What can you cook squash? How to cook squash. Squash in cooking

Dishes made from squash are a storehouse of vitamins and microelements. Vegetables surprise with their original taste, interesting “plate” shape, and are perfect for a diet menu due to their low calorie content. It is important to eat only young, not overripe fruits, because they retain all their beneficial properties. But on frosty days you can treat yourself to vegetable delicacies.

We will look at what dishes can be prepared from squash in this article, and to make the task easier for you, we offer cooking options step by step and with photos.

Stuffed squash

A very juicy, simple, appetizing dish made from available ingredients. Your household will be delighted with the stretchy cheese and aromatic filling. Such beautiful “sunny pots” with a delicious surprise can be served even on a holiday.

Product composition:

• Russian cheese – 250 g;
• Tomatoes and onions – 150 g each;
• Chicken breast – 400 g;
• Small squash - 4 pieces;
• Parsley – 5 sprigs;
• Carrots – 100 g;
• Garlic – 3-4 cloves;
• Salt, pepper - to taste;
• Vegetable oil – 50 ml.

How to cook stuffed squash:

1. Wash the fruits and cut off the top with a knife. The upper cut will replace the lid. Using a small spoon, scoop out the soft inner part to create hollow vegetable baking molds. We throw away the pulp with seeds, leaving only the one that was collected from the walls. You don't have to use it - it's a matter of taste;
2. Grind the garlic, thoroughly rub it on the inside of each “pot”;
3. Place carrots and onions cut into small cubes into the oil heated in a frying pan. Fry over medium heat until golden brown, stir;
4. Add finely chopped chicken to the vegetables and do not turn off the heat. Fry everything together until the chicken pieces turn white and set (four minutes). Let the vegetables and meat cool slightly;
5. Grind the squash pulp yourself and chop the greens. Cut the cheese (200 g) and tomatoes into cubes. Remove seeds and juice from tomatoes (excess moisture is not needed);
6. Transfer the ingredients into the frying pan along with the filling. Pepper, salt, mix, add garlic if desired;
7. Fill the “pots” with aromatic filling, close the lid, pack in food foil, place in a baking container;
8. Bake in an oven preheated to 200 degrees for about 35 minutes;
9. We take out the delicious dish, remove the lids, sprinkle the top with the remaining (50 g) cheese, and bake for another 10 minutes.

Serve hot with any sauce.

Stuffed fruits can be prepared with minced beef, turkey, pork and use different types of fillings, which include mushrooms, minced meat, various vegetables, and rice.

Squash fritters

What can you cook from squash very quickly? Of course, delicious pancakes. They turn out so fragrant and tender that they are eaten by household members in an instant.

List of ingredients:

• Garlic – 3 cloves;
• Small young “plates” - 3 pieces;
• Flour - half a glass;
• Large onion;
• 2 eggs;
• A bunch of fresh dill;
• Vegetable oil for frying;
• Salt, ground black pepper - to taste.

Cooking diagram:

1. Wash the pumpkins and grate them on a coarse grater. It is better not to use a blender, because there will be a lot of excess liquid;
2. Wash the dill, dry it, chop it;
3. Cut the washed, peeled garlic and onion;
4. Place all the ingredients in a deep bowl (squeeze out the squash first);
5. Add sifted flour, eggs, pepper, and salt. Mix thoroughly until smooth;
6. Heat the butter in a frying pan, spoon the mixture out like on pancakes. Fry on both sides until golden brown.

Serve with sour cream.

Vegetable stew

This wonderful dish can be prepared for dinner, because it is considered light and healthy, great for fasting days.

Required components:

• Carrots and onions - one piece each;
• Garlic – 3 cloves;
• Tomatoes – 2 pieces;
• Young squash – 300 g;
• Parsley and spinach - one bunch each;
• Salt, ground black pepper - to taste;
• Vegetable oil.

Step by step recipe:

1. Peel the onions and carrots, wash them, cut them into small cubes;
2. Cut the washed tomatoes and pumpkins into medium pieces;
3. Fry the onion in a frying pan in heated oil until golden;
4. Add tomatoes, stir, simmer for 3-4 minutes (tomatoes can be replaced with tomato paste or juice);
5. Add squash pieces and carrots, mix, pepper and add salt. If there is not enough liquid, add a little hot water. Close the lid and simmer for about 25 minutes;
6. Finely chop the washed, fresh herbs, pass the garlic through a press, sprinkle them over the stew, stir, then simmer for 2 minutes on a low flame.

