Sauteed Zucchini Recipe (2024)

This sauteed zucchini recipe is a great healthy and delicious side dish. It is simple, quick, and super easy to make. With only a handful of pantry staple ingredients, one pan, and 10 minutes, this delicious fresh stove top garlic butter zucchini side dish is all yours.

This cooking method would work with any other summer squash.

Easy Sauteed Zucchini Recipe (stove top zucchini)

Zucchini is a delicious vegetable that's easily paired anything and tastes good. It's versatile, low in calories, and low-carb.

I love adding this green vegetable to cook other dishes but it is high time one did something different! What if we want to create the best dish ever, stovetop zucchini with fresh garlic and butter? Let the vegetable shine on its own because why not.

There are many ways of cooking zucchini and sauteeing it, is just one of them. It is simple and requires no level of expertise. A quick 5-7 minutes saute on the stovetop and you have yourself a delicious light and healthy green vegetable dish that can be eaten as an appetizer, snack, or side dish

Why this sauteed zucchini recipe is so good

• Sauteeing is the quickest and delicious way of cooking zucchini

• It is a good way to get rid of all that extra zucchini in your fridge.

• You can make this recipe from start to finish in under 20 minutes

• This recipe has only five main ingredients, which makes it easy to make on a busy night

• It's a great way to get your veggies in while still enjoying them

• This zucchini recipe is low-carb, gluten-free, and vegetarian. It can be made vegan if you substitute butter for a plant-based version or omit it completely and just use olive oil or any other cooking oil of choice

What is sauteeing?

Sauteing is a quick-cooking technique that requires you to use a little bit of oil or fat in a shallow pan over high heat and stir and toss the ingredients. The purpose of sauteeing is to cook food quickly and brown it for a rich, bolder taste.

Sautéeing requires high heat, which means you have very little time to do all the chopping and prep work. It's best to have everything ready before you turn on the stove unless of course, you're dealing with ingredients that cook very quickly or don't require any pre-prep at all, like fresh herbs or delicate greens.

Tools needed

Skillet or frying pan

Sharp knife for cutting the vegetabe

Sauteed zucchini ingredients

Zucchini: look for the ones that are, small, firm, and with a bright color.

Butter: I like to use slightly salted butter but you can use unsalted if you prefer, also substitute the butter for a plant-based one to make this dish vegan.

Olive oil substitute with any flavorless cooking oil of choice

Parmesan cheese: freshly grated

Garlic: I used fresh garlic but garlic powder or granules would work if you are unable to get your hands on the fresh one.

Salt and black pepper

How to make sauteed zucchini on the stove

Wash and pat the zucchini dry and cut into desired shapes and sizes.

Heat butter and olive oil on a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chopped zucchini, leave it undisturbed for about a minute or two so it has a bit of color to it.

Add the chopped garlic to the zucchini then start stirring occasionally until cooked through, tender, and browned.The whole process should be about 5 minutes or less depending on how tender you want the vegetable.

Season with salt, black pepper, shredded parmesan cheese and stir to combine. Take it off the heat and serve immediately with more sprinkles of parmesan cheese or lemon juice.

PS: transfer the sauteed zucchini to a plate immediately as the residual heat in the pan will continue to cook the vegetable which may make it softer than you wanted.

What to serve it with

The beauty of this dish is that you can serve it with anything. It is the perfect side for baked chicken, baked salmon

Air fryer steak

Burgers

Pork steaks

Vegetable rice

Garlic butter pasta

Gnocchi with tomato sauce and many more.

Storage Instructions

Sauteed zucchini is best served on immediately on the day it is made however, you can store leftovers in the fridge for up to a day or two stored in an air-tight container

To reheat: for best result, reheat on a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally until warmed through.

Freezer: this recipe does not freeze well so I don't reccommend freezing it .

Tips

• For the best result, when you stir, leave the zucchini undisturbed for a few seconds before stirring again. This would ensure the vegetable gets browned and also prevent it from getting mushy.

• Use any seasoning of choice, try my homemade herbs de Provence, shawarma seasoning, or fish seasoning.

• Substitute parmesan cheese for pecorino or crumbled feta cheese

• Add some red pepper flakes to the vegetable while sautéeing if you like your food on the spicy side.

• Don't season the zucchini with salt until the tail end of the cooking process. If you add the salt too early on, the zucchini will become watery

• Don't overcrowd your pan with too many veggies, it will result in mushy and soggy zucchini

• Cut the zucchini into similar sizes for even cooking time, also don't cut them too thin.

Watch how to make it in easy steps

FAQs

How long to saute zucchini

Depending on how you cut it and the size, it takes about 3 to 5 minutes for the zucchini to become a little tender and soft. Anything longer and it can turn mushy.

Does zucchini need to be peeled before cooking?

No, you don't need to peel the zucchini beforehand. You can leave the skin on or take it off depending on your preference. In fact, when sauteeing, you are best leaving the skin on

More zucchini recipes you will love

Baked vegetable pasta

Grilled chicken kabobs

Instant pot ratatouile

Air fryer vegetables

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