Name: Yellow Squash Casserole
Cook time: 1 hour
Total time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Yield: 12 servings
Ingredients: 4 lb. yellow squash (10 medium), trimmed, halved lengthwise, and sliced crosswise ⅛" thick; ¼ cup vegetable oil; 2 tsp. kosher salt; 2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper; 2 medium onions, chopped (2 cups); 1 green bell pepper, chopped; 1 red bell pepper, chopped; 7 Tbsp. unsalted butter; 4 slices firm white sandwich bread with crust, coarsely ground in a food processor (about 2¼ cups); ¼ cup all-purpose flour; 1¾ cups reduced-sodium chicken broth (14 oz.); 1 cup sour cream

A casserole made with yellow squash in a baking dish.

Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Judy Haubert

Golden, creamy squash casserole is a classic Southern side dish, found at beloved meat-and- three restaurants and many family potlucks. It’s a fantastic way to use up summer squash—especially at the height of the summer, when everyone’s garden seems to produce way too much—and it’s delicious enough to keep everyone coming back for seconds. This version skips the cheddar cheese, Ritz crackers, and eggs that you find in some squash casserole recipes. Instead, we let the sweet flavor of the vegetables stand out in a simple white sauce made with melted butter and broth, with a bit of flour to thicken everything and some sour cream to add body. (If you have a bumper crop of zucchini in your garden, you could substitute it for some of the yellow squash.)

The key to keeping a squash casserole from getting watery while it bakes is to precook the veggies in order to remove some of their moisture. While many recipes ask you to sauté the ingredients, we prefer to roast the squash with just a bit of oil and some seasoning. It requires less work than standing over the stove during the prep time and really improves the texture of the finished dish. Then all you have to do is pour everything into a casserole dish, add a topping of breadcrumbs, and bake until the filling is bubbling and the top is crispy and golden brown. Serve the summer squash casserole with pork chops or any dish you’ve made on your smoker.

Cook’s Note

Resist the temptation to toss together all the squash with the oil, salt, and pepper. If you don’t do it in batches, as noted in the recipe, the salt will draw out too much liquid from the squash waiting to be roasted, and the casserole will be soupy.