The finished dish is served cold as a main course, or as a side dish for fish, meat, and sausages.

Squash “pots” with vegetables in a slow cooker

Simple squash dishes can be easily prepared in a “smart device”. This is just one of them - a very unusual and colorful dish.

Products:

• One tomato, one yellow bell pepper, one onion;
• 50 g hard cheese;
• 2 young “pumpkins”;
• Salt, pepper mixture - to taste;
• 2 cloves of garlic;
• 3 sprigs of dill and parsley;
• 8 tablespoons vegetable oil.

Cooking instructions in a multicooker:

1. Wash all the greens and vegetables, remove the seeds from the bell pepper, peel the onions and garlic cloves;
2. Chop the onion and pepper with a sharp knife, chop the tomato;
3. Pour 4 large tablespoons of oil into a multicooker bowl, add vegetables, add salt;
4. Fry the contents of the multi-pan in the “Frying” mode. 18 minutes (standard time) is optimal;
5. In the middle of the process, add chopped herbs and garlic, passed through a garlic press, to the vegetable mixture. Season, mix;
6. Place the prepared vegetable filling in a colander to remove excess oil;
7. Cut off the top part of the “plates”, scrape out the pulp with a spoon, fill with aromatic filling;
8. Pour about 4 large spoons of butter into the multi-pan, put in the edible pots, and set the device to the “Stew” mode. Stuffed fruits will bake for 50 minutes;
9. Grate the cheese, which we sprinkle on the squash cups 5 minutes before the end of cooking.

Serve with mayonnaise or sauce.

Squash in the oven

Dishes made from squash in the oven are light, pleasant, with a delicate taste. This option is a complete confirmation of this.

Ingredients:

• 400 g beef;
• 100 g butter;
• 2 onions;
• 2 cloves of garlic;
• 3 squash;
• 100 ml sour cream;
• Ground pepper, salt - to taste.

Manufacturing Description:

1. Remove the top of the fruit, remove the contents with a spoon, coat the inside with chopped garlic;
2. Grind the meat in a meat grinder, finely chop the onion, fry in a frying pan with melted butter (80 g), stirring, for 20 minutes;
3. Season with pepper, salt, remove from the flame, add sour cream;
4. Stuff the pots, grease the outside with the remaining butter, cover with the cut top, and place on a baking sheet;
5. Bake the miracle vegetables for about an hour at 200 degrees.

You can add carrots and tomatoes to the filling.

Squash salad

Very suitable for a wonderful Lenten dinner.

Components:

• Bell pepper and carrots – 500 g each;
• Garlic – 4 cloves;
• Patissonchiki – 700 g;
• Onion – 400 g;
• Curry, paprika, salt, parsley, vegetable oil - to taste;
• Spices for carrots in Korean - a large spoon.

Creating a dish at home:

1. We peel the washed “plates” and grate them using a Korean carrot grater. Place in a cauldron with heated oil, fry, add spices for Korean carrots;
2. Grate the carrots, put them in a cauldron, stir, fry until soft;
3. Peel the pepper, cut each pepper in half, and cut into half rings. Chop the onion into thin half rings, put the vegetables in the cauldron;
4. 5 minutes before readiness, add spices, chopped garlic, salt, mix everything;
5. Before cooking, sprinkle with chopped herbs.
6. Serve the salad immediately or when it has cooled down.

This is not a complete list of dishes that are made in the summer. And for the winter season, you can prepare, for example, pickled squash, which will diversify your menu.

Video: Recipe for squash pancakes

Not everyone knows how to cook squash for the winter, fry it in a frying pan or bake it in the oven. Moreover, not everyone knows that such a vegetable even exists. It should be noted that unofficially the squash has a name that sounds like “plate pumpkin”. And this is not without reason. After all, this vegetable is one of the varieties of pumpkin.

As a rule, squash is small in size and has curly edges. They can be yellow, white and green. Often the diameter of squash reaches 10-15 centimeters. It should be noted that such a vegetable can be prepared in completely different ways. In this article you will find the most popular and simple recipes for dishes in which freshly picked squash is directly involved.

