Is it wise to trade queens to prevent your opponent from castling in chess?
Even if the queen is off the board and your opponent can’t castle, it does not mean that you will have a strong attack against his king. Queen is the strongest piece in chess and without your queen the pressure will have less force. But there are positions in which,even without a queen, the king is under heavy pressure. Even in endgame(few pieces) there are positions in which the king is under pressure.
Pressuring the king on the center, by trading Queens to prevent your opponent from castling ,is not the only reason why you trade queens. There are other good reasons.
Trade queens in general(and not only to prevent castling) :
If you have a material advantage.
Without queens you reduced your opponent’s chance you have a haymaker on you. You also have a winning endgame.
If your opponent has pawn weaknesses.
Queen trades favors you if your opponent have pawn weaknesses because you can focus at pressuring them without worrying that he might develop a strong attack on your king. Pawn weakness is a major liability at endgame.
If your opponent has a strong attack against your king.
Without Queens the pressure will lessen.