Friend of Julie: Zucchini Pasta

Zucchini Pasta

Posted by Joe Q on September 20, 2013 5 comments

Just a quick update...

Now that I have a Spirooli I decided to try a few different methods with the zucchini to try and make it more pasta-like and not too watery and, well, I think I've come up with the best possible cooking method if you really want it to taste like linguine. I'll give you what I've tried so far.

1. Nuke it.
I do not like this method. It is too difficult to gauge and it either gets too hot and not soft enough or it turns to mush. Either way it's also VERY watery.

2. Blanche it.
This method is better, but it still comes out VERY watery which leaves you with sauce water if you use tomato sauce with it.

3. Pan-toss it.
WINNAH! I have found that pan tossing it is the best method. It takes care of a lot of the moisture and you come out with firm, noodle-like strands. There was a little water in the bottom of the bowl but if you let it stand for about 3 minutes before serving you can also drain off the excess liquid and you're left with something that is EXCEPTIONALLY pasta-like. I toss it until the strands start to uncurl. That means it's pliable and al dente.

I'm personally thrilled to have discovered this. Toss it with garlic, butter and salt and it is just plain awesome. I've had it done this way with lemon shrimp and tonight we're doing the traditional meatballs and sausage. Yes, I've decided to try introducing some meatballs and see if I can get away with it once a week. It's my way of giving myself a reward. My wife is now on-program too so we are BOTH thrilled to have discovered this treat.

Final note: Yellow squash works well, too and I've found it cooks the same as zucchini so feel free to use both at once. Good stuff!

5 comments:

Alanna9/20/2013
When you pan toss it, are you adding anything to the pan at the time, or is it just the plain zucchini to start?
Joe Q9/20/2013
I use a mix of butter and olive oil (about 2T of butter and about 1/4 c of oil for two normal size zucchini), a couple cloves of garlic, kosher salt and black pepper. I toss it until it reduces by about half. At that point it's the consistency of al dente linguine pasta and it's nice and creamy. Let it sit for 2 mins or so and drain off the excess water. There will be a LOT but the point is that it comes out, it doesn't water-log the "noodles."
Theresa9/21/2013
Thanks for sharing this recipe Joe. I've been playing with my Spirooli too.

Recently I used yellow squash for the noodles and I left the skin on. Not a good idea. It's weird, because I've always cooked yellow squash with the skin and I love it. But it doesn't taste nice when you turn them into noodles.

I steamed the noodles and it was better than when I microwaved them, but perhaps it was the skin, I wasn't excited by my meal.

So, I will prepare the noodles in the pan as you described and I'll report back.

BTW, when you make them next - take a photo and add it to the top of this post. I love seeing photos with posts, especially recipes.

I've been collecting recipes lately, but I promised myself I wouldn't add them to the blog until I've made them myself. I've made a few misses lately.

I made bacon wrapped meatloaf. I wrapped muffin tins (each cup) with bacon and add my meatloaf mix, then baked until the meatloaf was done. When I pulled it from the oven, the bacon was raw. Instead of tossing them, I pulled the bacon off and then took the meatloaf to work and warmed them up in the microwave (I don't have one at home). My meatloaf was delicious, but they were oddly shaped.
Joe Q9/22/2013
What they never bother to tell you is that you need to cook the bacon first. Line the muffin cups with the bacon, cook that first and drain the fat. If the bacon falls out, just stick it back in and then fill with the meatloaf. The remaining bacon grease will help keep the loaves from sticking to the bottom. The only way to cook everything at once is to use the tins to mold the loaves, then bake them in a pan or on a baking sheet. The heat will not distribute properly if the bacon is smothered. The air can't get at it. Bacon needs direct heat to cook properly and it has to be drained otherwise you'll wind up with grease pucks.

As for the skins on the squash, it didn't bother me pan tossed but it is very tough steamed. That's why I blanche instead of steaming. The skin breaks down more. The downside is that it's extremely soggy that way but pan tossing seems to fix both problems. Try a small amount with the skin and toss it with olive oil. See if that works for you.
Theresa9/23/2013
Thanks for the tips Joe. I may give the both recipes another shot with your tips.