Green Butternut Squash

Unripe Butternut Squash

So your butternut squash isn't quite ripe, and you want to know what to do with it.

Why is My Butternut Squash Green?

Butternut squash is green before it turns the orange-beige color we know and love.

If your squash is still on the vine and you can leave it on for longer, do so. Given enough time, green butternut squash will blush and then eventually cure on the vine for better storage.

If your squash broke off the vine, a frost is approaching, or a new crop needs to go in and you're stuck with green butternuts - keep reading to find out what you can do with it.

Will Butternut Squash Ripen off the Vine?

Unfortunately not, winter squash will generally not continue to ripen once it comes off the vine.

Winter squash needs to be left on the vine if you want it to ripen fully (and then cure), and you're usually better off leaving it on the vine the longer than you think you need to, rather than picking too soon.

That said, you can still eat butternut squash when it's partially green, so keep reading to find out how to cook green butternut squash if that's what you've got.

Can You Eat Green Butternut Squash?

What Does Unripe Butternut Squash Taste Like?

Green (unripe) butternut squash will be less sweet than what you're used to. The flavors and sugars have often not yet developed, so you should expect a more savory and bland taste from butternut that's still green.

I definitely won't promise that it will taste as good as a ripe butternut squash, it won't.

Will it be edible and give you some calories, though? Absolutely!

And if they're very small still, they may be softer and resemble summer squash more. Some folks even report being able to fry or sautee these small butternuts instead of roasting or baking.

How to Cook Green Butternut Squash

Just bake it or stew it like you normally would with ripe butternut squash.

Try 400F for around 30-40 minutes, turning occasionally. Hit it with a couple minutes of broiler if you'd like a little caramelization (though the flavor won't be as sweet as fully-ripe butternut).

You can always blend the baked or stewed butternut into a soup, too! That's a favorite of mine, and goes great with homemade bread & toasted butternut seeds from the same squash.

The seeds might not be full-sized yet in unripe butternut, but you can still toast them and eat them at any size.

Of course if the seeds are big enough you can toast them for other stuff too, such as granola.

I would not, however, recommend saving seeds from underripe butternut, as the viability of the seeds will be questionable. If your butternuts didn't fully ripen, you'll want to start over with a new packet of seeds for next year and try again if you intend to save seeds.

What if I Don't Like It?

If you really don't like it, don't eat it.

Sometimes squash snap off the vine early, or a frost comes too soon and you're forced to harvest them before they're ready.

You might just be stuck with too much of something you really don't enjoy at all.

That's ok, compost them!

Or feed those green butternuts to your chickens or goats. They'll have a fabulous time turning your problem into fresh manure to be composted for your garden.