Squash & Onions - Southern Made Simple (2024)

Old school southern recipes have a way of speaking to my soul like no other. This recipe for classic squash and onions has been a lifelong favorite of mine. Enjoy!

My husband and I have been tending to our summer garden for the past few months. For the first time ever, we planted everything from seed and have been learning how to tend to each plant carefully. We’ve made a few mistakes along the way, and not all of our seeds made it, but we’re blessed to have 24 beautiful, strong and blooming squash and zucchini plants that will be fully producing within the next week or two. The squash I used in this recipe actually came from my latest Misfits Market Box, which is a fresh produce subscription service you can read more about here!

I love squash and zucchini. There’s always plenty of squash and zucchini to go around in the south during the summer months. Frankly, it doesn’t take long before you’re trying to find new and creative ways to use it up! As my plants begin to produce, I’m going to be sharing some of my favorite squash and zucchini recipes with you here. I’ve already shared a few recipes featuring the the two veggies over the years that I’ll link at the bottom for you, but for this season I’m going to start out with one of the most basic ways (and one of my favorite ways) to serve summer squash: Squash and Onions – caramelized onions to be exact!

You’ll want to start with your iron skillet. You don’t have to use an iron skillet if you don’t have one, but I highly recommend using one if you do! My iron skillet is a workhorse in my kitchen. It’s a hand-me-down skillet that is very old and well seasoned. Cooking with an iron skillet is a great way to boost your iron intake, as the skillet adds a significant amount of iron to your food as it’s cooking.

Now, before we get started with this recipe, we need to determine 1 thing: Do you want your onions caramelized or just cooked until translucent? If you want them caramelized (my favorite way) you’ll add the onions to the pan first. If not, add them in about half way through cooking the squash.

Add 2 tablespoons of butter and about a tablespoon of bacon grease to your skillet. If you don’t have bacon grease, add an extra Tbs of butter.

Add the chopped onion and stir into the butter and bacon grease over medium heat. Try to make sure the onions are nicely coated with the butter and grease. You’ll want to cook these for about 5-6 minutes, or until they begin to become translucent. You can even let them begin to brown a bit during this step.

Next, add in the chopped squash, salt, pepper, garlic powder and sugar and stir well. Reduce to medium-low heat. Cover your pan and allow to cook for about 15 minutes, or until the squash becomes tender to your liking. My preference is for the squash to be a bit translucent and soft, so I tend to let mine go an extra minute or two. Make sure you’re stirring the squash every few minutes to prevent any sort of scorching or over browning.

Sample a piece of the squash to see if it’s cooked to your liking, then add additional seasoning if necessary.

My mother prefers to mash her squash and onions up, which is how I grew up eating it. I love it that way, but frankly I love it just about any ol’ way!

Here’s a printable copy of the recipe if you’re ready to get started!

If you’ve got a bumper crop of squash and zucchini on hand, here’s a few recipes you might like to try, found right here on Southern Made Simple! Note: You can also freeze squash easily if needed!

Lemon Poppy Seed Summer Squash Bread | Taco Stuffed Summer Squash Boats | Zucchini and Feta Cheese Fritters | Cheesy Italian Zucchini Boats

My friend Jessica over at Pray At Home Mama also has an amazing recipe for a Squash and Zucchini Bake that I am itching to try!