Recipe: Fried squash in the oven
You will need:
Beautiful yellow summer squash
Onion(s) to match
Cooking spray
Cornmeal
Oven @ 450F
Plastic container or disposable baggie
Baking sheet
Aluminum foil
Slice squash as you would to fry or stew, maybe a little thinner, and slice onions. Large-ish onion pieces are okay, but if the squash is cut thick it will take longer to cook, and you will have to suffer through the delay. As you slice them into your bowl/baggie, coat with cooking spray occasionally so that each layer that piles up has its own coating. Add cornmeal, close your container and shake, shake, shake! You may need to add more cornmeal and/or give it another spray or two to get everything coated well.
Cover baking sheet with foil and spray well. Place squash onto baking sheet, making sure there is only one layer. (This is important!) Bake for about 15 minutes, take out and turn all pieces over so they cook evenly, and bake about another 10 minutes. Check more often than this, though. A little nudge with a fork or toothpick will tell you if they are done yet.
If you are talented with a spatula, you can scoop-and-flip to turn them. This did not go well for me. You can also use a toothpick to turn each piece individually, which sounds tedious but actually doesn't take too long. You may want to spray all over the sheet again after you turn or partway through the second time around to help it get that nice brown color. The tips of your onion slices may start to look burned, but this is normal. I've never had the concoction as a whole taste burned or start smoking. ;)
And there you have it! Something not entirely unlike fried squash, but with much less grease and breading. Enjoy!
Beautiful yellow summer squash
Onion(s) to match
Cooking spray
Cornmeal
Oven @ 450F
Plastic container or disposable baggie
Baking sheet
Aluminum foil
Slice squash as you would to fry or stew, maybe a little thinner, and slice onions. Large-ish onion pieces are okay, but if the squash is cut thick it will take longer to cook, and you will have to suffer through the delay. As you slice them into your bowl/baggie, coat with cooking spray occasionally so that each layer that piles up has its own coating. Add cornmeal, close your container and shake, shake, shake! You may need to add more cornmeal and/or give it another spray or two to get everything coated well.
Cover baking sheet with foil and spray well. Place squash onto baking sheet, making sure there is only one layer. (This is important!) Bake for about 15 minutes, take out and turn all pieces over so they cook evenly, and bake about another 10 minutes. Check more often than this, though. A little nudge with a fork or toothpick will tell you if they are done yet.
If you are talented with a spatula, you can scoop-and-flip to turn them. This did not go well for me. You can also use a toothpick to turn each piece individually, which sounds tedious but actually doesn't take too long. You may want to spray all over the sheet again after you turn or partway through the second time around to help it get that nice brown color. The tips of your onion slices may start to look burned, but this is normal. I've never had the concoction as a whole taste burned or start smoking. ;)
And there you have it! Something not entirely unlike fried squash, but with much less grease and breading. Enjoy!