Instant Pot Butternut Squash is an easy, healthy side dish to add to your week. Cook the whole thing without having to peel and dice it.
Making butternut squash in the Instant Pot is a super-easy way to make one of my favorite vegetables. I love to have a starchy vegetable on hand for meal prepping. So either these or Instant Pot sweet potatoes are my go-to for making sure I have healthy options to choose from in my refrigerator.
Butternut squash is loaded with Vitamin A as well as potassium. They have lower carbs than sweet potatoes too.
My favorite way to eat butternut squash is mashed with a dollop of coconut oil or butter and sprinkled with cinnamon. If you want to sweeten them a little bit, a little maple syrup or honey is amazing! I also love it in a bowl like this quinoa bowl too. Or you can even use it to make this fabulous butternut squash soup too.
I did a little experiment with putting that squash right in the pressure cooker instead of cutting it up into pieces. Well, I did have to cut it in half but that was pretty easy.
I don’t know about you, but anytime I can get away with not having to cut a butternut squash I am game. They can be tough to cut sometimes.
Depending on if you go my route and cook the whole butternut squash or if you have diced/cubed pieces, the time will obviously vary. From about 15 minutes for a whole but in half squash down to 3 minutes for one inch diced cubes versions.
Either way, it’s a huge time saver when using cooking butternut squash in a pressure cooker. It the oven, diced butternut takes about half an hour. A whole one can take up to an hour.
How to Make Butternut Squash in an Instant Pot
Wash the squash on the outside.
Place the squash on the counter or a cutting board and slice across the middle. (not lengthwise)
Place the metal rack (that comes with the Instant Pot) into the bottom of the pot. (for cubes, place a stainless steel steamer basket inside instead.
Pour 1 cup of water into the bottom.
Place the butternut squash halves into pot.
Secure the lid and turn the pressure valve to seal.
Set the timer using the manual mode of the Instant Pot and use the + or – sign to set to cook on high pressure for 15 minutes. (if you have cubed the squash, set the timer for just 3 minutes)
Allow pressure to “release naturally” for 10 minutes. (for cubes, quick release all the pressure immediately.)
Carefully release any remaining pressure with a towel over top and remove the lid.
Place cooked squash on a cutting board and let cool for a few minutes.
Slice each half down the middle and scoop out the seeds.
Gently pull the skin off each piece by scraping with the blade of a knife.
Cut into pieces or mash with a fork.
ENJOY!!
If you like butternut squash, check out these other healthy vegetable recipes too:
Parmesan Garlic Spaghetti Squash
Roasted Green Beans with Almonds
More Instant Pot recipes to try:
Instant Pot Butternut Squash
Ingredients
- 2 pound butternut squash
- 1 cup water
Instructions
- Wash the squash on the outside well.
- Place the squash on the counter or a cutting board and slice across the middle. (not lengthwise)
- Place the medal rack (that comes with the Instant Pot) into the bottom of the pot. (for cubes, place a stainless steel steamer basketinside instead.
- Pour 1 cup of water into the bottom.
- Place the butternut squash halves into pot.
- Secure the lid and turn pressure valve to seal.
- Set the timer using the manual mode of the Instant Pot and use the + or – sign to set to cook on high pressure for 15 minutes. (if you have cubed the squash, set the timer for just 3 minutes)
- Allow pressure to “release naturally†for 10 minutes. (for cubes, quick release all the pressure immediately.)
- Carefully release any remaining pressure with a towel over top and remove lid.
- Place cooked squash on a cutting board and let cool for a few minutes.
- Slice each half down the middle and scoop out the seeds.
- Gently pull the skin off each piece by scraping with the blade of a knife.
- Dice into pieces or mash with a fork.
- ENJOY!!
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclosure
Nutritional facts are estimates and are provided as a courtesy to the reader. Please utilize your own brand nutritional values to double check against our estimates. Nutritional values are calculated via a third party. Changing ingredients, amounts or cooking technique will alter the estimated nutritional calculations.
Sharing of this recipe to social media is both encouraged and appreciated. Please share the direct link back to the recipe. Copy/Pasting and/or screenshots of the recipe to any social media is strictly prohibited. Content and photographs are copyright protected
Leave a Reply