Spaghetti Squash Taco Bowls (Video)

This Spaghetti Squash Taco Bowl has all the flavors that make you love beef tacos in a spaghetti squash bowl, and this dinner will be a hit! And this complete meal in a bowl only has about 14 net carbs in the entire meal.

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I’m a huge fan of spaghetti squash, and if you haven’t discovered the deliciousness of spaghetti squash yet, maybe this Spaghetti Squash Taco Bowl will be the recipe that gets you to try it! 

I know some people think of spaghetti squash as mostly being a low-carb substitute for pasta, but personally I put it in a class all its own, and I’ve enjoyed it in lasagna casserole, sauteed with vegetables, in a gratin with chard, and in a twice-baked casserole with pesto, to name just a few. And this taco bowl meal with a base of spaghetti squash is one of my favorite spaghetti squash recipes on the blog.

I hope you’ll pick up some spaghetti squash and give it a try for a fun take on Taco Tuesday!

What ingredients do you need for this recipe?

(This is only a list of ingredients; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)

• large spaghetti squash
• Olive Oil (affiliate link)
• Chili Powder (affiliate link)
• Spike Seasoning (affiliate link), or other all-purpose seasoning blend
• freshly ground black pepper
• onion
• lean ground beef
• Kalyn’s Taco Seasoning (or your favorite taco seasoning blend)
• canned diced green chiles (affiliate link)
• can of olives
• avocado
• fresh-squeezed lime juice; I used my fresh-frozen lime juice
• cherry tomatoes
• grated Mexican Blend Cheese
• sour cream (optional, but good)
• salsa (optional, but good)

What gives this Spaghetti Squash Taco Bowl the taco flavors?

The use of chili powder, taco seasoning, diced green chiles, olives, avocado, lime juice, tomatoes, and Mexican blend cheese all give these tacos bowls plenty of taco flavor!

How do I cook the Spaghetti Squash for the Spaghetti Squash Taco Bowls?

The only hard thing about about making this Spaghetti Squash Low-Carb Taco Bowl recipe is cutting the raw squash apart before you season it and roast it. Some people like to microwave the squash for a few minutes to make it softer, but I just hack away at it with a big knife. I prefer roasting the squash for spaghetti squash bowls like this, because you can season the squash and the roasting process dries it out a little.

Other options for cooking the spaghetti squash:

If roasting the spaghetti squash seems a bit labor-intensive for you, you can cook the spaghetti squash in a slow cooker or in an Instant pot or even cook it in the microwave.

More Low-Carb Spaghetti Squash Recipes:

Check out 20 Low-Carb Spaghetti Squash Recipes for lots more ideas for cooking this fun vegetable.

How to make the Spaghetti Squash Taco Bowl:

(This is only a summary of the steps for the recipe; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)

1. Cut spaghetti squash into four pieces, scrape out seeds, rub with olive oil and season with chili powder, Spike Seasoning (affiliate link), and pepper.
2. Roast the squash until it strings apart easily, about an hour. 
3. While the squash cooks, brown the onions, brown the ground beef, and then season the beef with Spike Seasoning, Kalyn’s Taco Seasoning, and pepper.
4. Then add water and a small can of diced green chiles (affiliate link) and let the meat simmer until most (but not all) of the liquid is evaporated.
5. Cut up olives, tomatoes, and avocado.  (Toss the avocado with some lime juice to keep it from turning brown.)
6. The squash is done when it’s lightly browned and strings apart easily with a fork. 
7. Divide the hot spaghetti squash into four bowls. 
8. Top each with one-fourth of the hot beef mixture and grated cheese.
9. Garnish each Spaghetti Squash Taco Bowl with diced tomatoes, sliced olives, and chopped avocado as desired!

More Spaghetti Squash Dinners You Might Like:

• Greek Salad Spaghetti Squash Bowl
• Twice-Baked Spaghetti Squash with Kale
• Spaghetti Squash Lasagna

Continue to Content

Print

Yield: 4 servings

Spaghetti Squash Taco Bowls

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 1 hour

Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes

This Spaghetti Squash Taco Bowl meal has all the flavors that make you love beef tacos in a spaghetti squash bowl!

