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This Paleo-friendly spaghetti squash chow mein is a flavorful, fun way to serve up this healthy vegetable!
Oh yes, you read that title correctly. We made chow mein from spaghetti squash and it is KILLER. I served it to my husband who, after a few bites, asked again “this is really spaghetti squash? I would NOT have guessed.” I fashioned this chow mein after one of my before-Paleo fast food loves: Panda Express. Holy cow I loved that place. As a poor college student, it was the one place I’d go for a treat ($10 meals were a real indulgence). I’d get myself two servings of the orange chicken (our version is Baked Gluten Free Orange Chicken) and a big scoop of their noodley, briney, impossible-to-stop-when-you’re-full chow mein.
This spaghetti squash chow mein is the bees knees and the process is simple. All you need to do is roast the spaghetti squash until it’s cooked through. While the squash is in the oven, start on the sauce! For the sauce, all you need to do is pour one jar worth of coconut aminos into a large skillet. Let it reduce over medium/low heat for 10 to 15 minutes, or until it’s thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Once the sauce is thickened (the consistency of a teriyaki sauce), spoon it into a separate bowl and whisk in the remaining sauce ingredients. To the same skillet, add the olive oil and the onions. Saute the onions until they start to brown, then add the garlic, cabbage, and the celery. Leave them over medium/high heat so that they start to develop a slight char. Once the veggies are cooked to your liking, add the sauce and spaghetti squash! Stir to combine, garnish with sesame seeds + green onions, and enjoy!
Note: if the spaghetti squash releases a lot of water once mixed with the sauce, it just means that it wasn’t cooked through well enough first. Spoon off the liquid and heat until cooked through.
Ingredients
- 1 large spaghetti squash
- 1, 8 ounce jar coconut aminos
- 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 1/2 teaspoon fish sauce
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 onion finely chopped
- 1/2 head green cabbage finely chopped
- 1 cup celery chopped
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 2 teaspoons white sesame seeds
- 2 tablespoons green onion coarsely chopped
Instructions
- Cut the spaghetti squash in half, scrape out the seeds, and place it in a rimmed baking dish face-down with 1/4 cup of water. Bake at 375 F for 1 hour, or until soft. Once cooked, set aside until cool enough to handle. Once cooled, scrape the squash out into a large bowl.
- For the sauce, add all the coconut aminos to a large skillet over medium heat. Simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, or until it thickens to coat the back of a spoon. Scrape the sauce into a separate bowl and add the vinegar, sesame oil, and fish sauce. Whisk to combine and set aside.
- To the skillet, add the olive oil and the onion. Saute the onion for 5 to 10 minutes, or until browned and fragrant. Add the cabbage, celery, and garlic. Saute over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally so that it develops a slight char.
- Once the vegetables are cooked, stir in the spaghetti squash and the sauce. Mix to combine, garnish with the sesame seeds and onion, and serve!
Emily Chase says
Which brand of coconut aminos do you use? I have a difficult time getting the Coconut Secret brand to reduce as you describe.
Cassy says
I use Coconut Secret! The trick is to be patient. Low heat for 15ish minutes will bring the sauce together.
Robin says
Emily Chase, click on her link in the recipe.
Cassy says
<3
Jenna says
Looks great! Do you think you could add protein (like chicken) to this for a complete meal? If so, when would you suggest doing so to grab all the flavors? Thanks!
Cassy says
Chicken would be great! I have an orange chicken coming soon 😉
Cameron says
This sounds incredible BUT I find coconut aminos to be expensive. $7 for the brand in the link which would make this a fairly pricey meal since I would need to use the full bottle. I typically use it sparingly (like soy sauce) rather than cooking with it because of the cost. If anyone knows of a less expensive brand please let us all know. Possibly Braggs? Love your stuff!
Cassy says
Hi Cameron! I’ll keep my ear to the ground, but this is the only option I’m aware of. Braggs aminos is MUCH more salty than this option, so it will change the dish quite a bit.
Megan says
Do you put the 1/4cup of water in the baking dish with the squash on top? Can’t wait to try this looks amazing!
Cassy says
Yes! The water sits around the squash while it bakes 🙂
Laura says
Just made this and it is SO good! You a very talented, Casey!
Cassy says
I’m so glad you liked it, Laura!!
Veronica Finley says
Cassy, I made this last night and it was so good! I had a hard time finding spaghetti squash this time of year, but I finally found two small ones to roast instead of one big one. I also added in some diced chicken thighs to make it a complete meal. This is such a good recipe! I’m amazed at how much it really tastes like chow mein (without the horrible noodles and MSG :D)
Cassy says
Yay!!! I can’t tell you how (STILL to this day) I was tempted by Panda Express simply for the chow mein. Coming up with an alternative was a necessity 😉
Monique says
This is fantastic! Thank you. Had some shiitakes so added those. Really tastes like rice noodles! Best spaghetti squash I have ever had!!
Cassy says
I’m so glad you liked it!! Love the addition of the mushrooms.
