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This Roasted Zucchini Salad is so flavorful and healthy, you'll want to make it over and over again! Seasoned with lemon-parsley dressing, it requires only 5 ingredients!
Don’t you crave this tasty, fresh, and zesty Zucchini Salad? This classic Italian recipe is a staple at my home and I think it’ll become your favorite way to enjoy zucchini!
This Zucchini Salad pairs well with practically any dish, or you can enjoy it just on its own. I love to eat it with fresh mozzarella cheese and a slice of crusty bread. There is just something special about this combination.
Video Tutorial
How to Pick the Best Zucchini?
Zucchini is the main ingredient here, so you’ll want to make sure you pick the best. When shopping for zucchini, try to find small(6 to 9 inches in length) and relatively thin ones. The zucchini should feel heavy for its size. The skin should look smooth, with a dark green color, and be free of blemishes.
Zucchini Salad Dressing
The dressing is simple and very tasty. It's made with:
Olive Oil. Use high-quality extra virgin olive oil for extra health benefits and extra flavor . California Olive Ranch is my favorite and I always use it.
Lemon Juice. Use freshly squeezed lemon juice.
Garlic. You can skip it if you don't like it, or use a bit less.
Parsley. You can substitute with fresh dill, mint, or cilantro, if preferred.
Salt.
How to Make Zucchini Salad
1. Cut the zucchini in half and slice it into thin strips.
2. Heat up a large, non-stick griddle on medium-high heat. Fry the zucchini without any oil, for about 3 minutes on each side, until they get brown marks and soften a little.
3. Prepare the dressing by whisking the rest of the ingredients together.
4. Pour the dressing over grilled zucchini and mix well. Serve warm or cold.
I can’t wait for you to try this salad! Now’s the time to get your fresh zucchini at any farmer’s market. Or perhaps you have a garden and soon you’ll have your own zucchini? In any case, share your feedback and ENJOY!!!
Can I use summer squash instead? Yes! Summer squash works, too.
Is this Zucchini Salad Healthy? Yes. Since zucchini isn't fully cooked through, it still retains a lot of nutrients. The salad dressing is also very healthy.
Is it Vegan? Yes. This Zucchini Salad is suitable for vegans.
Is it Keto Friendly? Yes. Zucchini is very low in carbs (only 3g net carbs per cup).
How to Store Zucchini Salad? Refrigerate it in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Can I use other vegetables? Yes. You can also use pumpkin or eggplant instead of zucchini.
THIS ROASTED ZUCCHINI SALAD IS PERFECT FOR A SUMMER PICNIC!
What to Serve Zucchini Salad With
Serve it on the side with EVERYTHING! Seriously, this salad makes a great addition to any meal.
What to do with extra zucchini
SHRIMP AND ZUCCHINI SKILLET
CREAMY ZUCCHINI SAUCE
SHRIMP SCAMPI WITH ZUCCHINI NOODLES
ZUCCHINI PIZZA ON BREAD
EASY SHRIMP AND ZUCCHINI SKILLET
If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to share your photos with meon Pinterest! I always check!
This Ultimate Zucchini Salad is so flavorful and healthy, you’ll want to make it all summer long! Seasoned with lemon-parsley dressing, it requires only 5 ingredients!
Cut the zucchini in half and slice it into thin strips.
Heat up a large, non-stick griddle on medium-high heat. Fry the zucchini without any oil, for about 3 minutes on each side, until they get brown marks and soften a little.
Prepare the dressing by whisking the rest of the ingredients together.
Pour the dressing over grilled zucchini and mix well. Serve warm or cold.
Mushy veggies are also often the result of overcooking. When the interior is loaded with moisture, you have to cook it for much longer to evaporate all of the water and avoid the interior having the unappealing, spongy, raw texture that eggplant and zucchini are notorious for.
There's no need to peel zucchini. In fact, the skin is a big source of zucchini nutrition (the deep green color is a dead giveaway) so you definitely want to leave the skin on. How to cut zucchini: after giving the zucchini squash a good rinse under cold water, slice off the stem and discard it.
The main problem that confronts the cook when preparing zucchini is its wateriness. Zucchini is 95 percent water (among vegetables, only lettuce contains more water) and will become soupy if it is just thrown into a hot pan.
In fact, salting before cooking is actually Daniel Boulud's tip for prepping crispier eggplant, and zucchini is much the same. Science is on the side of salting in advance. When salt is sprinkled on the flesh of a water-dense fruit like zucchini and left to sit for a while, a process known as osmosis occurs.
The next time you roast vegetables, add some cornstarch. Yes, cornstarch—that box in your pantry is the secret to a super-crispy exterior on veggies, from potatoes to cauliflower. Cornstarch is commonly used to coat proteins like chicken or beef to achieve a crispy exterior, so why not use it with vegetables?
Yes, you can roast vegetables in a casserole dish or even a cake pan. But the high sides make it harder for the water inside of the vegetables to evaporate during baking, setting you up for sogginess. Instead? Use a simple rimmed baking sheet.
If it feels very soft or mushy when you squeeze it, it has likely gone bad. Mushy texture: A spoiled zucchini has a mushy or stringy texture when you cut it, and it may feel slimy to the touch.
Once the zucchini is caramelizing, you'll continue to cook it until it's until tender all the way through—a paring knife or a fork should slip in without much resistance—but not yet mushy.
Don't overcrowd the pan, which can cause the zucchini to steam instead of roast. Unless you have time to salt and drain the zucchini, wait to salt it until after they're cooked so the salt doesn't draw out the moisture in the oven—this can lead to sogginess.
Mushy/soft/stringy flesh texture - Along with these brown/dark spots, the flesh of the zucchini may begin to look and feel mushy, stringy, and soft. If your zucchini looks stringy, not firm and meaty, it's time to be discarded. Off smell - Zucchini has a neutral, "green" scent.
How to Tell If Zucchini Has Gone Bad. Bad zucchini will feel rubbery or slimy to the touch. It may also have an off-putting smell and dark or fuzzy moldy spots. The interior of bad zucchini may be off-white to brownish with stringy, mushy flesh and large, hard seeds.
The secret to zucchini with the best flavor and texture is roasting it in a 450°F oven. Roasting zucchini at a high temperature instead of baking or sautéing helps develop browning and a slight char on the outside, which keeps it from getting soggy.
By sprinkling the cut vegetable with salt and letting it stand in a colander over the sink, water will drip out, leaving behind a firmer vegetable. The zucchini can then be more easily sauteed or roasted to bring out its natural sugars and, hence, flavor.
Zucchini thrives in a dry environment, so pop it into the crisper drawer whole, preferably in a plastic or paper bag with one end open for ventilation. The minimal humidity will keep it from going bad. Stored properly, it'll last one or two weeks, though you'll probably see the skin shrivel as the days pass.
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