Butternut Squash Risotto
Posted Nov 21, 2025
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This butternut squash risotto recipe is rich, creamy and easy to make with ingredients like Arborio rice, butternut squash, white wine and Parmesan cheese. It’s an irresistibly delicious, slightly fancy fall side dish perfect for any occasion.
These is just so comforting and delicious about a warm bowl of risotto, and this fall-inspired butternut squash risotto recipe is a delicious twist on the classic dish.
Butternut squash is cooked with onion and garlic in butter, then blended until it’s silky smooth. This mixture is added to the sauce making it extra creamy and flavorful.
Serve it with your favorite dinner recipes like pistachio chicken, pot roast, maple salmon and more. Or your favorite Italian recipes!
Something to note, just like any quality risotto recipe, this butternut squash risotto does take a while (40 to 60 minutes) to cook with constant stirring. But I promise you it’s so worth it!
Butternut Squash Risotto: Ingredients & Substitutions
- Butternut squash. you can use a fresh squash, or save a ton of time and energy and use frozen butternut squash.
- Salted Butter. unsalted butter works well too.
- Onion. I suggest a sweet white or yellow onion.
- Dry white wine. The best choice is an acidic dry white wine that isn’t sweet. Great options include Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio. Tip: Always use a wine you’d actually drink. If it tastes good on it’s own, it will taste good in your risotto.
- Chicken broth. There really is no substitution here.
- Arborio Rice. Same here, Aborio rice is the essence of risotto!
- Parmesan Cheese. you can substitute up to half of the parmesan cheese for grated Romano cheese if you’d like.
How to Make Butternut Squash Risotto
Let’s walk through this recipe together! And don’t forget to watch the video.
Prepare the Butternut Squash
Remember, you can skip this step if you use frozen butternut squash!
But, if you want to use a fresh squash, begin by peeling, deseeding and finely dicing a small butternut squash (should be just over 1 pound).
This is probably the most time-consuming part of this recipe because Peeling a butternut squash isn’t always the easiest thing to do.
So, if you wanted to, you could bake the squash in the oven. After you halve and deseed the squash, put it face-down in a baking dish and cover it with aluminum foil. Bake at 425 degrees Fahrenheit (218 degrees Celsius) until it’s soft to the touch and does not spring back when pressed down.
Then you can scoop out the flesh, blend it and save it for later. To make the risotto this way, you’d cook the onion and garlic and then add the squash with the chicken broth.
Make sure to cut the butternut squash into small cubes. The smaller it is the faster it will cook!
Make the Butternut Squash Risotto
Once it is ready, cook the butternut squash, onion, garlic, and 2 Tablespoons of butter in a 5-quart saucepan over medium heat until all the squash and onions are soft, stirring often.
Make sure to cover this dish in between stirring, the steam helps cook the squash faster.
This takes about 10-20 minutes depending on how small you dice the butternut squash or if you’re using frozen (sorter).
While the squash is cooking, put 1 cup of chicken broth into the container of a blender and set it aside.
Also while the squash is cooking (multitasking at it’s finest), bring the remaining 3 cups of chicken broth to a simmer in a saucepan. Reduce heat and keep simmering with the lid on while you’re making the recipe.
Once the butternut squash is soft, transfer the butternut mixture to the blender with the chicken broth and blend until smooth (about 40-60 seconds).
Next, melt the remaining 2 Tablespoons of butter in a 5-quart saucepan, add the rice and stir to coat.
Add ½ cup dry white wine and cook over medium-low heat until the wine is mostly absorbed (this takes about 3 minutes). If you don’t want to use wine, you can use chicken broth here.
Stir to ensure the wine is absorbed, then add the blended butternut squash mixture and a ½ cup of the simmering broth.
Continue cooking, stirring occasionally until the liquid is mostly absorbed, making sure to scrape the bottom and sides as you stir so nothing burns!
Then stir, and repeat until the broth is used and rice is cooked, this takes anywhere from 45 minutes to 1 hour of adding broth and stirring. Risotto is a labor of love but so worth it, and please don’t try to rush it!
Once the rice is cooked, turn off the heat and add the sea salt, pepper, parmesan cheese and stir until combined and creamy.
