How to Peel and Cut a Butternut Squash

Butternut squashes can be intimidating to cut, can't they? Here's a safe and sure method for the easiest way to peel and cut butternut squash.

Elise Bauer

Butternut squash can be rather daunting to prep. They're round, hard, thick, and dense. But with a few easy steps you can very quickly peel and chop your butternut squash without too much difficulty.

First you need to have a large sharp knife. After that, the most essential thing to keep in mind when it comes to cutting anything is to stabilize whatever it is you are attempting to cut.

This is nowhere else as critical as when cutting a butternut squash, a notoriously difficult task because of the thickness and density of that squash.

How to Cut and Peel a Butternut Squash

How to Prepare Butternut Squash

The most important thing to consider when following these steps, or anyone else's steps for cutting winter squash is to keep whatever pieces you are working on as stable as possible.

The first cut from the bottom of the squash is to help keep the squash steady on the board as you gently work your knife down from the top to bottom.

Keep squash pieces as stable as possible while cutting. A rubber mallet can help, if you have one, to gently push the knife through difficult thick spots. Using a very sharp vegetable peeler, one with a carbon steel blade, will help with the peeling.

By the way, it helps to microwave a butternut squash (whole) for 30 seconds or so first, before peeling. This will help soften the peel just enough to make it a bit easier to peel.

  • 1 butternut squash, 1 1/2 to 3 pounds

  1. Slice off the ends:

    Using a heavy, sharpened chef's knife, cut off about 1/4-inch from the bottom of the squash in an even slice. Then cut off 1/4-inch from the stem end.

    Elise Bauer
    Elise Bauer

  2. Peel with a vegetable peeler:

    Holding the squash in one hand, use a sharp vegetable peeler in the other hand to peel off the outer layer of the squash. You can also secure the squash standing upright and peel it in downward strokes with the peeler.

    Elise Bauer

  3. Cut the squash in half:

    Stand the peeled squash upright on a cutting board. It shouldn't wobble, you want the squash to be stable. (If it is wobbly, make another cut at the bottom to even it out.) Make one long cut, down the middle from the top to bottom, with a heavy chef's knife.

    Elise Bauer

    Some squashes can be pretty hard; to help with the cutting you can use a rubber mallet to gently tap on the ends of the knife to help push the knife down through the squash.

  4. Scrape out the seeds:

    Use a metal spoon to scrape out the seeds and the stringy pulp from the squash cavity. (If you want, you can prepare the seeds like toasted pumpkin seeds.)

    Elise Bauer
    Elise Bauer

  5. Cut squash halves into slices:

    Lay the squash halves, cut side down on the cutting board for stability. Working section at a time, cut the squash into slices, lengthwise, the desired width of your squash pieces. Some recipes call for 1/2-inch slices or cubes, some for 1-inch or greater.

    Elise Bauer
    Elise Bauer

  6. Stack and slice, then make crosswise cuts into cubes:

    If you are cubing the squash, lay the slices down (you can stack a few at a time) and make another set of lengthwise cuts. Then make crosswise cuts to make cubes.

    Elise Bauer
    Elise Bauer

    One 1 1/2 pound butternut squash will yield approximately 4 cups of 1/2-inch cubed squash.

Not all vegetable peelers are alike. Most have pretty dull edges. The sharpest peelers out there are made with carbon steel blades. Here's a Swiss model which you can pick up inexpensively at Amazon.com.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
363 Calories
1g Fat
95g Carbs
8g Protein
Show Full Nutrition Label Hide Full Nutrition Label

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Nutrition Facts
Amount per serving
Calories 363
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 1g 1%
Saturated Fat 0g 1%
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 36mg 2%
Total Carbohydrate 95g 35%
Dietary Fiber 29g 104%
Total Sugars 18g
Protein 8g
Vitamin C 137mg 685%
Calcium 372mg 29%
Iron 5mg 30%
Potassium 2576mg 55%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.