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Winter Squash

Celebrate winter with the warm aroma and rich flavor of these nutritional powerhouses.

By Cary Neff

December 2006

Food Basics
Nutritional Know-How
Kitchen Basics
Eat Up!

We're used to seeing colorful winter squash – pumpkin, butternut, acorn – resting on front steps and adorning kitchen tabletops. But how in the world do you eat these hard-shelled vegetables? Actually, they're quite simple to prepare. Winter is the perfect time to fill your home with their comforting aromas – and to indulge your appetite with their rich, satisfying flavors.

Food Basics
Related to both the melon and the cucumber, winter squash come in all different shapes, sizes, flavors and varieties – from creamy and sweet delicata squash to spaghetti squash, which separates into long strands when cooked. The finely grained texture of winter squash, however, is common to all varieties. Known as "good keepers," they have hard, protective shells that allow them to be stored for long periods (between one week and six months).

Nutritional Know-How
Winter squash are chock-full of nutritious goodness. Rich in beta-carotene and other carotenoids – which are converted to vitamin A in the liver and intestinal walls – they're also a very good source of dietary fiber, potassium, vitamin C and manganese. Vitamin C has powerful antioxidant properties, helps minimize the risk of heart disease, and helps fight certain types of cancer cells in the body, according to recent research by the National Institutes of Health. Potassium helps the kidneys function normally and supports proper blood pressure. Fiber helps reduce the risk of colon cancer and lowers high cholesterol levels. Manganese is an essential trace mineral that helps produce certain enzymes. Winter squash also contain folate, omega-3 fatty acids, copper, and vitamins B1, B3, and B6, and they have powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Squash is a great source of healthy carbs.

Kitchen Basics

• Choose a squash that has a dull, deep-colored rind, is heavy for its size, and is free of moldy or soft spots.
• Store whole in a cool, dry place until ready for cooking (50 to 60 degrees F is ideal).
• To prepare winter squash for cooking, wash it first, then cut it in half lengthwise and remove the seeds with a spoon or ice cream scoop. Cutting through the thick skin of a winter squash can be tricky, but it can be softened by first baking it for 20 minutes. Use a heavy knife, such as a cleaver or chef's knife. Holding the squash near the bottom (but not directly under the path of your knife) use your free hand to plunge the tip of the knife into the squash and push down to cut open as if pulling down on a lever. Repeat until you've cut all the way through.

Eat Up!
Winter squash can be baked, steamed, simmered, stewed, mashed and puréed. Try seasoning with honey, real maple syrup, tamari or soy, ginger, nutmeg, curry, or cinnamon. All complement winter squash well.

• For baked squash, put quarters or halves in the oven at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes or until soft. Acorn, kabocha, sweet dumpling or turban squash work best for roasting.
• To steam, place squash in steamer basket over 2 inches of boiling water; cover and cook until it can be easily pierced with a skewer or knife. Peeled cubes take about 15 minutes to steam. Halved squash, placed skin side up, takes about 30 minutes.
• Use a blender to purée cooked winter squash. Butternut, buttercup, banana and delicata squash are best for purées (and creamy soups) because of their sweet and nutty flavors.
• To add texture and flavor to a stir-fry, thinly slice raw squash and then sauté or stir-fry with other vegetables for about 2 minutes.
• Drizzle apple juice over thin rings of acorn squash before baking for a sweet, aromatic glaze.

Chef Cary Neff is the president of the consulting firm Culinary Innovations and the author of The New York Times' bestseller Conscious Cuisine (Sourcebooks, 2002).