Cheesy Mexican Squash (Calabacitas)
Cheesy Mexican Squash, or Calabacitas, is a simple stovetop recipe that uses yellow squash, zucchini and corn. It’s creamy, cheesy and just a bit spicy! Ready in 15 minutes.
As a food blogger, there are two questions I get ALL of the time. The first, “What can I do with ground beef besides spaghetti and hamburgers?” The second, ” What the heck can I do with of my garden vegetables, especially the summer squash?” The first question I’ve addressed through recipes like this Easy Goulash, Korean Burgers and Beef Tostadas. But I’ve mostly left the second question about garden vegetables unaddressed. Until now, with this new Calabacitas recipe for cheesy Mexican squash!
“Delicious! Used yellow zucchini and candy onion from farmer’s market. Can corn, jalapeno and minced garlic. Have a saucy family so used almost 1/2 cup of half and half & 1 cup of cheese. Everyone went for seconds, even the squash haters!” – Tiffany
This Cheesy Mexican Squash recipe uses up a TON of zucchini or yellow squash. Plus, it’s cheesy, creamy and delicious, so your family will actually eat it! This dish is one of very few ways I can get my son to happily eat his veggies.
” I really like this recipe! I use cheddar cheese when I make it. – Ann
“This was sooo good. Should have snapped a pic before we ate it. Subbed red bell pepper for jalapeño & used a mix of cojack, fresh parm, & mozzarella cause that is what I had.”
Gail
Cheesy Mexican Squash, or Calabacitas, are made on the stove top and ready in about 15 minutes. These Mexican squashes are just a *bit* spicy, thanks to the addition of fresh chopped jalapeno.
If you have a spice averse family member, just leave the jalapeno pepper out! You can always douse your individual servings with hot sauce once cooked.
“I added 1/2 cup bacon bits and 1 cup diced chicken and substituted poblano for jalapeno pepper. It was amazing.” – Paula
FYI- Calabacitas means “little squash” in Spanish! And calabacita means zucchini. Something to teach your family while they eat this dish!
Recipe Substitutions and Additions
Like any dish, you’re free to make this Cheesy Mexican Squash your own! Here are some suggestions:
- Add diced Roma tomatoes 4-5 minutes before finishing the dish.
- Substitute poblano pepper, green chile or your favorite bell pepper for the jalapeno
- Sprinkle the top of the cooked calabacitas with cotija cheese and/or cilantro.
- Substitute heavy cream for the half and half
- Feel free to use fresh corn kernels instead of canned corn
- I typically use white onion for this recipe, but feel free to substitute yellow onion, red onion or shallots.
- Feel free to use up to 6 garlic cloves in this recipe if you love the taste of garlic!
- Instead of butter, use olive oil or avocado oil.
The type of cheese that you choose to top your Calabacitas with isn’t too important, but I recommend using Colby Jack or Cheddar if available. Both types of cheese will add good flavor to your dish!
Serving Suggestions
This Cheesy Mexican Squash is a versatile dish!
It can be used as a side dish for nearly tacos or arepas con queso along with cilantro lime rice or refried beans!
Or you can use it as a vehicle for leftover protein! Just slice up chicken, steak, shrimp, pulled pork or even ham and serve it right on top of the squash. Totally delicious!
Saving Leftover Calabacitas
Save your leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Reheat gently in the microwave at half power or reheat in the skillet. You may need to add a bit of liquid to it (water or chicken broth) to help the cheesy sauce loosen back up.
I hope that you love this Mexican zucchini recipe! If you try it, please let me know how it turned out in the comments below.
Cheesy Mexican Squash (Calabacitas)
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 2 zucchini squash, medium, cubed
- 2 yellow squash, medium, cubed
- 1 white onion, diced
- 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon cumin
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
- 10 ounces corn kernals, canned, drained
- 1/3 cup half and half, or heavy cream
- 3/4 cup Colby jack cheese, shredded (or taco blend)
For topping:
- fresh cilantro
- cotija cheese, optional
Instructions
- Melt butter in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat.
