What To Do With Yellow Squash?I made this delicious yellow squash soup!
Have you ever picked up one of those big organic zucchini bags at Costco that’s half green zucchini and half yellow squash?
I see them all the time, and honestly… I always grab one. The organic green zucchini is what I’m really after, but the bag always includes yellow squash too. And while yellow squash and yellow zucchini may look similar, they definitely don’t taste the same. The texture is a little different, and personally, I’m just not the biggest fan of yellow squash on its own.
So the question becomes: what do you do with all that yellow squash?
For me, the answer was simple—It can always go in soup!!
The Best Way to Use Up Yellow Squash
Soup is one of my favorite ways to use vegetables that I’m not totally in love with. Once everything softens and blends together, the flavor becomes mild, creamy, and comforting.
I made this yellow squash soup in my Instant Pot, which is pretty much my go-to for soups. (Of course, you can also make it on the stovetop if you prefer.)
The best part? It’s a super simple recipe. I used just a handful of ingredients, and about 30 minutes later—from preheat to fully cooked—we were eating a thick, creamy, cozy bowl of piping hot soup. It turned out to be very flavorful and delicious, and we even had enough leftover for lunch or dinner the next day.
Why This Soup Is a Great Heart-Healthy Choice
Lately I’ve been reading a lot about heart-healthy preventative diets, and one thing that keeps coming up over and over is fiber.
Fiber plays such an important role in overall health because it can help support digestion and stabilize blood sugar spikes. Many sources also suggest that eating a high-fiber diet—especially when paired with fewer refined carbs—may help support healthier triglyceride levels.
According to general nutrition guidelines, the recommended daily fiber intake is about:
(And of course, always check with your doctor before making any dietary changes.)
How Much Fiber Is in This Humble Soup?
This soup provides about 9.5 grams of fiber per bowl ( much of the fiber comes from the red lentils, but potato, squash, carrot and chunky salsa provide more)
And here’s something that really surprised me when I first learned it: meat, chicken, eggs, and fish contain zero fiber. None at all!
So if you want to reach that recommended at least 25 grams per day, it’s important to include plenty of vegetables and legumes in your cooking.
Which is another reason I love soups like this—they’re an easy and delicious way to add more fiber into your day.
And honestly? For me, it’s a pretty great way to use up that extra yellow squash sitting in the fridge that I don’t want to eat.
I went online and got the following calculation for fiber in my soup.
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1½ cups dry red lentils: ~45–48 g fiber
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1 medium yellow squash: ~2 g fibers
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1 medium potato (with skin): ~4 g fiber
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½ jar chunky salsa (assuming ~1 cup): ~3–4 g fiber
1 large carrot – about 2.5 grams fiber
Total fiber in whole pot
✅ About 54–58 grams fiber total
Per bowl (6 bowls)
54–58 ÷ 6 = ~9–10 grams fiber per bowl
⭐ Final estimate:
~9.5 grams fiber per bowl
Yellow Squash Soup Ingredients:
2 medium yellow squash, cleaned and sliced
1 1/2 cups of red lentils, washed
1 large russet potato, peeled and chopped (about 2 cups)
1 large organic carrot, sliced (about a cup)
1 cup of chunky salsa (I use organic mild from Aldi)
1/2 cup of marinara sauce ( I used organic and fat free)
6-8 cups of water
1 teaspoon of ground cumin
Directions:
Add all ingredients to the liner of the Instant Pot. Secure the lid and set to pressure cook for 12 minutes. When done, release the steam according to the manufacturer’s instructions. When all steam is released, open the lid and serve the soup. Taste and adjust seasoning to taste with cracked pepper and salt if desired.
My Notes:
1. The yellow squash really added a lot of flavor to this soup- so much so that I reconsidered using yellow squash in some other cooking.
2. My recipes are gluten-free, oil-free, plant-based.
3. I’m looking into heart healthy because my triglycerides were higher than the cut -off, so I’m trying to bring them down. Triglycerides are mostly due to carbs.
