Heat up the grill and grab the spaghetti squash because this dish is a delicious way to serve up a healthy Fall favorite. Served with a veggie-packed Bolognese sauce, this grilled spaghetti squash recipe is one the whole family can feel good about.
Cooking spaghetti squash on the grill is a super-easy way to cook down this hard vegetable and get it to be the stringy pasta replacement we want. Not only that, but it helps to add in a little more flavor (or at least I like to think so).
Grilling spaghetti squash also takes about half the time that it would if you were to bake it in the oven but without heating up the house. Sounds perfect, right? But wait, it gets even better!
Not only that, but the sauce can also be cooked on the grill, so if desired, you can cook the entire meal outside in about 30-40 minutes from start to finish.
Served alongside this easy grilled spaghetti squash is a homemade bolognese sauce packed with veggies and delicious flavor.
Why This Recipe Works
- Cook indoors and outside. You could make the sauce inside and let it simmer as you cook the squash outside. The choice is yours.
- Made from scratch. From the sauce to the spaghetti "noodles," this recipe is completely homemade and packed with a great number of veggies.
- Perfect for summer. Too hot to cook inside? Make the sauce and squash outside on the grill. Enjoy a lighter meal without warming up the house.
🥘 Ingredients
For the grilled spaghetti squash, you will need:
Spaghetti squash- you will need a medium-sized spaghetti squash. They may look small, but they contain a lot of squash inside, perfect for multiple servings or a whole family.
Olive oil- This will help to make the squash cook more evenly.
Salt & pepper- Added to taste.
For the bolognese sauce, you will need:
Olive Oil- Used to cook the veggies until flavorful and tender.
Mirepoix- This is a combination of celery, carrots, and onion. It creates a flavorful base in many recipes and works well to add hidden veggies to this sauce.
Ground Beef- You can use any ground meat, but this dish is known for being a meatier sauce, so make sure there's plenty.
Italian Seasoning- For flavor.
Crushed Tomatoes- For the sauce base.
Minced Garlic- You can use jarred minced garlic or fresh garlic.
Fresh Parsley-For added flavor.
Salt and Pepper- Adding salt and pepper will help to season the sauce to your tastes.
Parmesan Cheese- This is an optional ingredient to be used when serving the sauce on your pasta.
For specific quantities, see the recipe card below.
🍽 Equipment Needed
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- 12-inch Cast Iron Skillet or large saucepot
- Measuring Cups
- Pastry Brush
- Measuring Spoons
- Grill
- Food Processor (is helpful but can be made without)
🔪 Instructions
Check out how to make grilled spaghetti squash with bolognese sauce with these simple step-by-step instructions:
To grill the spaghetti squash:
Preheat your grill to medium heat (350 degrees F).
Slice open your spaghetti squash so that it is opened vertically and now two oval shapes. Both sides should have a stem piece at the top.
Remove the seeds and strands from inside of the squash and then discard those pieces.
Brush the inside of the squash with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Frill for about 10 minutes, skin side down over indirect heat (meaning not over the flame but still on the main rack). Then flip over and cook for another 10-15 minutes so that they are cut side down. Cook until the insides can easily be separated by a fork.
Remove from heat, allow to cool 5 minutes before shredding with a fork and serving with sauce.
To make the bolognese sauce:
Heat the olive oil in a large pan or in a 12 inch cast iron skillet over medium heat until sizzling.
Add in the onion, carrot, and celery and cook for about 5-8 minutes or until soft.
Stir in the garlic and cook for another 30 seconds until fragrant.
Add in the ground beef and cook until browned, breaking up the meat chunks as you go. This should take about 10 minutes.
Stir in the Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.
Add in the crushed tomatoes and chopped parsley. Bring to a boil.
Reduce the heat to low and allow to simmer for at least 15 minutes, or up to an hour for deeper flavor.
Serve over your cooked squash and top with parmesan cheese if desired.
🍴 Recipe Tips
If desired you can scale the recipe down in half.
You can add in more or remove some of the veggies inside of the sauce. I personally like knowing that I'm getting my kids to eat more veggies so I usually add in a little more (sometimes, I'll toss in some spinach with the parsley).