How to cook squash: recipes for fried vegetables

As mentioned above, such a vegetable can not only be stewed or baked, but also fried in a frying pan. For this we need:

• fresh small squash - 2 pcs.;
• sunflower oil (for frying) - about 200 ml;
• wheat flour (for coating the product) - 2 pcs.;
• fine sea salt, allspice black - add to taste;
• rich sour cream - serve with the finished dish.

Preparing Ingredients

Before cooking squash in a frying pan, they should be thoroughly processed. To do this, vegetables must be washed, cut into slices up to 1 centimeter thick, and then salted, peppered and rolled in wheat flour.

Heat treatment

How to cook fried squash? To do this, take a regular frying pan, pour a sufficient amount of oil into it, and then heat it over high heat. After a slight smoke comes from the vegetable fat, you need to put the squash slices into the bowl and fry them on both sides until a reddish crust appears. In order for vegetables to lose excessive amounts of sunflower oil, after heat treatment it is recommended to place them on a paper napkin and leave them there for several minutes.

Correct serving to the table

What can you cook from squash fried in a frying pan? As a rule, browned plates are served along with rich sour cream. However, experienced chefs claim that such vegetables make good snacks. To do this, you need to mix a few tablespoons of mayonnaise with grated cheese and garlic, and then place the resulting mass in a fried squash and secure the roll with a skewer. It is advisable to serve this aromatic and satisfying appetizer cold to the holiday table.

We prepare a tasty and satisfying dish “Senior squash”

Now you know how to cook squash in a frying pan. However, such a vegetable can not only be fried, but also baked. So, in order to prepare a delicious and beautiful lunch called “Senior Patisson”, we will need:

• young squash - 3 pcs. (for three servings);
• minced beef, pork or mixed - 300 g;
• onions - 2 small heads;
• medium-sized carrots - 2 pcs.;
• medium eggplant - 1 pc.;
• marinated champignons - 100 g;
• sunflower oil - several large spoons;
• hard cheese - 150 g;
• salt, pepper, aromatic spices - add to taste;
• sour cream mayonnaise - a dessert spoon for each squash.

Processing squash

So, before cooking squash in the oven, fresh vegetables should be thoroughly washed. Next, you need to carefully remove the cap from them using a sharp and long knife, and then remove all the pulp with seeds, leaving only dense walls 1.5 centimeters thick.

Preparation of minced meat

How to cook squash so that you can safely serve it at the holiday table? To do this, such vegetables should be stuffed and then baked in the oven.

To prepare delicious minced meat, we decided to use some pork and beef. Although you can only use one type of your favorite meat.

In addition to minced meat, the filling for squash also contains vegetables such as onions, carrots and eggplants. They should be washed well, peeled, and then cut into small cubes and placed in a heated frying pan with sunflower oil. Fry the ingredients until they turn slightly golden. Next, you need to add mixed minced meat, pickled champignons, cut into thin slices, as well as salt, aromatic spices and pepper to the vegetables. The squash filling should be prepared until the moisture has partially evaporated.

Forming the dish and baking it

After the squash has been processed and the filling has been partially prepared, you can safely proceed to the actual formation of the dish. To do this, place the potted vegetables on a baking sheet, and then grease their bottoms with a small amount of sour cream mayonnaise. Next, you need to place the pre-prepared minced meat in the same container of squash. It is recommended to generously grease it again with mayonnaise and sprinkle with grated cheese. Finally, the squash pots should be covered with a lid and placed in the oven for 60 minutes.

How to properly present it to the dinner table?

Now you know how to deliciously cook squash in the oven. But how to serve them to the festive table? To do this, baked vegetables must be carefully removed from the oven, transferred to flat plates or saucers, and then presented to guests directly, covered. In addition to this dish, it is recommended to serve fresh herbs and vegetable salad. Bon appetit!

How to cook squash for the winter?

Surprisingly, such vegetables can not only be fried, stewed or baked, but also stored for the winter.

Salted squash is a very tasty appetizer that will decorate any dinner table. To prepare this preparation, it is recommended to use only the smallest vegetables. Before canning, they should be washed thoroughly, paying special attention to the ribbed edges.

