How do we love thee, zucchini? Let us count the ways. You’re healthy and tasty, with practically no time or skills required to turn you into a delicious meal. You’re an easy low-carb swap for our favorite comfort food recipes. And, you can be whipped up into a mouthwatering breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack or dessert. Here are 63 zucchini recipes that prove it.
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Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
1. Zucchini ‘Fries’
When that fry craving hits (and you know it will), whip up this healthier version instead of the usual deep-fried taters.
Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
2. Mini Spanish Tortilla with Zucchini
Amazing news: This whole thing is for you, and makes a mean breakfast, lunch or dinner.
Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
3. Zucchini Ricotta Galette
This savory pie is basically foolproof, thanks to premade pie crust.
Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
4. Pesto Zoodles
A healthy coating of homemade basil pesto takes zucchini noodles to a whole new level.
Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
5. Zoodle Stir-Fry
Skip the rice in favor of squash. It’s flavorful and filling, and it comes together in no time.
Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
6. Baked Zucchini ‘Ziti’ Spirals with Mozzarella
This has all the cheesiness but none of the carbs of the original, thanks to sneaky zucchini ribbons.
Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
7. Easy Zucchini Bread
All you need is one bowl to mix the ingredients and a little patience as the loaf bakes.
Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
8. Caprese Salad with Grilled Zucchini
Call it summer on a plate. Just don’t skimp on the fresh basil (or cheese).
Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
9. Zucchini Rice
Rice is nice, but when faced with an abundance of zucchini, you can transform it into an equally delicious (and easy-to-make) side.
Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
10. Baked Sesame-Ginger Salmon in Parchment
Love cooking, but hate doing dishes? We found your dream dinner, and it’s ready in 30 minutes.
Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
11. Easy One-Pan Ratatouille
While the traditional French version of this dish is slow-cooked on the stove, ours is delightfully hands-off.
Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
12. Zoodles with Tomato Sauce and Mozzarella
While we wish we could eat pasta every night, we’ll settle for this lighter version instead.
Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
13. Easy Zucchini Chips
Sorry, potatoes. There’s a new snack in town.
Image credit: Quentin Bacon/Cook Like a Pro
14. Ina Garten’s Baked Spinach and Zucchini
The Barefoot Contessa adds basmati rice and two different types of cheese to keep this dish interesting (and decadent).
Image credit: Healthfully Ever After
15. Sweet Corn, Tomato and Zucchini Grain Salad with Peach-Dijon Vinaigrette
All it takes is 15 minutes to transform some gorgeous seasonal produce into an even more stunning salad.
Image credit: Helen Cathcart/Tuscany
16. Zucchini & Tomato Ragù
Eat it in a bowl for a quick lunch, serve it as a side dish with grilled meat or add a poached egg and call it breakfast. How versatile is that?
Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
17. Cheater’s Vegetarian Pizza with Zucchini and Bell Peppers
This pie starts with store-bought seeded flatbread, which remains crisp underneath a pile of thinly shaved summery vegetables.
Image credit: Photo: Mark Weinberg/Styling: Erin McDowell
18. Low-Carb Zucchini Enchiladas
These enchiladas have a secret: They’re made with zucchini instead of tortillas, so they have all the gooey, cheesy goodness, minus the carbs.
Image credit: Liz Moody/Healthier Together
19. Zucchini Noodle Pad See Ew
If you want a vegetarian version of this one, simply omit the beef. Having seconds is optional…but encouraged.
Image credit: Nassima Rothacker/Happy Food
20. Easy Vegan Pesto-Parmesan Spaghetti with Zucchini
Here’s proof that plant-based cooking doesn’t have to be difficult or time-consuming.
Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
21. Meal-Prep Turkey Meatballs with Zucchini Noodles
Balance out the rich and juicy meatballs with these vitamin A- and C-packed zoodles.
