Creamy Ricotta Zucchini Noodles | Zoodles Vegetarian Dinner Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How do you make zucchini noodles not soggy? ›

Don't overcook the noodles, otherwise, they'll get soggy. I like mine to have a slight crunch, sort of like al dente pasta. After spiralizing your zucchini noodles, sprinkle with a bit of salt and let them sit in a colander for 10 minutes. It'll help get rid of some of the excess moisture.

Zucchini is low in fat, sugar, and calories, and high in vitamin C and fiber, making it a great substitute for traditional pasta noodles. Fiber helps to regulate bowels and maintain good digestive health, and vitamin C acts as an antioxidant to protect cells.

Don't pre-salt your zucchini noodles.

Whatever you do, do not let your cut zucchini noodles sit in salt before cooking.

This, the outlet asserts, is due to zucchini's high water content: If it cooks too slowly, it will release its moisture before it sears, becoming soggy and sodden. Over high heat, on the other hand, zucchini becomes caramelized on the outside but retains a meaty, firm texture within.

Safely canning any low acid food requires a pressure canner to ensure temperatures high enough to destroy Clostridium botulinum spores that produce a dangerous toxin. However, processing squash and zucchini at such high temperatures in a pressure canner would compact them and create an undesirable mush.

Zucchini noodles can be made into different shapes, much like regular pasta. The most common way to make zoodles is to run the zucchini through a spiralizer, which makes a spaghetti-sized zoodle. It is best to use a medium zucchini for spiralized zucchini noodles.

A look into essential Vitamins & Minerals, shows that Zucchini Pasta outdoes Spaghetti Squash on every one, except for Niacin, Pantothenic Acid, Calcium and Selenium. Information found from SELF's Nutrition Data calculator.

Compare two cups of pasta weighing in at 480 calories, 90 grams of carbs, and two grams of fiber with two cups of zucchini zoodles at 66 calories, twelve grams of carbs, and four grams of fiber. Seems like a no-brainer, right?

Salt causes zucchini rounds to release excess water. This important extra step helps the zucchini to sauté rather than stew in its own juices.

Use a box cheese grater

And as a last resort, you can even make zoodles with a box grater. Grate it lengthwise and try to make the strands as long as possible. These “noodles” are going to be very thin and will release a ton of water.

Can you hand cut zucchini noodles? ›

kitchen knife is always a good option for making zucchini noodles at home, especially if you're not looking to buy any specialized gadgets. To make zucchini noodles with a kitchen knife, slice off each end of the zucchini and then slice it lengthwise into thin planks.

Place the noodles on a cookie sheet lined with paper towels. Sprinkle with salt. “Sweat” the noodles in the oven for 30 minutes until the paper towels have absorbed most of the moisture that the zucchini let. Wrap the paper towels over the noodles and give them a good squeeze to extract any remaining liquid.

Heat the olive oil in a skillet and add your overcooked pasta. Gently sauté over medium heat for a few minutes until the pasta's texture has firmed up. The whole process takes less than 10 minutes and you'll know it is done when the edges of the pasta have started to crisp and light browning has begun.

If you do not have kosher salt on hand, use a teaspoon or so of regular table salt. 1. Place zucchini slices in colander and sprinkle with 2 teaspoons salt. Set colander over bowl until about 1/3 cup water drains from zucchini, about 30 minutes.