8 Creative Ways To Cook With Zucchini

Whether you’re home-growing zucchini in your backyard or simply cruising the farmers' market stands, you’re likely faced with a question: How do I cook zucchini in a new way? Sure, you can cut it into rounds and roast them or simply sauté half-moons of zucchini, but it can all get a bit, dare we say, boring. However, that doesn’t need to be the case! There are so many ways to transform zucchini into a meal, from blending it into soup, making a grilled side salad, or stuffing them for an easy dinner. It’s a rare vegetable that is at home in so many preparations. So, this year, when faced with a glut of autumn zucchini, rest assured that there are as many ways to cook it as there are days in the season.

If you’re wondering what the difference is between zucchini and summer squash, the answer is not much, beyond the colour. You can use long, skinny, green zucchini or yellow summer squash interchangeably. 

9 CREATIVE WAYS TO COOK WITH ZUCCHINI

ZUCCHINI ON THE GRILL

is thisZucchini is one of those vegetables that takes naturally to the grill. As a relatively blank palate, zucchini benefits from the smoke and char imparted by a hot grill, and is relatively quick to cook. Here are some ideas for grilling zucchini:

• A Greek-inspired side: Of the foods that go best with grilled zucchini, shrimp might be at the top of the list. In our recipe for Greek Grilled Shrimp with Feta-Tzatziki, you’ll toss half-moons of zucchini in your Hybrid BBQ Grill Pan until lightly charred before doing the same with marinated shrimp. These get served with a feta-enriched tzatziki for a quick and easy meal that makes the  most of the grill while still tasting fresh.
• Easy grilled planks: One of the few veg that doesn’t slide easily through the grates, planks or halved zucchini can be oiled and placed directly on the heated grill to cook until tender and charred, 3 to 4 minutes per side.

ZUCCHINI IN THE OVEN

The oven is the place to go if you want to cook stuffed zucchini, a zucchini casserole, or roasted zucchini that turns meltingly tender in the oven. Here are some ways to cook zucchini in the oven:

• Melty zucchini coins: Cut zucchini into 5-cm chunks and toss with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Place cut side-down on a rimmed baking sheet at least 5-cm apart and roast in a 190ºC oven for 25 to 35 minutes, or until golden brown and extremely tender. Serve tossed with arugula, burrata, toasted almonds, and chopped Castelvetrano olives for an easy dinner salad.

• Layered vegetable bake: Zucchini pairs beautifully with other vegetables in dishes like Skillet Tian, where zucchini, eggplant, potatoes, and tomatoes bake together under a savory Parmesan-herb topping

ZUCCHINI ON THE STOVETOP

Cooking zucchini on the stovetop requires a little patience—in order to avoid it getting limp or watery, you want to use enough oil and salt to draw out the water and caramelise the zucchini. Giving it a bit of space in the pan is useful, too.

• Zucchini in pasta: Sautéed zucchini is quick, flavourful, and adds body to pasta, whether it’s creamy pasta dishes or spicy Tteokbokki Mafaldine. 

• Zucchini kebabs: Zucchini is sturdy enough to thread onto stainless steel skewers to make Greek Chicken Kebabs with Grilled Olives, where the zucchini cooks quickly while soaking up plenty of flavour.

RAW ZUCCHINI

Perhaps the perfect way to use up zucchini is raw. We won’t try to convince you to get into zoodles, but instead make the case for blending zucchini into soup or shaving it into a salad. Here are ideas for raw zucchini:

• Creamy Zucchini-Yogurt Soup: Zucchini offers a silky upgrade to a classic summer cucumber soup. Blend 2 zucchini with 3 cucumbers, a small bunch of scallions, ½ cup Greek yoghurt, ¾ cup olive oil, ½ cup fresh basil, and ¼ cup lemon juice for an easy, refreshing soup. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve topped with more yogurt, basil, olive oil, and freshly ground salt and pepper.

• Shaved zucchini salad: Use a Y-shaped vegetable peeler to make fat ribbons of zucchini. Toss them with olive oil, sherry vinegar, shaved Parmesan, chopped fresh mint, toasted pine nuts, and a sprinkling of Aleppo pepper for an easy salad.