Image credit: Photo: Michael Marquand/Styling: Jodi Moreno
22. Kelp and Zucchini Noodle Pad Thai
One taste of the peanut-tamari sauce and you’ll wonder what you were missing all this time.
Image credit: David Frenkiel/Little Green Kitchen
23. Zucchini Carbonara with Parsnip ‘Pancetta’
Mixing spiralized zucchini into the spaghetti ramps up the vegetable content, but still has a similar flavor and texture to the original pasta dish.
Image credit: Aubrie Pick/Kitchen Remix
24. Minty-Fresh Zucchini Salad with Marinated Feta
This lightning-fast salad pairs marinated feta with raw zucchini for a new take on the summer squash.
Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
25. Cold Lemon Zoodles
When it’s too damn hot to turn on the stove, just don’t. These zucchini noodles require zero cooking.
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Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
26. Ketogenic Baked Eggs and Zoodles with Avocado
Even if you’re not on the keto diet, you won’t be able to resist these cuties.
Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
27. Zoodles with Summer Vegetables
When the farmers market (or your backyard garden) is overflowing with zucchini, there’s only one thing to do: make noodles.
Image credit: Simon Smith/Vegan 100
28. Cheesy Raw Vegan Zucchini Lasagna
Introducing the clean-eating version of your favorite comfort food.
Image credit: Laura Edwards/The Yoga Kitchen Plan
29. Zoodles with Avocado and Mango Sauce
The creamy sauce is spicy, but you can make it mild by omitting the chile (if you really want).
Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
30. Cheater’s Skillet Lasagna with Corn and Cherry Tomatoes
This beauty has the same cheesy goodness you crave (and then some), minus the hours of assembly time the traditional version requires.
Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
31. 20-Minute Shrimp Scampi Zoodles
Buttery and bright but without all the carbs (so you can eat it every night if you want to).
Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
32. Creamy Gochujang Zoodles
One of the biggest benefits of zucchini noodles is that you can load them with as much creamy, dreamy sauce as you like.
Image credit: Skinnytaste
33. Grilled Pesto Chicken Couscous Bowls
The pesto is made from spinach and arugula, which is just as flavorful as basil but not quite as expensive.
Image credit: Inspiralized
34. Instant Cup of Noodles with Spiralized Vegetables
It’s like our grocery-store guilty pleasure, but a million times healthier.
Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
35. Sheet-Pan Lemon Butter Veggies and Sausage
Hands-off dinners and almost-zero dishes, these are a few of our favorite things. This meal delivers on both fronts.
Image credit: Damn Delicious
36. Cheesy Zucchini Gratin
This would be just as at home in a holiday spread as it is on an alfresco dinner table.
Image credit: Gentl and Hyers/Open Kitchen
37. Squash and Squash Blossom Frittata
If you can get your hands on squash blossoms at the farmers market, lucky you.
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Image credit: Photo: Michael Marquand/Styling: Jodi Moreno
38. Pesto Quinoa Bowls with Roasted Veggies and Labneh
The veggies are simply roasted with some olive oil, all in the same pan, so they’re as easy to throw together as they are pretty.
Image credit: Carina Skrobecki/Simply Real Eating
39. Turkey Sausage and Veggie Polenta Bowls
Polenta feels super fancy and luxurious, but it’s surprisingly quick and versatile. Plus, you can make it as veggie-forward as you so desire.
Image credit: Nisha Vora/The Vegan Instant Pot Cookbook
40. Instant Pot Vegetable Lasagna with Vegan Basil Ricotta
Since everything gets cooked in one appliance, you won’t heat up the entire house while channeling your inner nonna.
Image credit: Diana Kuan/Red Hot Kitchen
41. Easy Stir-Fried Rice Cakes with XO Sauce
The rice cakes are chewy, sticky and absorb the flavors that surround them, so the sauce is extra important (and tasty).
Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
42. Cheater’s Grilled Whole Chicken and Vegetables
The bird and the veggies all get cooked on the same grates, so everything is ready at the same time.
