Roasted Spaghetti Squash with Beef Meat Sauce
Spaghetti squash with beef meat sauce gives a familiar spaghetti-style dinner a vegetable base.
Ingredients
- 1 large spaghetti squash about 3 pounds whole; nutrition assumes 1 1/2 pounds edible flesh
- 1 1/2 lb 93% lean ground beef raw
- 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes all contents
- 1 medium onion finely diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 tbsp olive oil divided
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp table salt divided
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 oz Parmesan finely grated
Instructions
- Heat oven to 400°F. Stabilize squash on a towel and carefully halve lengthwise with a sturdy knife. Scoop out seeds. Rub cut flesh with 1 teaspoon oil and half the salt. Place cut-side down on a rimmed pan.
- Roast 35–50 minutes until a fork can pull out strands, checking early if squash is small. Let stand until safe to handle. Scrape flesh into a bowl, leaving the shells; let excess steam escape.
- While squash roasts, heat remaining oil in a deep skillet over medium-high heat. Cook beef and onion 8–10 minutes, breaking meat into small pieces and checking beef reaches 160°F. Retain juices.
- Stir in garlic, tomato paste, oregano and pepper for 1 minute. Add tomatoes and remaining salt. Simmer uncovered 20–25 minutes, stirring, until the sauce is thick enough to sit on the strands.
- Divide all squash and meat sauce into four equal portions and sprinkle each with one-quarter of the Parmesan. Do not stir the whole batch together far ahead of serving, as squash releases moisture.
Notes
One serving is one of 4 equal portions of the complete recipe, including all listed sides, sauces and toppings. Extra serving suggestions are not included. Nutrition is estimated and changes with brands, portions and substitutions.