It is not necessary to remove the skin from young squash, as it is tender and soft. However, it is still recommended to cut the stalks, making circles with a diameter of about two centimeters. Before placing squash in sterilized jars, they must be blanched in boiling water for 5-7 minutes. Next, the vegetables must be immersed in cold water, to which it is advisable to add a few ice cubes.

So, before preparing squash for the winter in a three-liter jar, we should prepare:

Cooking process

After blanching the vegetables and sterilizing the jars, you need to place all the spices, including citric acid, and cucumbers on the bottom of the glass container. Next, you should fill the container halfway with squash, and then place sweet peppers, garlic cloves, cherry and currant leaves on them. Place the other half of the vegetables and chopped tomatoes on top. After this, you need to boil drinking water and fill the jar with it. Having kept the brine in this state, it should be poured back into the pan and brought to a boil. Finally, you need to fill the jar with aromatic water in the same way and quickly roll it up with sterilized lids.

After all these steps, the canned squash should be carefully turned upside down and covered with a thick towel. It is advisable to keep the jars in this state for exactly one day, and then put them in a cool place. They can be consumed only after 1.5-2 months.

Vegetable stew with squash

How to cook squash with meat? For this we need:

• potatoes - 2 tubers;
• chicken breasts - 400 g;
• squash - 1 piece;
• tomatoes - 2 pcs.;
• bulbs - 2 pcs.;
• carrots - 2 pcs.;
• eggplant - 1 pc.;
• cucumbers - 2 pcs.;
• sour cream mayonnaise - 2 large spoons;
• bay leaves, salt, pepper and spices - add to taste.

Preparing Ingredients

Before preparing squash with meat, you should process all the vegetables. They need to be washed thoroughly, peeled and peeled (if necessary), and then cut into large cubes. You also need to cut the skin off the chicken breasts, remove the bones and chop them into small pieces.

Forming the dish and heat treatment

To prepare such a hearty lunch, you should take a large pan, place chicken breasts on its bottom, and then place carrots, onions, eggplants, potatoes, cucumbers, squash and tomatoes one by one. After this, all ingredients must be seasoned with spices, filled with drinking water and sour cream mayonnaise added. After closing the lid, wait for the broth to boil, then turn the heat to minimum and simmer for one hour.

Serving

Now you know how to cook squash. Recipes using this vegetable include completely different ingredients and can be made both on the stove and in the oven. Moreover, squash can be salted and even pickled.

Vegetable stew made with embossed pumpkin should be served hot. In addition to it, it is advisable to present fresh white bread, herbs, sour cream or tomato paste. Bon appetit!

Almost siblings, zucchini, zucchini, and squash are identical in chemical composition. Which affects their taste. Like all pumpkin plants, to which they belong, they all have a good set of vitamins and microelements: C, B1, B2, B3, B6, B9, PP, phosphorus, potassium, calcium. Plus they have an excellent perk in their arsenal: the ability to rid the body of excess moisture. Well, the low calorie content, which for squash is only 18 units, turns this product into an ideal ingredient for connoisseurs of a slim figure and a healthy lifestyle. By the way, the pumpkin vegetables listed above also remove cholesterol and salts from the body.

Most often, squash is found in recipes with these five products:

With a delicate, not yet roughened skin, squash can be added to a dish without peeling. But you need to wash it, even if it was picked from your personal garden. It is good as separate side dishes, suitable for meat and chicken. And also as an additional ingredient in a number of dishes: soups, casseroles, goulash, stews.

Question: if it tastes indistinguishable from its closest relatives, what then makes it unique? The answer is quite simple: in shape!

The bowl-shaped shape of the squash is ideal for stuffing. You don’t even need to cut it for this, as is the case with zucchini. Just cut off the top and scrape out the inside as you do with a pumpkin. You can add whatever you want inside: minced meat or chicken, cereals, legumes, mushrooms. Small vegetable sizes are suitable for portioned serving, and large ones - for general serving.

Also, squash contains more tender pulp, free from seeds, than zucchini. This makes it the best candidate for pickling and marinades - that is, for homemade preparations. Small, almost youthful squash look incredibly beautiful in 3-liter jars surrounded by cherry tomatoes and pickles.