Every year around the middle of July my zucchini plants stop being a nice idea and start being a problem. Two plants, and suddenly there is a new baseball bat sized one hiding under the leaves every single morning.
I have left bags of it on the porch for neighbors. I have grated pounds of it into the freezer. And I have made zucchini bread until my family staged a quiet protest.
So this is the list I actually work through when the garden will not quit. More than fifty recipes, sorted by what kind of meal you need, from real weeknight dinners to fritters, muffins, pasta, soup and a few cakes that hide the zucchini completely.
Nothing here is fussy. You can grill zucchini, roast it, saute it, bake it into a batter, or eat it raw in a salad, and it holds up to all of it.
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Zucchini Dinners
Start here when the zucchini has to become actual dinner. These are the mains I lean on all August: one pan, real portions, and enough else going on that nobody clocks how much zucchini they just ate.
Air Fryer Chicken and Vegetables
Breaded Chicken Zucchini Patties With Rice (Crispy!)
Air Fryer Ribeye Steak and Zucchini (Stir-Fry)
Garlic Chili Oil & Zucchini Instant Ramen Noodles
Zucchini Squash Casserole
Chicken Zucchini Casserole (With Ground Chicken)
Zucchini Lasagna Recipe
Zucchini Scarpaccia: Easy Vegan Italian Tart
Zucchini Boats
Zucchini boats are the recipe my kids ask for by name, so this section earns its own spot. You scoop out the middle, pile in a filling, and bake until the shell is tender. The chicken and the taco versions below are the two I make on repeat.
Stuffed Zucchini Boats (With Creamy Chicken)
Mexican Taco Zucchini Boats (With Ground Beef)
Buffalo Chicken Zucchini Boats (Air Fryer or Oven)
Mediterranean Zucchini Boats
Vegetarian Stuffed Zucchini Boats Recipe
New to boats? My creamy chicken zucchini boats walk through the scooping and baking step by step, and the taco version with ground beef is the one that wins over the kids.
Zucchini Sides and Snacks
This is the fast lane: sliced, seasoned, roasted or air fried, on the table in about 20 minutes. Half of these disappear off the tray before they make it to plates.
Japanese Zucchini
Baked Parmesan Zucchini Slices With Seasoning (No Breading)
Air Fryer Breaded Zucchini
Crispy Air Fryer Zucchini Fries With Almond Flour (Low Carb Keto)
Smoked Zucchini With Sliced Onions
Baked Zucchini and Squash
Parmesan Roasted Zucchini and Squash
Mediterranean Orzo Salad with Grapes
Zucchini Fritters, Patties and Cakes
Grate it, squeeze it hard, bind it, fry it. Fritters are the single best way to move a lot of zucchini in one go, and they freeze well for lunchboxes. The squeezing step is not optional if you want them crisp.
Healthy Zucchini Fritters
Zucchini Corn Fritters
20-Minute Tender Chicken Zucchini Fritters
Healthy Zucchini Fritters
Mucver (Turkish Zucchini Fritters)
Crispy Air Fryer Zucchini Fritters
Vegetarian Zucchini 'Crab' Cakes
Zucchini Breads and Muffins
Shredded zucchini keeps quick breads and muffins moist for days without making them taste like vegetables. These are the bakes I fall back on when there is a giant zucchini on the counter and I have run out of savory ideas.
Chocolate Oatmeal Zucchini Muffins
Simple Vegan Chocolate Zucchini Bread (Seedless, Eggless, Dairy Free)
Zucchini Date Nut Bread - Cookrita
Vegan Zucchini Muffins
Zucchini Strawberry Bread
Savory Vegan Zucchini Muffins
Easy Zucchini Bread Recipe with Pineapple
Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread
Zucchini Breakfast
Zucchini before noon sounds like a stretch until you try it folded into egg bites or blended into pancake batter. These three make weekday mornings a little more useful.
5-Ingredient Egg Bites Recipe
Easy Banana Zucchini Pancakes
Superhero Apple Zucchini Carrot Muffins
Zucchini Dips and Appetizers
When zucchini gets grilled or roasted first, it turns silky and a little smoky, which makes it a great base for a dip. Put one of these out with warm bread and it goes fast.
