Spaghetti Squash with Paleo Meat Sauce
I made some spaghetti squash and it turned out SO good and super filling. One batch could last you the entire week! Chicken or turkey can be substituted for the ground beef. Try adding Italian herbs, like parsley, oregano, and fennel!
I made some spaghetti squash and it turned out SO good and super filling. One batch could last you the entire week! Chicken or turkey can be substituted for the ground beef. Try adding Italian herbs, like parsley, oregano, and fennel!
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 spaghetti squash halved lengthwise and seeded
- 1 1/2 pounds ground beef
- 1 green bell pepper chopped
- 1 red bell pepper chopped
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 cup sliced mushrooms
- 1 white onion diced
- 1 zucchini diced
- 1 (14.5 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
- 1 (8 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil or to taste
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh oregano or to taste
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh thyme or to taste
- 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes or to taste
- 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil divided
- Carbohydrate 11.7679779333252 g
- Cholesterol 57.833027175 mg
- Fat 28.7690112587515 g
- Fiber 0.939312789931777 g
- Protein 17.2069948093804 g
- Saturated Fat 7.25583626070941 g
- Serving Size 1 1 serving (280g)
- Sodium 79.7221941681292 mg
- Sugar 10.8286651433934 g
- Trans Fat 2.50249787919271 g
- Calories 370 calories
Step-by-step
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
- Pour water into a baking dish. Place squash halves with cut sides down in baking dish; roast for until tender, 30 to 40 minutes.
- While squash is baking, cook and stir ground beef and onions in a skillet over medium-high heat until the beef is crumbly, evenly browned, and no longer pink. Drain and discard any excess grease. Set beef aside.
- Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a skillet over medium heat; cook and stir mushrooms, zucchini, green and red bell peppers, both amounts of crushed tomatoes, basil, oregano and thyme. Simmer over medium heat until vegetables are cooked through and tender, about 10 minutes. Add the ground beef and onions; stir to combine. Simmer on low heat, stirring occasionally, while you finish preparing spaghetti squash.
- Scrape the inside of hot spaghetti squash halves with a fork to shred the squash into strands; divide onto 8 plates. Drizzle each serving of spaghetti squash with 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil and top each serving with a generous amount of meat sauce.
Ground beef acts as the structural anchor for this sauce, providing a savory foundation that absorbs the acidity of crushed tomatoes and the aromatic notes of fresh basil, oregano, and thyme. Roasting the squash cut-side down in a baking dish with one-quarter cup of water traps steam, softening the thick flesh efficiently before shredding.
- Substitute ground chicken or turkey at a one-to-one ratio for the beef, keeping in mind that leaner poultry requires careful monitoring to prevent dryness during the initial browning phase.
- Drain excess grease thoroughly after browning the meat so excess fats do not dilute the crushed tomato simmer or alter the final sauce viscosity.
- Scale quantities proportionally when adjusting yields, but maintain the surface area of the skillet to ensure vegetables sweat rather than steam.
- Shred the hot squash immediately using a fork once tender, pulling parallel to the exterior rind to form long, distinct strands.
Proper moisture management separates a rich sauce from a watery one during the ten-minute vegetable simmer. Drizzling olive oil over the shredded strands adds back necessary lipids absent from the lean squash.