Christy says
This is delicious! made it with the orange chicken from aganist all grain! so yummy
Cassy says
Awesome! I have an orange chicken recipe coming, too 😉
Sam says
Cassy, you are a genius! This recipe is absolutely delicious and so reminiscent of a Chinese take-out dish, but better. Thanks for sharing!!
Cassy says
I’m so glad you liked it, Sam!!
Victoria says
I’m so sad I am unable to print the majority of your recipes 🙁 they look so good but the only one I’ve had luck with printing was the paleo chicken parm casserole recipe. Not sure why that one works but not the others. Just wondering if this was done on purpose? Or, if not, if others were experiencing a similar issue?
Amber Link says
Hi Victoria – we are looking into this and it should be fixed soon! Thanks for letting us know.
Cassy says
We’re investigating this, Victoria! Stay tuned.
Victoria says
Thanks so much for fixing the printing issue, and for all you do to help make meals delicious, healthy, AND exciting! Can’t wait to make this one tonight 🙂
Donna says
OMG, this was soooo good. I added pork and egg to mine. Seriously a must make. Thanks for sharing!
Elaine says
So good! Didn’t have any celery or green onions but super delicious even without!! Can’t wait to make this again…and it tastes almost better the next day. Thanks, Cassy for a great recipe!
Savina says
I made this last night it was a HUGE hit. It also tastes exactly like the panda express chow mien!
Cassy says
I’m so glad you liked it!!
Lauren says
I made this last night for dinner and while my boyfriend was extremely concerned that I was putting a whole bottle of “soy sauce” in it, we both devoured it. This satisfied every chinese food craving I’ve ever had since finding out I’m Celiac. Thank you!!
Carol says
Can you recommend a fish sauce that (excuse this next bit) smell like my dog has expressed her anal glands? EVERY one I’ve tried has this “quality” and it kills it for me to use. But the taste profile cannot be replicated easily.
Thanks in advance!
Jillian says
Do you have a recommended sesame oil substitute? Or do you think it could be left out? My son is allergic to sesame. Thanks!
Suzan Hughes-Kennedy says
I can’t really rate the recipe accurately because where I live, I couldn’t get the coconut aminos. I used Bragg liquid aminos (from soy protein). I also didn’t have rice vinegar and used apple cider vinegar after looking online for a substitute. I did really well until adding my sauce. I should have tasted it first. There was too much sauce to vegetable mixture. The spaghetti squash instantly soaked up the sauce and turned brown. I ruined the dish, it was so salty it was inedible. I chopped more veggies and am going to make the stir fry today. I’ll let you know how it turns out. Pretty discouraged at this point. I am dairy free (casein allergy), mostly gluten free. and have some autoimmune issues. Out of my last 4 tries in the last two week, I’ve had one winner and have several new jars of items in my cupboard. A meal service is sounding really good right about now.
Brooke says
I have the same issue with the saltiness!!!
Amber Goulden says
Hi Suzan, sorry to hear that! Unfortunately, Bragg liquid aminos won’t work as a replacement for this recipe. The coconut aminos reduce down significantly to create a thicker sauce, and they are far less salty.
Suzan Hughes-Kennedy says
I feel – well – stupid as a cook. I neither really red the instructions on the Braggs bottle or tasted the sauce before I doused the wonderful veggies with it. I did make another skillet of vegetables and enjoyed it immensely. I have bought the correct coconut aminos on my last trip (45 miles) into Abilene and look forward to trying it. I definitely knew something was wrong when my dish went immediately to a dark brown. Looking forward to another try in a couple of weeks.
This is definitely a new adventure!
Amber Goulden says
So glad it was better the second time around Suzan!
Brooke says
I just made this and it is so incredibly salty I can’t even eat it.
Amber Goulden says
Hi Brooke – what brand of coconut aminos did you use? We made it with Coconut Secret and didn’t have an issue with saltiness!
Nancy Prado says
Which book is better to get if i want to follow a paleo diet for weight loss
Amber Goulden says
I’d get the first book – Fed and Fit!
Kim Koah says
That was amazing!!! Do you have the nutrition facts on this?? Thank you!!
Rachel says
Mine turned out to be a gigantic soggy mess!
Amber Goulden says
My hunch is that you may have overcooked the spaghetti squash! The time can vary based on the size of your squash so I’d recommend keeping a close eye on it towards the end – it is ready as soon as the strands pull loose!
Kristin says
Is there nutritional info for this anywhere? Can’t wait to try!
Brandi Schilhab says
The nutrition facts are under the recipe now, Kristin! Enjoy!
Erin says
So, so good. This is something that I absolutely crave. It satisfies my craving for Chinese food.
Brandi Schilhab says
Wahoo! So glad to hear that, Erin. Thanks so much for sharing this with us!
Lindsay says
I just made this last night and it was way too salty. My husband and I couldn’t even finish a serving of it.
Brandi Schilhab says
So sorry to hear that, Lindsay!
Sonja Greco says
While the recipe is delicious, why does my spaghetti squash come out like a glompy mess instead of nice strings?
I had some small ones that equaled the weight of one large one? The small ones were perfect . . . the large one (4.5 pounds) glompy.
Brandi Schilhab says
Oh no, Sonja! I’m sorry the big spaghetti squash didn’t turn out!