Cube squash, potato, and sweet potato; chop up an onion and a carrot; put in a pan.

Heat a liberal amount of olive oil in a medium oven (180C) in a roasting tray (or baking tray).

Dump hot oil over the veg and shake so that everything is well coated. Season the shit out of it with salt and pepper. Pour veg back into the tray, arrange in a thin layer; ideally you don't want stuff on top of other stuff.

Return to oven and cook for maybe 45 min? Until potatoes look brown and crispy, onion is golden, etc.

We usually eat this with baked chicken breasts seasoned with BBQ or fajita spice mix.

[indywind]

This is basically what I was here to comment.
It also works if you don't bother to preheat the oil, just chop up whatever veg, toss with oil, salt (more than you think it needs), whatever spices, and bake until tender and a bit caramelized.

I like the sweet veggies savory-roasted this way as part of a salad with interesting greens (arugula is my fave), chevre or bleu or another creamy-sharp cheese, toasted nuts, and maybe some raisined cranberries or tart cherries.

The sweet veggies savory-roasted are also good with sauteed vigorous greens (collards or kale or turnip greens or mustard greens if you can tolerate the pungency) and topped with an egg prepared however you like an egg.

[sophia_sol]

my favourite savoury squash recipe goes like so:

Thinly slice equal amounts of onion and squash. Add a can of chickpeas. Toss in oil and add chilli powder and salt to taste. Bake in casserole dish in 400F oven, stirring at least once partway through, for about 45 minutes or until the squash and onion are soft and going a little caramelized.

[ellen_fremedon]

I'm very fond of this Venetian Agrodolce Squash:

Peel 1 lb winter squash-- I medium butternut is good-- and chop into 1/2 inch dice. Set aside. Plump 3 Tbsp raisins in boiling water; drain and set aside. Finely chop 1 tsp good-quality unsweetened chocolate. (Yes, really.)

In 1 Tbsp olive oil, cook 2 cloves garlic, peeled and halved, until dark brown; remove garlic and discard. (if doubling, double the oil but not the garlic.) Saute the squash in the garlic-flavored oil, over high heat, until tender-- this will take longer than you think it will. When the squash is almost done, add 2 Tbsp pumpkin seeds or pine nuts and cook with the squash, until toasted. Add 2 Tbsp honey; let boil, and add the chocolate and 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar. Lower heat, add raisins, and cook gently until squash is coated in honey-vinegar-chocolate glaze. Finish with chiffonade of fresh herbs: mint, basil, or a combination.

[thomasyan]

Have they already been skinned? I've never had to, and would be reluctant. The outside of those suckers is really hard, and I'd be afraid of doing something stupid and cutting myself.

If skinned, then slice thin, coat in oil and seasoning, and roast. Then use in a pasta dish with flavors that offset the sweetness, such as sundried tomatoes.

If not skinned, first figure out how to safely skin and split each.

[naomikritzer]

Butternut squash is pretty easy to peel with a vegetable peeler, in my experience. (You can't do this with most squashes because the exterior peel is too textured; butternut is the exception.)

[naomikritzer]

This recipe probably has more moving parts than you want to try to deal with, but I love the squash part of it in the ramen and "roasted curried squash in a ramen soup" is probably do-able with fewer steps: http://www.halfbakedharvest.com/crockpot-crispy-caramelized-pork-ramen-noodle-soup-wcurry-roasted-acorn-squash/

[naomikritzer]

Alternately, you could roast the butternut, mash it up, drain it for a bit, and turn it into pumpkin bread (but with butternut instead of pumpkin). Apparently most canned pumpkin is actually canned acorn squash, which explains why it's so much better than actual cooked pumpkin.

[ethelmay]

Canned pumpkin can legally be any winter squash, but I am pretty sure it is not acorn, as that has a slight stringiness no matter how you cook it.

[naomikritzer]

My spouse also makes a butternut squash chili recipe; if that sounds good to you I could get the recipe from him.

[redrikki]

I'm a big fan of squash in stews. Brown some cubed beef, chop up some garlic and onions and throw it all in a pot or crock pot with the cubed squash and a can of tomatoes. Add some red wine, some pepper, bay leaves, thyme, and whatever spices trick your fancy and just boil it on low until the meat's done. Sorry I don't have an actual recipe. I'm more a throw it in a pot and see what happens kind of gal.

I once experimented with an African recipe which called for squash, potatoes, tomatoes, and peanut butter and it was actually really good. Bay leaves again, plus onions, garlic, and hot pepper flakes.

[chouette]

You could make Taiwanese style pumpkin stir-fried vermicelli, with variations on whatever you have. Here's one recipe example:
https://wendyinkk.blogspot.com/2018/10/pumpkin-rice-vermicelli.html

I personally grate the pumpkin or squash down (rather than cubing or julienning) and add later in the cooktime so it retains its shape, but I've seen other versions where the pumpkin is pureed so it coats the dish like a sauce rather. If you have vermicelli, that's great, but if not, you can probably just treat it like some variation of chow mein =)

Or you can blend it up and make mantou!
https://www.chinasichuanfood.com/steamed-pumpkin-buns-two-ways/

[jon_chaisson]

I can say that butternut squash makes a REALLY tasty soup and there's quite a few recipes for it online. Some might say you need to puree it, but really all you need to do is dice it up into smallish chunks (about 1" square or so) and cook it down until it's a mooshy mess and then just use a fork.

[ironed_orchid]

I mostly use pumpkin in savoury dishes, and butternut is one of the most versatile so I eat it often.

I love using butternut squash in a coconut cream based curry. I often make one with tofu or chicken, butternut, cauliflower, zucchini, and maybe some peas or other bright green something added toward the end.

