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I love adding simple, fast side dish recipes to this site. People regularly tell me that they’re always on the hunt for ways to make dinner a little more interesting, ways to change things up a little bit with out making a big fuss or making anything harder. Enter this Sautéed Squash with Feta and Hot Honey.This is the third installment in my “feta with hot honey” series (okay, that’s not really a thing, but it is my third installment). I shared my favorite Whipped Feta & Goat Cheese with Hot Honey back in the Fall, and to date, it is the most popular, heavily trafficked (?) recipe on this blog.

Easy Sauteed Squash with Hot Honey Fried Feta
Easy Sauteed Squash with Hot Honey Fried Feta

Why we love this Sautéed Squash with Feta and Hot Honey

A couple of weeks ago, I shared Hot Honey Roasted Feta, which was met with much enthusiasm as well. It shows me that you guys enjoy feta, just like I do, and I think it’s fun to try new ways to show it off. Fluffy and whipped or melty and roasted – either of those methods of cookery are beautiful when applied to this salty, briny Greek cheese.

Today, we’re adding one more method of cheese cooking into the mix: pan frying. When you lay large, formidable slices of feta into a hot pan and drench them in honey and a smattering of crushed chili flakes, it gets all toasty and crispy. Browned and beautiful.

This Sautéed Squash with Feta and Hot Honey is INSANELY GOOD AND WONDERFUL. Because brown food is delicious. Can you see the crunchy fried cheese bits in the photos? Man are they tasty …

What I love about this recipe is that fact that the squash pieces act like little sponges for the salty feta and sweet honey flavors. They just soak it all up. Squash of all makes and models are good for that across the board, really, like tofu is. They’re wonderful vehicles for flavor, what with all of their mildness.

Easy Sauteed Squash with Hot Honey Fried Feta
Easy Sauteed Squash with Hot Honey Fried Feta 7
Squash with Feta

What You’ll Need to Make This Sautéed Squash with Feta and Hot Honey

This is the fastest, coolest recipe – I just love it. I mean, you could just saute the squash and then throw some crumbled feta right on top and call it good. Yes, you could do that.

But, if you can get your hands on the larger “chunk” feta that is now widely available at just about any supermarket, you can slice it into big, pan-fryable pieces that get nice and crusty as they cook. All that surface area really loves its time on the griddle, and it makes the whole dish.

Sautéed Squash with Feta and Hot Honey INGREDIENTS

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
  • 1 large yellow squash, sliced into ¼-inch-thick rounds
  • 1 large zucchini, sliced into ¼-inch-thick rounds
  • 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves, roughly chopped
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
  • 8-ounce block feta (or whatever size you can find it in), sliced into wide planks (I usually get three or four)
  • 2 tablespoons honey, give or take
  • 1 teaspoon crushed red chili flakes
Squash with Feta
Easy Sauteed Squash with Hot Honey Fried Feta

How to Make This Easy Sautéed Squash with Feta

This is yet another super quick and simple summery side dish and it really only requires like, 10 minutes of your time and attention. Not too bad, right? We’ll begin by just getting a nice sear on our zucchini and summer squash, making sure to season them generously with black pepper and a little salt (remember, the feta is very salty). Then, on to crisping up that feta. We’ll drizzle some sweet, floral honey onto the planks of feta and a pinch of chili flakes for heat. This is the point in the recipe when everything gets so exciting. The cheese gets crusty and will sizzle enticingly in all of that honey, and it’s just TO DIE FOR.

Sautéed Squash with Feta and Hot Honey DIRECTIONS

  1. Add 1 TBSP of the oil to a large non-stick skillet set over medium heat. Sauté the zucchini and yellow squash, stirring regularly, until tender; about 4 or 5 minutes. Transfer to a platter or plate and set aside while you toast up the feta.
  2. In the same skillet, add the remaining TBSP of olive oil. Place the planks of feta into the pan and drizzle each with honey and a sprinkling of the chili flakes. Don’t move the cheese once it’s in the pan, as that will interrupt the crust that forms on the bottom (i.e. the most delicious thing). Allow the feta to crisp up underneath and fry until golden brown and “weepy”; about 3 minutes or so.
  3. Flip the cheese and let it warm up on the other side for just 30 seconds or so and then transfer to the platter with the squash, just laying them right over top. I like to break up big pieces of feta and serve them with the cooked squash.
Easy Sauteed Squash with Hot Honey Fried Feta
Easy Sauteed Squash with Hot Honey Fried Feta
Easy Sauteed Squash with Hot Honey Fried Feta

If you like the looks of this Easy Sauteed Squash with Feta and Spicy Honey, you might want to check out:

Brown Butter Creamed Corn Stuffed Zucchini Boats

Blackened Garlic Butter Catfish with Summer Squash

Warm Radicchio Salad with Squash and Caramelized Dates

Creamy Cacio e Pepe Spaghetti Squash Boats

Lemon Cream Spaghetti with Hard Roasted Vegetables

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Easy Sautéed Squash with Hot Honey Fried Feta

Easy Sauteed Squash with Hot Honey Fried Feta
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A quick and beautiful small plate or side dish that makes the most of summertime squash in a sweet and savory way. 

Ingredients

Scale
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
  • 1 large yellow squash, sliced into 1/4-inch-thick rounds
  • 1 large zucchini, sliced into 1/4-inch-thick rounds
  • 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves, roughly chopped
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
  • 8-ounce block feta (or whatever size you can find it in), sliced into planks (I usually get three or four slices per block)
  • 2 tablespoons honey, give or take
  • 1 teaspoon crushed red chili flakes, or to taste

Instructions

  1. Add 1 tablespoon of the oil to a large non-stick skillet set over medium heat. Sauté the zucchini and yellow squash, along with the thyme and a pinch of salt and pepper (the feta is salty!), until tender; about 4 or 5 minutes. Transfer to a platter or plate and set aside.
  2. In the same skillet, add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil. Place the planks of feta into the pan and drizzle each with honey and a sprinkling of the chili flakes. Don’t move the cheese once it’s in the pan, as that will interrupt the crust that forms on the bottom (i.e. the most delicious thing). Allow the feta to crisp up underneath and fry until golden brown and “weepy”; about 3 minutes or so.
  3. Flip the cheese and let it warm up on the other side for just 30 seconds or so and then transfer to the platter with the squash, just laying them right over top. I like to break up big pieces of feta and serve them with the cooked squash.