Image credit: Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
43. Rainbow Vegetable Skewers
You can’t have ROYGBIV without the green, and thus, the zucchini.
Image credit: David Loftus/Ultimate Veg
44. Vegetable Tagine with Fluffy Couscous
Any veggies will work here, but when zucchini are in season, they’re *chef’s kiss*
Image credit: Antonio Nascimento/Radiant: The Cookbook
45. Cheesy Pesto Chips
They’re savory, crispy and hard to walk away from. Good thing they’re healthy too.
Image credit: Photo: Nico Schinco/Styling: Heath Goldman
46. Indian-Inspired Kitchari Bowls
Inspired by a centuries-old Ayurvedic dish, this stew is energizing and tummy settling, and won’t weigh you down.
Image credit: Erin McDowell
47. Zucchini Salad with Lemon and Parmesan
Peel raw zucchini into crisp-tender ribbons, add tart lemon juice and mustard and finish with a little Parmesan cheese. Suddenly you’ve got a meal that’s even better than a bowl of pasta.
Image credit: Adeena Sussman/Sababa
48. Freekeh Vegetable Soup
Freekeh is an ancient grain that adds body and protein to this veggie-packed soup.
Image credit: Abra Berens/Ruffage
49. Blistered Green Beans with Tomatoes, Pounded Walnuts and Raw Summer Squash
This whole dish is ready in about 15 minutes, and it’ll be gone from the table even faster than that.
RELATED: 19 Summer Squash Recipes We Bet You’ve Never Tried
Image credit: Helene Dujardin/The Essential Vegan Keto Cookbook
50. Vegan Keto Coconut Curry
We’ll look the other way if you want to lick the bowl.
Image credit: The Modern Proper
51. Roasted Zucchini with Parmesan
When the produce is good, you don’t need to complicate things.
Image credit: Foodie Crush
52. Grilled Zucchini with Goat Cheese and Pine Nuts
We love the way the cheese gets all melty when it hits the squash.
Image credit: Well Plated by Erin
53. Blackened Zucchini Tacos
When you have more zucchini than you know what to do with, every day is Taco Tuesday.
Image credit: Cookie and Kate
54. Healthy Zucchini Muffins
Some muffins are just cupcakes without frosting. These guys just taste like it.
Image credit: What’s Gaby Cooking
55. Zucchini Ribbon Risotto
This creamy dish is worth the (nonstop) stirring.
Image credit: The Defined Dish
56. Dairy-Free Zucchini Rollups in Easy Bolognese Sauce
Low-carb, yet every bit as satisfying as the real deal. Bonus: You don’t need a spiralizer to make these zucchini noodles—a vegetable peeler will get the job done.
Image credit: Half Baked Harvest
57. Mac and Cheese Stuffed Oven-Fried Zucchini Bites
You had us at mac and cheese (and again at oven-fried).
Image credit: I Am a Food Blog
58. Weeknight Salmon, Tomato and Zucchini Tagliatelle
This one goes out to the lazy summer cooks (aka all of us). It takes 20 minutes from start to finish.
Image credit: Pinch of Yum
59. Sweet Corn and Zucchini Pie
It’s like summertime in pie form, and we can’t get enough.
Image credit: Spoon Fork Bacon
60. Grilled Zucchini Tacos
Make all the salsa and corn salad ahead of time; thank us later.
Image credit: Cotter Crunch
61. Three Herb Tomato Zucchini Salad
The secret ingredient in the tangy dressing is sumac, a Middle Eastern ingredient that adds a bright, citrusy kick.
Image credit: Ambitious Kitchen
62. Zucchini Mac and Cheese
Is it wrong that we want to marry this dish? Nope, we didn’t think so.
Image credit: Minimalist Baker
63. Easy Zucchini Fritters
ABD: Always be dipping…in garlic-dill sauce, of course.
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