Roasted Zucchini Dip
Courgette Galette with Garlic Butter and Feta
Zucchini Baba Ganoush (Smokey Courgette Dip)
Zucchini Pasta
Zucchini almost melts into a sauce if you cook it long enough, which is the whole idea behind Italian dishes like pasta alla Nerano. These range from a 20-minute weeknight skillet to a slow Sunday bake.
Zucchini Mushroom Pasta
Zucchini Mushroom Pasta
Spaghetti alla Nerano with Fried Zucchini
Zucchini Flower Pasta, Risotto Style
How to Make Nonna's Pasta al Forno
Zucchini Soup
Blended zucchini soup is how I use up the ones that got too big and seedy for anything else. It freezes well, and it works warm now or chilled next summer.
Vegetarian Minestrone Soup
Nonna's Zucchini Potato Soup (Italian Recipe)
Butternut Squash-Zucchini Soup
Zucchini Soup
Zucchini Desserts
Frosted zucchini cake is the recipe that converts people. The zucchini keeps the crumb tender and completely disappears under cocoa or a lemon glaze, so nobody has to know.
Lemon Zucchini Cake (With Sweet Lemon Glaze)
Zucchini Cake
Chocolate Zucchini Cake
Easiest Lemon Zucchini Cake With Sweet Lemon Glaze
Zucchini Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Tips
- Salt and squeeze shredded zucchini before you bake with it. Grate it, toss with a little salt, wait ten minutes, then wring it out hard in a clean towel. Skip this and your zucchini bread and fritters turn out wet and dense.
- Leave the skin on. It is thin, it holds the slice together, and it carries most of the fiber and color. Only peel a giant end of season zucchini where the skin has gone tough.
- Pick zucchini around six to eight inches long. The big ones look like a win but they are seedy, watery and bland. Smaller zucchini have the best texture and flavor.
- Freeze shredded zucchini flat. Shred, measure into one or two cup portions, squeeze out the water, seal in bags pressed flat, and it keeps about three months for baking straight from frozen.
- Give it room in the pan. Zucchini steams in its own moisture and goes limp if the pan is crowded. Use high heat, a wide pan, and a single layer.
- Salt sliced zucchini for gratins and boats too. Fifteen minutes with salt pulls the water out so the finished dish is not sitting in a puddle.
Is Zucchini Actually Good for You
Short answer, yes. Zucchini is low in calories, high in water and fiber, and a decent source of vitamin C, potassium and antioxidants like lutein. It is one of the easier vegetables to eat a lot of. I go deeper on this in my post on whether zucchini is healthy.
Zucchini Recipes: Your Questions
Do You Have to Peel Zucchini Before Cooking?
No. The skin is thin, edible and full of nutrients, and it helps slices and rounds hold their shape while they cook.
The only time I peel is when a zucchini has grown huge and the skin has turned tough or bitter.
Can You Freeze Zucchini?
Yes. For baking, shred it, squeeze out the water, portion it into bags and freeze flat. For cooking later, slice it, blanch it for one minute, cool it in ice water, then freeze on a tray before bagging.
It keeps about three months. More detail in my guide on how to store zucchini.
Why Does My Zucchini Turn Out Soggy?
Two reasons, usually. The pan is too crowded, so the zucchini steams instead of browning. Or it was cooked too long.
Use high heat, a wide pan and a single layer, and pull it off as soon as it has color and is just tender.
Can You Eat Zucchini Raw?
Yes, and it is good raw. Slice it thin or grate it into salads, wraps and grain bowls, or cut it into sticks for dip.
Smaller zucchini with thin skins are the best ones to eat raw.
How Do You Keep Zucchini Fritters Crispy?
Get the water out of the grated zucchini first, use enough binder like flour or breadcrumbs, and fry in hot oil in small batches so the pan temperature does not crash.
Drain them on a rack, not paper towels, so the bottoms stay crisp.
What Can I Do With a Giant Zucchini?
Big zucchini are watery and seedy, so scoop out the seedy center and use the rest where moisture does not matter: bread, muffins, fritters, or blended soup.
They also make good boats because the shell is sturdy enough to hold a heavy filling.
Before You Go
If you found this post helpful, I'd love to hear from you! Leave a comment below and let me know your thoughts, questions, or experiences. Your feedback helps me create content that truly serves this wonderful community. ❤️
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Julia
these are my favorite zucchini recipes!