Serve
Garnish with fresh sage if desired for a pop of green, a dash of salt and pepper and a sprinkle of parmesan cheese. I suggest serving this easy risotto recipe alongside your favorite Italian recipes or main dish recipes, here are some suggestions:
- Pistachio chicken – the butternut squash and pistachios really complement each other well.
- Homemade Meatballs – classic Italian dish to serve with butternut squash risotto!
- Turkey meatloaf or classic meatloaf taste great served with this recipe.
- Also try it as a Thanksgiving side dish with roast turkey!
Store/Freeze
Store leftover butternut squash risotto in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 2 months.
Reheat, covered, in the microwave or on the stovetop over low heat.
Butternut Squash Risotto Recipe FAQS
When I created this recipe I wanted to cut out the ‘roasting” step, so we just dice the squash and cook it in the same pot in which we’ll make the risotto – saving time and dishes. However, you can roast the butternut squash up to 2 days in advance to use in this recipe if you’d prefer.
Always use a wine you’d actually drink. If it tastes good on it’s own, it will taste good in your butternut squash risotto. Use a dry white wine with bright acidity and avoid sweet wines. My top suggestions are: Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Grigio.
Absolutely, simply substitute chicken broth for the wine.
Arborio rice is the most common choice because its high starch content creates a naturally creamy texture. Avoid long-grain rice, it will not give a creamy texture that is critical for risotto.
Yes, you can make it then store it in a covered baking dish in the refrigerator. Reheat, covered in the oven set to 300 degrees Fahrenheit (149 degrees Celsius) until warmed through.
Slice off both ends, peel with a sturdy vegetable peeler, then cut the squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Dice the flesh into small cubes for quick cooking.
If you make and love my recipes, it would mean so much to me if you would leave a comment and rating! And don’t forget to follow along on Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, TikTok and Youtube – be sure to tag @joyfoodsunshine and use the hashtag #joyfoodsunshine so I can see your creations!
Butternut Squash Risotto
Video
Ingredients
- 16 ounces butternut squash (diced)
- 1 cup onion f(inely diced, about ½ a medium onion).
- 1 Tablespoon minced garlic
- 4 cups chicken broth (divided)
- ½ cup dry white wine
- 4 Tablespoons salted butter (divided)
- 1 cup arborio rice
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt (or to taste)
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Peel, deseed and finely dice a small butternut squash (should be just over 1 pound)
- Cook the butternut squash onion, garlic and 2 Tablespoons of butter covered in a 5-quart saucepan over medium heat until the and butternut squash and onion are soft, stirring often. This takes 10-20 minutes depending on how small you dice the butternut squash or if you’re using frozen.
- While the squash is cooking, put 1 cup of chicken broth into the container of a blender. Set aside.
- Bring remaining 3 cups of chicken broth to a simmer in a 3-quart saucepan. Reduce heat and keep simmering with the lid on.
- Once the butternut squash is soft, transfer the butternut mixture to the blender with the broth and blend until smooth (about 40-60 seconds).
- Next, melt the remaining 2 Tablespoons of butter in a 5-quart saucepan.
- Add the rice and stir to coat.
- Add ½ cup dry white wine and cook over medium-low heat until mostly absorbed (takes about 3 minutes). (If you don’t want to use wine, just use the chicken broth.)
- Stir to ensure broth (or wine) is absorbed, then add the blended butternut squash mixture and a ½ cup of the simmering broth and cook stirring occasionally until the liquid is mostly absorbed, making sure to scrape the bottom/sides as you stir.
- Then stir, and repeat until the broth is used and rice is cooked (about 45-60 minutes)
- Turn off the heat and add sea salt, pepper, parmesan cheese and stir until combined and creamy.
- Garnish with fresh sage if desired for a pop of green and enjoy!
Notes
- Butternut squash. you can use a fresh squash, or save a ton of time and energy and use frozen butternut squash.
- Dry white wine. The best choice is an acidic dry white wine that isn’t sweet. Great options include Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio. Tip: Always use a wine you’d actually drink. If it tastes good on it’s own, it will taste good in your risotto.
- Chicken broth. There really is no substitution here.
- Arborio Rice. Same here, Aborio rice is the essence of risotto!
- Parmesan Cheese. you can substitute up to half of the parmesan cheese for grated Romano cheese if you’d like.
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
