Spaghetti Squash Mac And Cheese

This easy recipe for spaghetti squash mac and cheese is the perfect keto side dish for holidays or weeknight dinners. Simply cook your spaghetti squash in the oven or instant pot and mix with cheese, sour cream, top with pork rind crumbs and bake like a casserole. This low carb comfort food dish will keep you from missing pasta and kids love it too!

Living a low carb lifestyle on and off has taught me that you can truly make any version of your favorite food keto or low carb.

Even though there are keto pastas on the market, I love using spaghetti squash in place of pasta to make comfort food dishes including this delicious easy recipe for mac and cheese that requires no cheese sauce.

🍝Ingredients To Make Spaghetti Squash Mac and Cheese

Cooked Spaghetti Squash: I find a decent sized spaghetti squash in the grocery store and usually get about 3-4 cups of cooked spaghetti squash out of it.

Sour Cream: This decadent addition is the perfect way to “fake” a cheese sauce when it’s baked in with shredded cheese.

Shredded Cheddar: You can use whatever shredded cheese you like, but cheddar or a blend of cheeses is best when making keto mac and cheese.

Pork Rind Crumbs: What absolutely turns this mac and cheese into a real comfort food is the addition of pork rind crumbs sprinkled on top before baking. It makes a great keto crust topping.

🍲How To Cook Spaghetti Squash

Before baking, you’ll need to cook your spaghetti squash, there are 2 main ways to do this:

Roasting Spaghetti Squash In The Oven Lengthwise: Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Cut your spaghetti squash long ways into 2 pieces. Scrape out the seeds with a spoon and discard. Brush the squash with oil, salt and pepper and place skin side up roast for 45 minutes to 1 hour or until squash is tender but still firm. Once cool enough to touch, remove spaghetti strands with a fork.

Roasting In The Oven Widthwise (Spaghetti Squash Rings): Preheat oven to 375. With a sharp knife and a stable cutting board, cut off the top and bottom of your spaghetti squash. Slice into 1-2” “rings”. Remove seeds and place on a baking sheet. Brush with oil, salt and pepper and bake for about 40 minutes or until squash is tender and spaghetti comes out easily.

Instant Pot Spaghetti Squash: This is the fastest method to cooking your spaghetti squash. Full video tutorial and instructions can be found here. 

📖How To Make Spaghetti Squash Mac and Cheese

1️⃣ Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease an 8X8 casserole dish.

2️⃣ In a large bowl, add cooked, cooled and drained spaghetti squash along with sour cream, shredded cheese, salt, pepper and garlic powder

3️⃣ Gently mix all ingredients together until they are all fully combined.

4️⃣ Pour into the casserole dish and spread out evenly.

5️⃣Top with pork rind crumbs (or breadcrumbs) and bake for 30-35 minutes or until mac and cheese is baked through and forms a crust on top.

6️⃣ To brown the crust further, broil for a few minutes. Remove from the oven and serve hot.

🐖Pork Rind Breadcrumbs or Pork Panko

A popular replacement for breadcrumbs in the keto and low carb world is crushed up pork rinds.

You can make them yourself by adding plain pork rinds to a food processor or blender and pulsing until crumbs are formed or you can purchase them from Bacon’s Heir or Porking Good.

👩🏻‍🍳Chef’s Tips & FAQ

It’s important that the spaghetti squash is cooled enough to make sure the cheese doesn’t fully melt into the squash when mixing. 

Spaghetti squash is a naturally watery vegetable. When using it for baking, it’s best to make sure the liquid is drained off as much as possible. You can do this by cooling it down and adding to a colander to drain or press with paper towels. In my experience, it’s easy to press out the water by hand once squash is cooled down.

Can I Freeze Spaghetti Squash Mac and Cheese? Because the “sauce” is made with sour cream, the texture will change to dry and flaky once it is defrosted. Therefore it is not recommended to freeze it

Can I Add Veggies? You can definitely add some cooked veggies such as peas, broccoli or even spinach. To bring your mac and cheese to the next level, add some chopped cooked bacon or pancetta.

🔥 Reheating Spaghetti Squash 

On the stove: place the mac and cheese into a saucepan on the stove over medium heat. Stir for 5-10 minutes, or until the dish is heated through.

In the oven: place the mac and cheese back into a casserole dish or oven safe dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until heated through.

In the microwave: Add portion in a microwave safe bowl. Cover and microwave for 1-2 minutes depending on size of portion

More Low Carb Comfort Foods

• Keto Shepherd’s Pie
• Keto Cheeseburger Pie
• Keto Sloppy Joes
• Keto Ground Beef Casserole
• Egg Roll In A Bowl With Chicken