Provident Farm

Wash squash under cool running water until all the dirt has been removed.
Using a cleaver or large knife, cut the squash in half (lengthwise or crosswise) and remove the seeds and stringy fibers from the cavity with a spoon. Winter squash can be difficult to cut and it is sometimes easier to bake the squash first for 25 or 30 minutes or microwave on high for 5 or 10 minutes and then let it stand for a few minutes before trying to cut it in half.
Once the squash is cut in half and seeds removed, it can be quartered, cubed, or sliced if required. Otherwise, cook squash as directed.
If the squash is going to be cooked whole, be sure to pierce the skin in several places to allow steam to escape and prevent squash from exploding.

Cutting Large Winter Squash

Large winter squash are sold pre-cut in most supermarkets. For those who have grown large squash in their garden or prefer to buy "fresh", whole squash from the local market, the hard, thick skin of a winter squash poses a major challenge when it comes time to prepare the squash for cooking.

An example of a large, thick, bumpy skinned squash is the Hubbard squash. Shown here are two suggested techniques for cutting a large squash into two pieces. Begin by making a cut in the skin of the large squash to prevent the blade from slipping. Place the blade of a large chef's knife into the shallow cut. Using a kitchen mallet, begin tapping the blade at the base of the knife until the squash has been cut through. This technique works best when the blade of the knife is large enough to cover the circumference of the squash.
If you have grown large squash in the garden and plan on serving them often, purchase a small hand saw to be used solely for this purpose. The saw cuts easily through the large squash and leaves behind a clean cut.
Using a large spoon or scraping tool, remove the stringy fibers and seeds from the cavity of the squash.
Clean seeds and fibers from each half before cooking. Cleaning the seeds and fibers out will leave quite a large cavity in the squash.

Cutting Medium to Small Winter Squash

Acorn squash is cut by inserting a chef's knife and tapping with a kitchen mallet. Once the initial cut is made, re-position the mallet to the base of the knife blade and continue to tap until the squash falls into two separate pieces.
With a spoon, or scraping tool, remove the strings and seeds.
A butternut squash can be prepared in varying ways, depending largely on the way you are going to present it at the meal. The first step of both techniques is to remove the stem with sharp kitchen knife. If you plan to use the squash as a presentation piece, remove closer to the stem, minimizing the amount of flesh removed from the squash.
If your intent is to bake the squash and serve it in the skin as a presentation piece, slice the butternut squash directly down the center with a sharp kitchen knife.
The strings and seeds are then removed with a spoon or scraping tool.
If the butternut squash is cubed, mashed, or puréed, cut the squash into 2 separate pieces before slicing in half. Remove the upper section of the squash.
Cut the two sections in half using a sharp knife.
Cut each half in the same manner.
After each section has been cut in half, remove the stringy fibers and seeds from the cavity of the lower section. Cut halved pieces into smaller pieces if desired.

Peeling Winter Squash

Because of the thick, tough skin, winter squash is typically not peeled.

If a recipe calls for squash to be peeled and/or cubed, begin by following the method of partially baking in the microwave.

The squash can then be cut into the desired size pieces and cooked until done.

The squash can also be cut in half, seeds removed and cut into smaller pieces, before peeling the skin off. Experimenting with both methods will determine which one is preferred.
If the squash is to be mashed or puréed, leave the skin on. The flesh can be removed by scooping the meat of the squash out with a spoon after it is cook.

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