Ingredients

Spaghetti Squash Ingredients:

• 1 large spaghetti squash (see notes)
• 2 tsp. olive oil
• 1 tsp. chili powder
• 1 tsp. Spike Seasoning (see notes)
• freshly ground black pepper to taste

Ground Beef Ingredients:

• 2 tsp. olive oil (as needed)
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 lb. lean ground beef
• 1 tsp. Spike Seasoning
• 2  T Kalyn’s Taco Seasoning (more or less to taste; see notes)
• 1 4 oz. can diced green chiles with juice (see notes)
• 2 cups water

Topping Ingredients:

• 1 6 oz. can olives, drained and cut in half lengthwise
• 1 medium avocado, chopped
• 1 T fresh-squeezed lime juice, to toss with avocado (I used my fresh-frozen lime juice.)
• 1 cup chopped cherry tomatoes
• 1 cup grated cheese (I used Mexican Style Blend from Costco)
• sour cream (optional, but good)
• salsa (optional, but good)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400F/200C.  Spray a large baking sheet with non-stick spray or olive oil.
2. Cut spaghetti squash into fourths lengthwise and scrape out the seeds and stringy part.  Brush or rub the surface of the squash with olive oil and season with chili powder, Spike Seasoning (affiliate link) and black pepper.
3. Roast the squash about 60 minutes, or until the squash strings apart easily when scraped with a fork. (You can also cook the spaghetti squash in a slow cooker or in an Instant pot or even cook it in the microwave.)
4. While the squash is roasting, heat 1 tsp. olive oil in a large frying pan.  Add the chopped onion and cook over medium-high heat until the onion is starting to brown slightly, about 3-4 minutes.
5. Add the ground beef to the pan (adding more oil if needed).  Cook the ground beef until it’s nicely browned, breaking apart with a turner (or use an old-fashioned Potato Masher (affiliate link) like I do to break the meat apart.)  Add the Spike Seasoning and Kalyn’s Taco Seasoning and cook a couple minutes longer.
6. Add the diced green chiles with juice and 2 cups water, stir to combine, and turn heat to a very low simmer and let it cook while the squash roasts.  You want to simmer the meat until most of the water has evaporated but there’s still a little bit of liquid left in the pan, because that liquid drips down and flavors the squash in the bowl.  (It’s okay to add more water during the simmering time if it evaporates more quickly than you had planned.)
7. While the meat simmers, cut up the tomatoes, drain olives and cut in half, and chop avocados and toss them with the lime juice.
8. Remove the spaghetti squash from the oven when it’s slightly browned and strings apart easily with a fork.  Let squash cool a few minutes until it’s easier to handle, then use a fork to scrape the “spaghetti” part away from the skin, discarding skin.
9. Divide the spaghetti squash into four bowls.  Top each bowl of squash with one-fourth of the saucy meat mixture, grated cheese, tomatoes, olives, and avocado.
10. Serve with sour cream and salsa to add at the table as desired.
11. If you omit the cheese and don’t serve it with sour cream this recipe can easily be made Paleo.

Notes

Choose a spaghetti squash that's about 3 pounds. Use any type of all-purpose seasoning blend if you don’t have Spike. Use any packaged taco seasoning without sugar if you don’t want to make your own.

Use Anaheim chiles, not jalapenos unless you really like it hot; in the U.S. they are usually just called Green Chiles.

Nutritional information does not include optional sour cream and salsa.

This recipe created by Kalyn.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

4

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 416Total Fat: 26gSaturated Fat: 8.4gUnsaturated Fat: 14.9gCholesterol: 85mgSodium: 591mgCarbohydrates: 20gFiber: 6.2gSugar: 6.9gProtein: 29g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.

Did you make this recipe?

Did you make this recipe? Please leave a star rating (under the PRINT button in the recipe) or share a photo of your results on Instagram! THANKS!

Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
This Spaghetti Squash Taco Bowl is a great one-dish meal for low-carb and Keto diet plans. If you’re making this for the original South Beach Diet, they recommend lean ground beef and reduced-fat cheese (and reduced-fat sour cream, if using.)  South Beach also limits avocados to 1/3 per day. With those cautions, this would make a great meal for any phase of South Beach. 

Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use Bowl Recipes to find more recipes like this one. Use the Diet Type Index to find recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest, on Facebook, on Instagram, on TikTok, or on YouTube to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.

Historical Notes for this Recipe:
This taco bowl meal on a bed of spaghetti squash was first posted in 2015. The recipe was last updated with more information in 2023.

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