60 Sweet And Savory Zucchini Recipes
Summer is looong—we're making sure you never run out of zucchini recipes.
We’re big fans of zucchini all year long, and not just because they’re an incredible low-carb substitute (second only to superstar cauliflower). Summertime is when the quality of the green summer squash really shines, and it becomes apparent zucchini can be great for more than just zoodles (though we love those too). Whether you’re new to the vegetable, have a huge summertime bounty you’re trying to get through, or are just looking for some zucchini inspiration, we’ve got a recipe for you. Check out our 60 zucchini recipes for ideas—there’s everything from appetizers to dinners to dessert.
We bet you’re familiar with green zucchini squash, but did you know there are actually a ton of different kinds of summer squash? In addition to green zucchini, there’s yellow squash, costata romanesco (not to be confused with romesco sauce), yellow and grey (sort of light green) zucchini, crookneck and straightneck squash, patty pan, and more. They’re largely interchangeable (though patty pan is a different shape), and you can swap them in and out for these recipes. Who knows, you might find a new favorite!
Let’s start with the basics: you can sauté, grill, or bake zucchini, all to great effect. From there, you can truly use it in anything. Looking for appetizers? Try our spinach artichoke zucchini bites, our zucchini tater tots, our air fryer squash, or our cool ranch zucchini chips. Want something low key for lunch? Try our zucchini grilled cheese, our zucchini salad, our burrito zoodles, or our zucchini taco shells. Looking for a more substantial dinner? You gotta go stuffed zucchini—we’re filling ours with all kinds of ingredients, like Italian sausage, mac & cheese, burrito-filling, and pizza toppings. Zucchini makes for a great condiment too, like in our zucchini pickles or zucchini relish. You can even use it in dessert! There’s zucchini bread, of course, but we’re also sneaking it into chocolate chip cookies and zucchini brownies too. They’re a great way to sneak some greens into your (or your kids’) diet.
Want more summertime fruit and veggie inspiration? Check out our peach recipes, our healthy eggplant recipes, our savory pineapple recipes (and pineapple desserts), and our tomato recipes too.
Grilled Zucchini
Zucchini is one of our favorite vegetables to grill in the summer. Why? It's healthy, it's easy, and it cooks SO FAST. This recipe takes just 10 to 15 minutes from start to finish.
Get the Grilled Zucchini recipe.
Zucchini Lasagna Roll-Ups
This recipe takes some time and patience, but it's just about the prettiest "pasta" dish you'll ever see. If you have mandolin, use it to make the noodles; if you don't, practice your knife skills. 😉
Get the Zucchini Lasagna Roll-Ups recipe.
Zucchini Soup
Traditionally zucchini soup has been made one of two ways: either cooked to death or pureed raw. This recipe combines the best of both approaches, starting with sautéing garlic, then adding in raw zucchini, which blends into a velvety soup. There's a generous handful of fresh basil in the soup itself, lending a peppery bite and its deep green hue, while a topper of garlicky chive yogurt adds tang and a hint of onion-flavor.
Get the Zucchini Soup recipe.
Sautéed Zucchini
This easy, quick-sautéed garlic Parmesan zucchini is the perfect summer side dish. It's full of flavor, and the zucchini slightly caramelizes as it cooks in the cast-iron pan. It's our favorite way to use up zucchini (beside chocolate zucchini bread, of course).
Get the Sautéed Zucchini recipe.
Mac & Cheese Stuffed Zucchini
Here’s one way to get more veggies into picky eaters’ mouths: score and scoop out zucchini pulp, chop and cook it down with spices into a cream sauce, then incorporate it into good ol’ kid-approved mac & cheese.
Get the Mac & Cheese Stuffed Zucchini recipe.
Bacon Zucchini Fries
Anything wrapped in bacon is instantly 1,000 times better, including summer squash! These 'fries' are simply roasted zucchini wedges wrapped in bacon—squash has never looked better. Make a simple homemade ranch for an easy dipping sauce too.
Get the Bacon Zucchini Fries recipe.
Spinach Artichoke Zucchini Bites
These little guys are the perfect healthy summer appetizer. As the zucchini becomes tender, the spinach and artichoke topping gets nice and melty. If you want a little extra color on your bites, switch the oven to broil on medium and cook them a couple minutes more. (Just keep an eye on them.)
