Costco Chef Hak’s Spaghetti Squash Marinara Review

For individuals watching their carbohydrates or calories, spaghetti squash is used as a lower calorie substitute for higher calorie pasta. I’ve never seen or tried a pre-packaged spaghetti squash marinara like this Chef Hak’s product from Costco. I’m usually a pasta girl but wanted some a bit lighter so I picked up this dish. Does it make me want to trade in my regular pasta for spaghetti squash?

If quick and convenient meals are your thing, you’re in luck because Costco carries a ton of them! Like the Kevin’s Teriyaki-Style Chicken Stir-Fry, Vicky’s Kitchen Roast Turkey Breast, Kirkland Signature Beef Pot Roast, Ajinomoto Vegetable Yakisoba, Rana Fettuccine Grilled Seasoned White Chicken & Alfredo Sauce, Kirkland Signature Smoked Pulled Pork and the Montana’s Texas Style BBQ Pork Back Ribs.

Location in Store

We bought this for lunch while travelling in Kona, Hawaii. This was found in the refrigerated deli section, near the fresh pasta. The item number is 1779038.

Taste

I really enjoyed this dish! The flavor is delicious, the sauce has real chunks of tomato and is really nice tasting, it isn’t too acidic or sweet. Of course it doesn’t taste exactly like spaghetti but if you’ve had spaghetti squash before, this is a good version of it.

The parmesan cheese isn’t super strong but it’s definitely noticeable which I like. I’m a big fa of parmesan and if I’d had parmesan available I would have added more.

The texture of the squash is nice and firm, not soggy. Some pieces of squash are a bit hard and not as spaghetti like as others but will break apart with a gentle tap of your fork. If you’re hoping the squash to taste identical to real spaghetti, you won’t find that here. It’s very apparent it’s not real pasta and it’s squash but it’s still very enjoyable.

Cost

The box comes with two 16 ounce pouches and costs $12.69 USD which isn’t cheap. There’s not that much spaghetti, I think two pouches could serve four adults.

Convenience

We used the recommending heating instructions and cooked the spaghetti squash in the skillet. It was done in just a few minutes and turned out fine. I think microwaving the spaghetti squash might have resulted in it tasting a bit more soggy.

The best before date listed on the package was only about three weeks from when we purchased it and it needs to be kept refrigerated. I’m not sure about freezing it as I feel the texture of the squash wouldn’t be as good once thawed.

You can dress this up by adding extra cheese or some chicken, shrimp or ground beef. I really like meat with my pasta so I probably would add some additional protein next time I have it.

Nutrition

Calories

One cup of spaghetti squash contains 90 calories, six grams of fat, 350 milligrams of sodium, seven grams of carbohydrates, one gram of fiber, two grams of sugar and two grams of protein.

That’s not many calories or carbohydrates at all which is why a lot of people replace regular spaghetti with spaghetti squash. It’s also really low in protein so it won’t keep you full for that long. I expected the fiber to be higher as well considering it’s squash.

Ingredients

I absolutely love the simple, whole ingredients in this spaghetti squash. I appreciate the use of olive oil over canola or soybean oil and also like that there’s sea salt and fresh vine-ripened california tomatoes.

This spaghetti squash is gluten-free, soy-free and vegetarian but does contain milk from the parmesan cheese.

Scoring

Taste: 8/10

Cost: 6.5/10

Convenience: 9.5/10

Nutrition: 9/10

Overall

Give it a try!

I love pasta and am okay with eating a few carbs so I probably wouldn’t jump to buy this again. However, it’s delicious and if I were following a lower carb diet or watching my calories I would absolutely repurchase this.

Have you tried the Chef Hak’s Spaghetti Squash Marinara? What did you think of it?

Please note that this review was not paid for or sponsored by any third party. This product was purchased by Costcuisine for the purpose of producing this review. The opinions in this review are strictly those of Costcuisine. Costcuisine is not affiliated with Costco or any of its suppliers. In the event that Costcuisine receives compensation for a post from the manufacturer of a product or some other third party, the arrangement will be clearly disclosed (including where the manufacturer of a product provides Costcuisine with a free sample of the product).