Zucchini Noodles with Tomatoes
Zucchini noodles are not a replacement for regular pasta. Don’t be fooled, my friends. No food can replace the love of a bowl full of carbs. This pasta is delicious because it’s actually delicious, not because its a carb replacement. I’ll admit that I was skeptical at first, but once I tried it and realized that the zucchini doesn’t turn into a pile of mush I was sold. It has the right amount of crunch and the sauce is fresh and simple. It’s refreshing and comes together really fast.
I use a spiralizer to make the noodles which only takes a few minutes. When I first bought it I wasn’t sure I would get much use out of it until I realized how convenient it is. I use if for vegetables in salads and stir-fries. The sauce in this recipe uses canned tomatoes and doesn’t need a lot of time like a slow cooked sauce. The texture of the chunky tomatoes compliments the zucchini noodles well.
I add ricotta cheese for a little extra creaminess, but the dish would taste great without it. I’m not a big fan of store bought ricotta. In fact, I thought I didn’t like ricotta until I had homemade and realized it’s creamy and fluffy. It tastes like cheese, but the texture of frosting. So it’s basically a pairing of the two best things ever! Smitten Kitchen has a great recipe that I use.
Zucchini Noodles with Tomatoes Recipe
Makes 2 servings.
Ingredients
- 2 medium sized zucchinis
- 1 (14-ounce) can of petite diced tomatoes (plain is fine or use the version with sweet onions, basil, or garlic)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 Tbsp butter
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp dried basil
- Olive oil
- Kosher salt and black pepper
- 1-2 Tbsp Parmesan cheese, grated
- 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup ricotta cheese (I use homemade from Smitten Kitchen.)
Directions
- Wash and remove the ends from 2 medium-sized zucchinis.
- Use a spiralizer to cut the zucchinis into noodles. I use the “thick” setting.
- In a sauce pan, heat a drizzle of oil over medium heat.
- Peel and mince two cloves of garlic and add to the sauce pan. Cook the garlic for 1-2 minutes.
- Open 1 can of petite diced tomatoes and pour over a colander to drain off the excess liquid (some remaining juice is fine). Add the tomatoes to the sauce pan.
- To the sauce pan, add 1 Tbsp butter, 1/2 tsp dried oregano, 1 tsp dried basil, a pinch of kosher salt and pinch of black pepper.
- Cook uncovered over medium heat for 4-5 minutes.
- Stir in 1-2 Tbsp grated parmesan cheese and reduce the heat to low. Cook for 3-4 more minutes.
- Meanwhile, heat a drizzle of oil in a medium-sized skillet over medium-high heat.
- When the skillet is hot (a drop of water should sizzle in the pan), add the zucchini noodles.
- Cook the noodles for 1 minute, stirring often. You want the noodles to be warm and just slightly wilted. If you cook them much longer than 1-2 minutes the moisture inside the zucchini will make the noodles mushy.
- Place the noodles on a plate and top with the tomato sauce, additional parmesan cheese, and a dollop of ricotta cheese.
This dish is meant to come together really fast. The petite diced tomatoes are still chunky versus saucy which works really well with the zucchini noodles. You could use jarred sauce if you already have it on hand, but I recommend skipping the processed sauce and making your own.
Keep an eye on the noodles when you cook them so they don’t get mushy. Zucchini has a lot of moisture in it, and if you keep the noodles in the pan too long you end up steaming them. You want the noodles to keep a bit of crunch.
The ricotta adds a nice creaminess to the sauce, but if you don’t like ricotta or don’t have time to make it fresh, you can skip it.
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