Zucchini Relish
Ever heard of zucchini relish? It's our new FAVORITE condiment, and we're here to say it's great on way more than just hot dogs. It's sweet and tangy flavor is good in basically anything. (Trust us, you'll never want a chicken salad sandwich without it.)
Get the Zucchini Relish recipe.
Lemon Poppy Zucchini Bread
Zucchini bread is always the first thing on our list to make with summer’s squash bounty, but we wanted to switch it up this time. This lemon poppyseed bread is still super soft, like a zucchini bread should be, with a little bit of tartness thanks to the lemon. Yum!
Get the Lemon Poppy Zucchini Bread recipe.
Zucchini Casserole With Garlicky Breadcrumbs
This summery vegetarian side may be quick and easy, but the colorful shingled veggies make for an impressive presentation. Even the most reluctant vegetable-eaters won't be able to resist that cheesy herbed breadcrumb topping. 😋
Get the Zucchini Casserole With Garlicky Breadcrumbs recipe.
Air Fryer Squash
We love the air fryer for most everything, but especially for breaded veggies. The squash (green or yellow works!) gets just as crispy as if it was deep fried, and even more so than baking. It's a great side dish for dipping in marinara.
Get the Air Fryer Squash recipe.
Zucchini Lattice Lasagna
Yes, classic lasagna is delicious, but when we're craving something a tad less carb-heavy, we turn to this summery zucchini version. Pro tip: Zucchini releases a good amount of water, so we like to dab it with a paper towel when the lasagna is done cooking, and then broil until the cheese is bubbly and crispy. 😍
Get the Zucchini Lattice Lasagna recipe.
Zucchini Tater Tots
Nix the potato for green zucchini to make these keto-friendly tots. You might just like them better than regular 'ole tater tots.
Get the Zucchini Tater Tots recipe.
Italian Sausage Stuffed Zucchini
A mix of breadcrumbs, Italian sausage, and fontina make this one of our absolute favorite stuffed zucchini recipes. They're a great low-carb dinner, appetizer, or lunch.
How To Make Zoodles
As much as we looove pasta, sometimes we crave something on the lighter side. Zucchini noodles are healthy, easy to prepare, and are the perfect blank canvas for your favorite sauces—to start, try them anywhere you'd use spaghetti.
Get the Zucchini Noodles recipe.
Burrito Zucchini Boats
You won't miss the tortilla in these stuffed zucchinis. They've got everything you love about your favorite burrito—black beans, corn, CHEESE—minus the carbs!
Get the Zucchini Burrito Boats recipe.
Cool Ranch Zucchini Chips
How thinly you slice your zucchini will affect how long these flavorful chips will take in the oven. We recommend checking on the chips after about an hour, though it'll almost definitely take longer than that. Better safe than sorry for this delicious snack!
Get the Cool Ranch Zucchini Chips recipe.
Zucchini Enchiladas
We created a recipe that will satisfy your craving for cheesy, saucy chicken enchiladas while still keeping things light. Instead of using flour tortillas, we use tender, thin slices of zucchini to wrap up the chicken. Smothered with melted Monterey Jack and spicy enchilada sauce, you'll barely notice the difference!
Get the Zucchini Enchiladas recipe.
Garlicky Shrimp Zucchini Boats
When you're craving pasta, these zucchini boats are a great option. Sweet, juicy shrimp bathed in a creamy tomato-Parmesan sauce, then baked with mozzarella until the umami skyrockets—the easy filling tastes almost like a creamy shrimp scampi.
Lasagna-Stuffed Zucchini
Lightening up lasagna with zucchini is one of our fave low-carb dinner hacks. Fill up the zucchini with everything you love about the Italian classic, and enjoy it carb-free.
Get the Lasagna-Stuffed Zucchini recipe.
Camille Lowder is the digital food producer at Delish, otherwise known as our resident queen of recipe galleries. Previously, she attended the Natural Gourmet Institute for culinary school and worked at/managed a number of New York restaurants. She loves anything vegan, foods masquerading as other foods (hello, cauliflower), and a well-used Oxford comma.