Use the curry spices or paste of choice, I like to blend some yellow curry with red curry paste and add in some extra cumin and coriander. I'm going for more of a fragrant and warmly spiced dish than a super hot one.

Butternut does take a bit more cooking than other vegetables, so dice it into 1 inch cubes. First I usually fry the protein in the spices and aromatics, if using tofu you can remove it and set aside, or let it remain with the knowledge that it may fall apart. Then add the pumpkin and a cup of water, keep the heat up so it simmers along for about 5 minutes, and then add diced zucchini and cauliflower, and pour in a can of coconut cream plus a can of water. Bring to boil, then turn down to the lowest heat and let it burble for at least 15 minutes. Stir to make sure nothing sticks to the bottom, and when the pumpkin is soft but not disintegrating, add in any greens and cook for a couple more minutes.

Serve with basmati or jasmine rice.

[ironed_orchid]

In Australia, pumpkins are mostly (but not exclusively) used to make savoury dishes, so you might like to browse through some of the butternut recipes here and here.

[lilacsigil]

I've only ever once eaten squash as a sweet dish, and that was pumpkin pie from an American friend!

I make a soup with it most often:

Cut squash in half and roast, cut side up, in oven for about an hour until the flesh is fragrant and soft. Scoop out flesh and discard skin and seeds.

Fry onions or leek in olive oil until soft (and garlic cloves if using), then add pumpkin and any chopped vegies you have on hand (I usually add carrot, parsnip and celery, sometimes zucchini or roast capsicum) plus about helf the weight of the pumpkin in roughly chopped potatoes.

You can also add about half a cup (dry) of yellow split peas or red lentils if you like - soak overnight or boil them to slightly soft consistency before adding. This is optional but adds a nice texture and some protein.

Add a bouquet of herbs tied with string (I usually use sage, rosemary and thyme but anything that goes with pumpkin is fine) and enough water to just cover everything.

Simmer until potato is soft, about 90 minutes. Remove herb bouquet, blend soup to desired consistency, eat with sour cream or plain yoghurt. Freezes beautifully.

[swan_tower]

I was about to suggest a Japanese dish I make with kabocha, when I remembered that the other major ingredient (and source of much of the savoriness) is bacon. If I'm wrong in my presumption that you don't eat bacon and also this sounds appealing to you, let me know and I'll share the recipe.

[rachelmanija]

I LOVE bacon. Please provide the recipe.

I don't follow kosher laws, even to the minimum of not eating pork.

[torachan]

I like kabocha in Japanese curry, so I think butternut squash would work, too. Also tempura.

Not Asian, but Italian-esque

[dantesspirit]

Cut 'em in half, remove the seeds, roast them.

Then scoop out the flesh, mix with salt, pepper, flour, eggs and make into pasta.}:P

Or, leave out the flour, add ricotta cheese and use it as a filling for ravioli.

A brown butter (butter heated until the milk solids start to brown) and sage sauce is yummy on them.

[helenraven]

My favourite is to cube it and roast it with chopped rosemary, and then use the cubes in a risotto. The recipe is here, under Main Dishes.

[oyceter]

This is probably for After the Plague (whenever that is), but I looooove pumpkin stir fried with salted egg yolks, and I'm pretty sure it would be fine with butternut squash. This recipe looks pretty close to how I try to make it: https://allasiarecipes.com/recipe/pumpkin-salted-egg-yolk/

This one looks like more effort but sounds delicious: https://eatwhattonight.com/2016/04/crispy-salted-egg-yolk-pumpkin/

I guess if you were really ambitious you could try to make your own salted eggs? https://www.kawalingpinoy.com/salted-eggs/ I have never tried making them, but now I'm sort of tempted.

...Although hopefully by the time they would be done brining, you will have had the chance to just go buy them in an Asian supermarket!

[rachelmanija]

Although making salted eggs the traditional way sounds like an interesting project and the resulting eggs are said to be better in taste and texture, I don’t think I’d be messing around with anthills anytime soon.

LOL.

Hmm. I'm tempted to try making salted eggs myself, but all things considered I probably will end up waiting till I can buy them at the market. Though if this goes on for long enough I will either go to a market anyway, or get desperate enough to try making them.

[holyschist]

I had a soup once with squash and fresh ginger and I think carrot, but it would probably be more trouble than it's worth without a pureeing instrument. I did think the ginger went really well with the squash, though! (I am also not a huge fan of squash.)

[el_staplador]

My favourite squash recipe is a slow-cooked pasta sauce, which needs a blender (though I suppose you could mash it through a sieve if you were feeling really keen). Otherwise, the following goulash is one that I make pretty much every squash season:

1 tsp sunflower oil (or whatever you normally use for frying; nothing too strong, though)
1 onion, chopped.
1 red (bell) pepper, chunked.
1 clove garlic, crushed.
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp caraway seeds
375g pumpkin or squash, thickly sliced, peeled and de-seeded.
1 large carrot, thick sliced,
75g red lentils, rinsed.
450ml stock (vegetable if you're vegetarian, of course; otherwise chicken would also work)
4 tsp tomato puree
salt and pepper to taste
plain yoghurt to finish.

Preheat oven to 180º C.

Heat oil, brown onions (roughly 5 mins). Add red pepper, garlic, paprika and caraway seeds. Stir in and fry for 1 min.

Add everything else bar the yoghurt, and bring to the boil. Cover and cook in the oven for about an hour.

To serve, top bowls of goulash with yoghurt and sprinkle on extra caraway seeds and paprika. Serve with rice, mashed potato, crusty bread, any sort of starch, really.