Sugar's Calabazitas - Squash
The great thing about this dish is that you can add whatever you like to it, like ground beef, potatoes, any other veggies...you can add a can of small tomato sauce instead of the fresh or diced tomatoes.... I like it simple and not so much work or ingredients - but again, awesome thing about these type of recipes is that you can make it your own...smile Enjoy I love to make this as a meal, and so easy and so fulfilling, plus it is good for you.
The great thing about this dish is that you can add whatever you like to it, like ground beef, potatoes, any other veggies...you can add a can of small tomato sauce instead of the fresh or diced tomatoes.... I like it simple and not so much work or ingredients - but again, awesome thing about these type of recipes is that you can make it your own...smile Enjoy I love to make this as a meal, and so easy and so fulfilling, plus it is good for you.
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 yellow squash
- 2 green squash
- 1 can diced seasoned tomatoes or fresh diced tomatoes
- 1/2 red onion
- dash garlic or 1 garlic clove
- pinch each pepper and salt
- shredded cheese as much as you desire, i use enough to cover lightly
- optional veggies 1/2 cup fresh green beans, lean ground beef, olives, potatoes
- Carbohydrate 141.07685 g
- Cholesterol 0 mg
- Fat 9.33520000289468 g
- Fiber 25.9615000540018 g
- Protein 18.8352 g
- Saturated Fat 1.4674000003997 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Recipe (1908g)
- Sodium 74.9750000000579 mg
- Sugar 115.115349945998 g
- Trans Fat 0.933990000078389 g
- Calories 632 calories
Step-by-step
- In a skillet pour olive oil till hot about 5 minutes(depending on stove top)
- Add diced onions so that the oil can get the flavor of the released onions.
- Add the garlic, salt and pepper,and any other veggies you have
- Place diced squashed in skillet with tomato sauce or diced tomatoes.
- Spread the shredded cheese all over and enjoy!
Vibrant green and yellow squash pieces soften gently within a bubbling acidic tomato base, bound together by threads of melted cheese and pungent aromatics. Cooking summer squash successfully requires careful attention to moisture management and heat control. Water content in zucchini and yellow squash is exceptionally high, which presents distinct challenges during sautéing. Introducing onions to the hot oil first allows sulfur compounds to break down and sweeten, infusing the fat before high-moisture vegetables enter the pan. Dice the squash into uniform pieces measuring roughly three-quarters of an inch to guarantee even heat penetration. Searing the exterior lightly while keeping the interior tender depends on maintaining medium-high heat without overcrowding the cooking surface.
Judging Doneness and Protecting Texture
Visual cues dictate when to pull this dish from the heat source. Raw squash has an opaque, rigid interior flesh that turns translucent and yields completely to the gentle pressure of a wooden spoon once cooked. Test a thicker piece of green squash by piercing the center with a paring knife; no mechanical resistance should be felt upon entry. Overcooking destroys the cellular walls of summer squash completely, releasing trapped water and resulting in a watery, mushy puddle instead of distinct tender vegetables. Incorporating canned diced tomatoes versus fresh tomatoes alters the residual liquid volume significantly, requiring an extra two to three minutes of uncovered simmering to reduce excess moisture if using canned varieties. Cheese applied at the very end melts rapidly under residual heat without separating its fats into an oily film.
- Watery consistency results from overcrowding the skillet; batch cook the vegetables if scaling the recipe upwards.
- Rubbery squash indicates heat was applied too high before cellular breakdown could occur.
- Bitter flavors usually stem from aged squash rather than improper cooking technique.
