Name: Sous Vide Butternut Squash Puree
Total time: 1 h 50 min
Ingredients: 2 pounds butternut squash , peeled, seeded, and sliced ¼ inch thick; ¼ cup water , plus extra as needed; 3 tablespoons unsalted butter; Salt

Why This Recipe Works

Sometimes you just don't want to put another pot on your stove—especially for big-ticket dinners like Thanksgiving. By cooking winter squash sous vide, we eliminate the need for any stove space. We also found that by cooking the squash in a bag, we kept all that precious squash-y flavor, and we were able to cook the squash perfectly, to an even fork-tenderness. The result? Sweet, buttery, and vibrant orange goodness. Butternut squash is relatively low in overall fiber—most of which is soluble fiber as opposed to tough insoluble fiber—which made it easier to blend to a smooth consistency. To impart velvety richness to our puree, we threw in a little butter. If you're like us, you'll find yourself eating this stuff by the spoonful—straight out of the blender jar.

Before You Begin

Be sure to double bag the squash to protect against seam failure. Squash has a tendency to float when placed in a sous vide water bath, which can lead to uneven cooking. Use weights to make sure the squash is fully immersed during cooking. For more about sous vide cooking, refer to our sous vide guide.

Instructions

Using sous vide circulator, bring water to 200°F/93°C in 7-quart container.

Place squash, water, butter, and ½ teaspoon salt in 1-gallon zipper-lock freezer bag. Seal bag, pressing out as much air as possible. Place bag in second 1-gallon zipper-lock freezer bag and seal. Gently lower bag into prepared water bath, weight bag until squash is fully submerged, and clip top corner of bag to side of water bath container, allowing remaining air bubbles to rise to top of bag. Reopen 1 corner of zipper, release remaining air bubbles, and reseal bag. Cover and cook for 1 hour to 1½ hours.

Transfer squash and cooking liquid to blender and process until smooth, about 2 minutes, scraping down sides of blender jar as needed. (If mixture is not blending easily, adjust consistency of puree with up to 2 tablespoons extra water.) Season with salt to taste. Serve.