If you want more meat in your sauce I recommend adding in 1 pound of ground pork when you cook the ground beef. This will help to give a nicer flavor and a much more meaty texture.
The longer the sauce simmers, the more time the flavor has to develop and the less "tomato-y" the sauce will taste. 15 minutes is good, but an hour is great.
💭 FAQs
Technically speaking the squash is a fruit because it's packed with seeds and meets the standards to be scientifically classified as a fruit. However, we consider it a vegetable (similar to avocados and cucumbers in that sense). It's a winter vegetable that can be cooked up and served in many different ways.
Eating this squash instead of starchy pasta is a great way to avoid a lot of carbs while taking in added nutrition. For example, one serving of squash has about 7 times fewer carbs than standard pasta.
You can keep your leftover squash in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. For best tasting results, I recommend eating within 3 or 4 days. Just reheat and eat with pasta sauce, cheese, or simple butter and herbs.
More great dinner recipes to check out soon
- Easy Chicken Pot Pie
- Creamy Roasted Garlic and Tomato Pasta
- Easy Hashbrown Casserole
- Creamy Tilapia and Spinach with Cherry Tomatoes
📖 Recipe
Grilled Spaghetti Squash with Bolognese Sauce
Equipment
- 12-inch Cast Iron Skillet or large saucepot
- Food Processor (is helpful but can be made without)
Ingredients
For the grilled spaghetti squash:
- 2 Medium Spaghetti Squash ($2.36)
- 2-4 Tablespoons Olive Oil ($0.39)
- Salt & Pepper ($0.10)
For the bolognese sauce:
- 3 Tablespoons Olive Oil ($0.39)
- 1 Large Onion, finely chopped (1 cup) ($0.70)
- 1 pound Ground Beef ($3.37)
- 1 Tablespoon Italian Seasoning ($0.30)
- 28 ounces Crushed Tomatoes ($0.87)
- 2 cloves Garlic, chopped ($0.10)
- 2 Carrot, chopped (½ cup) ($0.28)
- 2 Celery, chopped (½ cup) ($0.24)
- ¼ cup Fresh Parsley, chopped ($0.20)
- Salt and Pepper to taste ($0.10)
- Parmesan Cheese for serving *optional
Instructions
To grill the spaghetti squash:
- Preheat your grill to medium heat (350 degrees F).
- Slice open your spaghetti squash so that it is opened vertically and now two oval shapes. Both sides should have a stem piece at the top.
- Remove the seeds and strands from inside of the squash and then discard those pieces.
- Brush the inside of the squash with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Frill for about 10 minutes, skin side down over indirect heat (meaning not over the flame but still on the main rack). Then flip over and cook for another 10-15 minutes so that they are cut side down. Cook until the insides can easily be separated by a fork.
- Remove from heat, allow to cool 5 minutes before shredding with a fork and serving with sauce.
To make the bolognese sauce:
- Heat the olive oil in a large pan or in a 12 inch cast iron skillet over medium heat until sizzling.
- Add in the onion, carrot, and celery and cook for about 5-8 minutes or until soft.
- Stir in the garlic and cook for another 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Add in the ground beef and cook until browned, breaking up the meat chunks as you go. This should take about 10 minutes.
- Stir in the Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.
- Add in the crushed tomatoes and chopped parsley. Bring to a boil.
- Reduce the heat to low and allow to simmer for at least 15 minutes, or up to an hour for deeper flavor.
- Serve over your cooked squash and top with parmesan cheese if desired.
Notes
Recipe Tips
- If desired you can scale the recipe down in half. You can add in more or remove some of the veggies inside of the sauce. I personally like knowing that I'm getting my kids to eat more veggies so I usually add in a little more (sometimes I'll toss in some spinach with the parsley).
- If you want more meat in your sauce I recommend adding in 1 pound of ground pork when you cook the ground beef. This will help to give a nicer flavor and a much more meaty texture.
- The longer the sauce simmers, the more time the flavor has to develop and the less "tomato-y" the sauce will taste. 15 minutes is good, but an hour is great.
Storage
- You can keep your leftover squash in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. For best tasting results I recommend eating within 3 or 4 days. Just reheat and eat with pasta sauce, cheese, or simple butter and herbs.
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