Greek Spaghetti Squash Salad

Greek Spaghetti Squash salad is the perfect weeknight dinner or lunch idea and a fun new way to eat spaghetti squash! This low carb recipe is vegan, gluten free, dairy free, paleo and Whole30 friendly and made with easy to find ingredients!

Why you will love this recipe

Lower in carbs – Greek spaghetti squash salad has all the flavor of a Greek pasta salad but uses spaghetti squash instead of traditional pasta! It’s light but filling and super flavorful! The best part is that you can easily make this ahead of time and the flavor just continues to get better!

Great for meal prep – as the spaghetti squash and dressing rest together in the fridge, the dish actually gets even more flavorful. This makes it a great recipe for meal prep!

Easy to make – once you have the spaghetti squash cooked, it’s easy to scoop out of the shell and create this spaghetti squash salad in minutes. You can easily prep the marinated onions to soak as the squash is cooking.

Ingredients

• Spaghetti squash – spaghetti squash is a winter squash that has a thick yellow skin and the meat of the squash turn into thin strands that look like pasta when cooked. Spaghetti squash can take some time to prep, but I promise you once you follow my tips on how to prepare it, you will want to make this regularly.
• Red onion – red onions can be harsh in salad. However, if you marinate them in olive oil and vinegar, it helps to reduce that harsh flavor, leaving you with a more mellow, almost sweet onion instead. Marinating onions is so easy, you will want to use this tip every time you make salad going forward!
• Tomatoes – use whatever tomatoes you have on hand. I like using cherry or grape tomatoes because you only have to half or quarter them.
• Baby spinach – baby spinach adds a pop of color and helps make this salad more filling. I recommend chopping the spinach to help it easily mix in with the rest of the ingredients.
• Flat leaf parsley – flat leaf parsley adds brightness to the dish and also creates a super fresh flavor. If you don’t have flat leaf parsley, you can add some fresh oregano and fresh mint.
• Spices: Salt, oregano, garlic powder – these spices help to create the base flavor in the dressing.
• Lemon juice – lemon juice helps the dish taste fresh and bright and also helps to add to the greek flavors.
• Olive oil – olive oil is used to create the marinade for the onions and is also the base for the dressing in the spaghetti squash salad.
• Red wine vinegar – red wine vinegar is classic in Greek salad dressing. Combine the red wine vinegar with the olive oil to soak the red onions. The vinegar really helps to remove the harsh flavor from the onion.

How to make Greek spaghetti squash salad

1. Start by making the marinated onions. Thinly slice the red onion. In a bowl combine the olive oil, red wine vinegar, 1 teaspoon dried oregano and ½ teaspoon of salt. Add the onions to this mixture and allow them to soak while the squash is cooking.
2. Cook the spaghetti squash using your preferred method. I recommend using the instant pot or microwave for the quickest preparation (see my tips below).
3. Once the spaghetti squash is done cooking, scrape out the seeds and discard them. Scrape out the spaghetti squash noodles into a mesh strainer. Press down on the squash to remove as much of the liquid as possible.
4. In a large bowl, add the squash, tomatoes, chopped spinach, flat leaf parsley, spices, lemon juice and the marinated onions (with all the olive oil, red wine vinegar and spices) to the bowl. Stir well.
5. Serve this spaghetti squash salad with your favorite protein (shrimp, chicken, chickpeas, tofu, salmon) for a complete meal!

Top tips

• It’s easier to cut into a spaghetti squash if you microwave it for 3-4 minutes first. Be sure to cut 1-2 holes in the top (like you would for a potato in the microwave). Cooking the squash in the microwave helps to soften the tough skin, making it easier to slice.
• The flavor gets better over time. If you have the time, make this spaghetti squash salad in advance (4-8 hours or more) and allow it to rest in the fridge. The flavor gets even better as the dressing has a chance to soak into the noodles.
• Time saving tip: Cook the squash in advance. If you are short on time, the onions only need to marinate for 10-15 minutes to remove that harsh flavor. If you cook the squash in advance, you can prepare this meal in just 15 minutes.
• Super versatile base – this spaghetti squash salad recipe is just the base recipe. You can add your favorite toppings or proteins to make this salad full of your favorite flavors. See some of my other favorite additions below.

Other additions

• Roasted red peppers
• Artichoke hearts (marinated)
• Feta cheese
• Sliced olives
• Cucumbers
• Chickpeas
• Pepperoncini

What to serve with spaghetti squash salad

This Greek spaghetti squash salad is great on it’s own with your favorite protein or can easily be made into a meal by serving it along side other appetizers or soup for a simple meal.

• Add your favorite protein: Add your favorite protein to make this salad more filling. Some of my favorites include Air Fryer Greek Chicken, Air Fryer Frozen Shrimp, Greek Salmon, Balsamic Tofu, chickpeas, or white beans.
• With appetizers: Balsamic Eggplant, Greek White Bean Salad, or Crackers and Hummus
• With soup: Greek Chickpea Soup, Mediterranean Vegetable Soup, or Red Pepper Lentil Soup

Common questions

How to cook spaghetti squash quickly

To make this dish in 30 minutes or less, check out my top tips on how to cook spaghetti squash fast! You can use the microwave, the instant pot, the oven or even the air fryer!

My favorite way is: Cut the spaghetti squash in half and cook in the instant pot on high pressure for about 8 minutes. Manually release the pressure and shred the spaghetti squash with a fork.

How to make sure the spaghetti squash isn’t watery

The best way to make spaghetti squash that isn’t watery is to use the air fryer to cook the spaghetti squash.

Also for this recipe, you will want to put the spaghetti squash strands into a mesh strainer after cooking and press out any excess liquid to ensure the salad is not too watery.

Storing leftovers

• Fridge: Store leftover Greek spaghetti squash salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
• Freezer: I do not recommend freezing leftovers as the texture will change.

Substitutions

• Spaghetti squash – if you don’t have spaghetti squash, you can try this with daikon radish noodles, rutabaga noodles, zucchini noodles, or heart of palm noodles to keep this dish low carb. If you are not low carb, you can use your favorite pasta in place of the spaghetti squash.
• Red onions – if you don’t have red onion, you can also use shallots. I don’t recommend using white or yellow onions, as they don’t have the same mellow sweetness as the red onions do after marinating. You can omit the onion if needed.
• Tomatoes – you can use any of the other additions above like roasted red peppers, artichoke hearts, cucumbers, etc. in place of the tomatoes if you don’t have them on hand.
• Flat leaf parsley – the fresh parsley really adds so much flavor to this dish. You can try to replace it with fresh oregano and fresh mint (about 1/2-1 tablespoon of each, they are strong flavors). If you don’t have any fresh herbs on hand, you can add 1/2 tablespoon dried parsley to the dish.
• Lemon juice – if you don’t have lemon juice, add about 1 more tablespoon of red wine vinegar.
• Olive oil – olive oil helps to create the dressing. You could also use avocado oil.
• Red wine vinegar – if you don’t have red wine vinegar, replace it with the juice of one large lemon or apple cider vinegar (the flavor won’t be exactly the same but will still be good).
• Spices – if you don’t have dried oregano, you can use italian seasoning. If you don’t have garlic powder, you can use onion powder or even dried minced garlic. If you don’t have either of those, simply omit it.

If you love this recipe, you should try

• Vegan Creamy Asian Spaghetti Squash Recipe (Vegan, Whole30)
• Greek Zoodle Bowl (Vegan, Whole30)
• Chopped Greek Salad (Vegan, Whole30)
• Creamy Green Chili Spaghetti Squash
• Vegan Greek Salad with Kalamata Olive Dressing