- Sauté squash and onion in butter for 3-4 minutes.
- Add jalapeno pepper and garlic, then sauté for 30 seconds to 1 minute, until fragrant. Do not allow the garlic to burn.
- Add salt, pepper, corn and half and half. Stir to combine.
- Sauté on medium heat for 5-7 minutes, or until the squash can be easily pierced with a fork.
- Remove skillet from burner.
- Sprinkle cheese over the top. Cover skillet for 2-4 minutes and allow to rest until cheese melts.
- Serve warm. Optionally, sprinkle with more cheese (queso fresco is great) or cilantro!
Need more squash recipes? Try these out!
Could yOu sub sour cream for half and halF?
Hi Barbara! Yes, I think you could. You’ll want to make sure the heat is turned down pretty low so it doesn’t separate, but I certainly think it would taste good!
2nd time in two weeks I’ve made this! Lots of yellow squash in my garden. Used corn from the cob and had jalapeños from a salsa Verde I’ve been making loads of. Excellent! Thanks.
Sounds so good! Thanks for the feedback, Jan! 🙂
This had a nice kick without being overwhelming. Good way to use up summer vegetables, and I appreciated how quick it was to make.
Thank you!
This is so delicious. I added a little more cheese and some diced jalapenos. New favorite way to make zucchini!
Glad you liked it Beth! It’s one of our favorites too.
I made your Cheesy Mexican Squash recipe last night, and we all liked it. Loved the cheesy sauce and the corn, made the zucchini taste good.
Thank you!
I tried this on taco Tuesday and it was a hit as a side dish! Thank you for the explanation and recipe!
So glad you loved it! It’s def our favorite way to use up zucchini.
This was great! We really enjoyed this combination of fresh vegetables. The half and half provided just the right amount of sweetness – but not too much! I used Mexican blended cheese and, of course, added a bit more than the recipe called for. It was a good move. Next time, I might add a pinch of cumin. I love that I can tweak this recipe, if I want.
Hi Libba! More cheese is ALWAYS a good idea! 🙂 I love the idea of adding a bit of cumin I’m going to try that next time!
We have a ton of squash & I wanted a second recipe for calabacitas that was different from my primary one. I made a few changes that worked great.
– Ditched jalapeno as we don’t like hot.
– Used frozen corn instead of canned which tasted a bit fresher, but canned is okay.
– The half & half did not add any flavor, just more calories, and the squash renders so much water that the cream was lost in it.
– Being lactose-intolerant the Colby jack cheese is a non-starter for me, but sharp cheddar I can tolerate well and I think it added more flavor too.
Thanks for a terrific recipe. I highly recommend it!
Does this reheat okay? I’m probably the only the only one that will eat it in my house, so I’ll be eating it for a few days.
Yes! I think it reheats pretty well! I will sometimes add a bit of liquid to help the cheese loosen!
This was so good ! Thank you
I used 3 yellow squash to make this. I wish recipes would stop saying small, medium, large since size is subjective. Just tell us how many cups or pounds. I left out the jalapeños. I didn’t have half and half so used half heavy cream and half milk. My daughter wanted a complete meal so I added 1 pound cooked ground beef to make it a 1 pan meal. I increased the milk mixture to 1 cup because my 12″ cast iron skillet was full to the top and I didn’t think 1/3 cup liquid would be sufficient. It was perfect. The dish was a huge hit and definitely a keeper.
Does this work with frozen squash and zucchini?
Hi Whitney! Yes it should. The only thing I’d worry about is the water content coming off the frozen veggies.
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Just fyi nowhere in the directions does it say add the onion that is listed in the ingredients. I put it in with the squash. Thanks!
You did the right thing! Thanks for catching that for me, I’ve got it fixed!
This was sooo good. Should have snapped a pic before we ate it. Subbed red bell pepper for jalapeño & used a mix of cojack, fresh parm, & mozzarella cause that is what I had.
Gail, I’m so glad you enjoyed this! Thanks for letting me know!