How to Cook Acorn Squash in the Slow Cooker
35 Comments Aug 28, 2024
Updated Jun 25, 2025
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You’ll be amazed how easy acorn squash is to cook in the slow cooker! The slow cooker steams the squash that is flavored with butter and fall seasonings.
Other fall recipes we love to make are Autumn Chicken Dinner and Jack Daniels Pot Roast.
I made this Acorn Squash in the slow cooker in a sweet style. They are a delicious side for a fall meal. Acorn squash is also very cheap, and along with the fall spices I use, it makes the house smell amazing.
This recipe is just as easy as my Slow Cooker Sweet Potatoes recipe. The slow cooker is the perfect tool for cooking squash!
Key Ingredients
You only need a few ingredients and a crockpot! Find the full recipe in the recipe card below the images.
- Acorn Squash – These are found all year round in the produce section.
- Butter – Butter slices go in each of the halves of the acorn squash.
- Seasonings – Cinnamon, nutmeg, and brown sugar are the BEST flavors for this fall squash.
- Water – This will keep the squash moist.
How to make Slow Cooker Acorn Squash
- Step One – Cut the acorn squash down the middle. I like to cut it so the scalloped edges are visible. Add the water to the slow cooker and the squash. Sprinkle the cut acorn squash with cinnamon, nutmeg, and brown sugar.
- Step Two – Add the butter pats in the center of the squash.
- Step Three – Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook on HIGH for 3.5 hours.
Variations
Here are my suggested adaptations if you want to change up the recipe.
- You can peel and cube the acorn squash instead of halving it—just add the butter, water, and seasonings the same way.
- For a more savory version, simply skip the brown sugar.
- Try swapping the spices with pumpkin pie spice, apple pie spice, cloves, or cardamom for a different flavor twist.
How to serve:
- Serve the acorn squash with your favorite main dishes such as Slow Cooker Chicken Thighs or garlic buttery Slow Cooker Steak Bites. This even goes great with slow cooker whole chicken.
- To serve more people, you can cut the acorn squash halves in half.
How to make Acorn Squash
How to Video
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 acorn squash
- 1/8 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp. nutmeg
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 2 Tbsp. butter
Instructions
- Add the 1/2 cup water to a large oval slow cooker.
- Cut the squash in half down the middle.
- Place the acorn squash in the slow cooker flesh up.
- Sprinkle over the cinnamon, nutmeg and brown sugar evenly onto the squash. Add a 1 Tbsp. slice of butter in the middle of each acorn squash half.
- Cover and cook on HIGH for 3.5 hours without opening the lid while it cooks.
- Serve and enjoy!
Sarah’s Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition info is auto-generated. This information is an estimate; if you are on a special diet, please use your own calculations.
More Slow Cooker Recipes with Squash
Slow Cooker Butternut Squash and Slow Cooker Zucchini are simple veggie sides that cook up tender with minimal effort.
For a full meal, try Chicken and Butternut Squash or pair Slow Cooker Spaghetti Squash with your favorite sauce for a light, satisfying option.
Slow Cooker Minestrone Soup is another great choice, packed with veggies, beans, and pasta for a hearty, one-pot dinner.
I do the same with cubed butternut squash! With a little Maple Syrup!
Thank you! I was looking for something simple like this.
I love simple and easy when it comes to recipes…they are usually the best as far as taste, too.
Yum! I love acorn squash! I can’t wait to make it in the slow cooker.
I also am addicted to acorn squash. I have never made it in my slow-cooker, but I will now. How about “stuffed acorn squash”? I used to have a delicious recipe, I lost it when my home burned. Does anyone have a good recipe for stuffed acorn squash? Thanks
I usually cut it in half, scoop the seeds (then roast them later like pumpkin seeds), then steam it, The slow cooker should work fine for this too.
Stand them up in the pot so the filling doesn’t fall out. You will have to prop them up against each other .
I’ve used commercially made bread cube stuffing and filled the squash to the top. The flavors complement each other well.
Or mix rice (or millet) with water, butter, a bit of thyme and sage and use that to fill them. Sorry there are no precise measurements with this, but it was just an experiment I did before, that worked.
I am going to make stuffed acorn squash tonight. I am cooking the squash in the slow cooker, but am going to make the stuffing on the stove top when I get home from work. I’m making a wild-rice pilaf with onions, cranberries, celery, and almonds. I’m going to serve the pilaf in the squash to be fall fancy!
Sounds amazing Tammy!
I just love acorn squash and that is how I cook it in the oven. Never thought to do it in the slow cooker — great idea! Thank you!
This looks like such an amazing and easy recipe! Can’t wait to try it!
Love this idea! Can you believe I have never made acorn squash? I’ve made almost all the others and am a big fan. I need to try this soon!
ITS SO GOOD.
Acorn squash with butter and brown sugar was a special treat around Thanksgiving when I was a kid. I need to try this in the slow cooker! That is a great idea.
I really want to try this! I have made acorn squash a couple times in the oven, and I don’t get it to cook through right. So I think in the moist environment of the slow cooker, I will have a better result. Sounds delicious, can’t wait to try!