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Wedges of cooked acorn squash with sprinkles of Japanese chili pepper on a white dish with chopsticks resting on the side, an acorn squash to the left of the white dish.

Japanese Soy Braised Acorn Squash Recipe

Grace Stewart
Braising Acorn Squash with Japanese ingredients including soy sauce, sake, and mirin is a fabulous way to enjoy this wonderful winter squash!
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Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Course Side Dish
Cuisine Japanese
Servings 4 people
Calories 86 kcal

Equipment

  • 1 wide bottomed saucepan or large skillet with a cover You will need to cover during cooking and the equipment you use should be wide bottomed or large sized as we aim to place the squash in a single layer

Ingredients
  

  • 1 lb acorn squash
  • 1 cup chicken broth can sub vegetable broth; please reserve an extra cup of broth if needed
  • ¼ cup soy sauce
  • 2 tablespoon sake
  • 2 tablespoon mirin can sub 2 ts sugar
  • Ichimi Togarashi Japanese chili pepper as optional garnish, to your taste

Instructions
 

  • Top and tail the acorn squash and then cut it down the middle. Remove the seeds and pulp (save the seeds for roasting if you like!), and then cut into 1" wedges.
    Wedges of acorn squash, a quarter portion of an acorn squash with seeds removed, and 2 large wedges of squash with seeds intact.
  • Add all the ingredients to a wide bottomed saucepan or large skillet and bring to the boil. You'll want most of the liquid to cover the squash so if you need to add a little more broth that's fine. PLEASE NOTE: try to lay the squash in a single layer if you can. This will help to avoid having to disturb the squash while cooking.
    Wedges of acorn squash in a saucepan with soy braising liquid.
  • Now lover to a simmer, and cover. Cook between 20-30 minutes or to your desired level of tenderness. I cooked mine for 30 minutes and you can see it is fall apart tender!
    Tender wedges of acorn squash cooked in a soy braising liquid with a pair of chopsticks holding some of the squash.
  • Sprinkle some Japanese chili pepper over the squash if you like to give it a little kick.
    Cooked wedges of acorn squash in a soy braising liquid and a hand holding a bottle of Ichimi Togarashi in the foreground.

Notes

The squash is quite fragile and will fall apart easily. If you want your squash to be intact and not so mushy as this, then it's best to keep the squash in a single layer and not move them around very much if at all.
To avoid mushy squash try not to disturb the squash while cooking and try not to crowd them.
Also when removing the squash from your pan or skillet, take extra care by removing them delicately with a kitchen turner so they don't fall apart.
Great with Japanese chili pepper such as Ichimi Togarashi or Nanami Togarashi!

Nutrition

Calories: 86kcalCarbohydrates: 17gProtein: 4gFat: 0.5gSaturated Fat: 0.1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.1gMonounsaturated Fat: 0.2gSodium: 896mgPotassium: 477mgFiber: 2gSugar: 2gVitamin A: 416IUVitamin C: 12mgCalcium: 43mgIron: 1mg
Keyword acorn squash, winter squash
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