Zucchini Noodles have been all the rage for quite some time, especially in the low-carb, paleo, gluten-free and weight watchers worlds. If you haven’t jumped on the bandwagon yet, you basically make “noodles” out of zucchini or summer squash. This is, essentially, the summertime answer to using spaghetti squash as a base for all things pasta.
There are quite a few ways you can turn zucchini into noodles. Some people use julienne peelers like this one or this one.
I’ve been using my mandoline – I have this one. I just insert the julienne blade and it’s fairly easy to do as long as the zucchini are not too narrow.
The most popular tool with which to make vegetable noodles is this Vegetable Spiralizer. I have been coveting one of these for months and couldn’t bring myself to buy yet another kitchen gadget as I barely have room for all of the stuff I already have. But after months and months of wanting one and hearing so many people rave about how amazing and easy they are to use, I finally broke down and ordered one this week.
I figured I would post a tutorial on how to make zucchini noodles with a mandoline as most people have one and aren’t going to buy a special single-use kitchen gadget just for this, plus there is just a bit more to making them on the mandoline then getting the right shape.
For this tutorial, I partnered with my friend Pamela from BOLIG Photography. We spent the day together while our kids played (READ: tore apart her house and backyard), I taught her how to make Zucchini Noodles on her mandoline and she took some gorgeous pictures of the whole process to share with you.
Did you make this recipe? Please give it a star rating below!
Average Serving Size is 2 Medium Zucchini Per Person -- 0 Points Plus
- 4 medium zucchini
- kosher salt
- mandoline with julienne blade
- fine mesh strainer
-
Wash zucchini and trim ends.
-
I recommend taking the time to peel each zucchini. The "noodles" look more like pasta when the skin is removed and some zucchini skin can have a bitter taste which some people do not like. With that being said, if I am in a rush, I leave the skin on so do what works for you.
-
Fit your mandoline with the julienne blade and be sure to use the safety guard. Never skip using the safety guard - you can really cut yourself bad!
-
Proceed to slide the zucchini over the mandoline blades lengthwise to get the longest noodles possible until you are left with a thin sliver that is pretty much impossible to slice.
-
You have just made yourself some zucchini pasta!
-
Transfer the zucchini noodles to a mesh colander and lightly sprinkle with kosher salt. Toss to distribute and leave colander over a mixing bowl or the sink to drain. Let sit for 20 to 30 minutes, giving an occasional squeeze.
-
If you leave the skin on, your liquid will be very dark green, if you peeled the zucchini, it will look more like this.Try to get as much water out of the zucchini noodles as possible before cooking.
Did you make this recipe? Tag @EverydayMaven on Instagram with the hashtag #EveryDayMaven and please give a star rating below.
Some Zucchini Noodle Recipes:
Raw Zucchini Ribbon Salad with Olives + Mint from www.gourmandeinthekitchen.com
2. Zucchini Noodles with Avocado Cream Sauce from Paleo Cupboard
Zucchini Noodles with Fresh Tomato Sauce from www.everydaymaven.com
4. Vegan Cheezy Zucchini Noodles from Earthsprout
Thai Chicken Zucchini Noodles from www.RunningtoTheKitchen.com
6. Sriracha Shrimp over Zucchini Noodles from Kettler Cuisine
7. Creamy Garlic Alfredo with Arugula and Zucchini Linguine from Living Nutrition
Pesto Meatballs in Sauce over Zucchini Noodles from www.everydaymaven.com
Hi! Thanks for the recipe, it looks amazing!
I have a question: I just ordered a spiralizer online and it will arrive next week. I have some courgettes at home that I’d like to save for when the spiralizer arrives but I think they might be gone off by that time. Would you recommend me to freeze the whole courgettes? Is it possible to defreeze them and spiralize them later?
Many thanks! 🙂
Hey! I would not recommend freezing raw courgettes as they are too water rich and won’t survive. I have found that even cooked zucchini really deteriorates in the freezer (like in a soup or stew)>
These are great recipes. I was vegetarian for 8 years, but over time the high carbs were really bad for my body. I went low-carb, blood tests came back great, lost lots of weight, but no pasta. I’ve transitioned to low-carb with lower carb veggies and I think this is the way to go. The spiralizer adds so many options. I was never big on zucchini but it is now my new best friend. With this “pasta” I’m not sure why I would ever want regular pasta again.
Thank you so much Allen – I am so glad you found them useful! And, yes the spiralizer is GREAT! There are soooo many fall veggies to work with right now – the possibilities seem endless 🙂
I just made lasagne and spaghetti with my Veggetti spiral cutter…both were yummy! I just sliced the zucchini lengthwise and layered like you would regular noodles. For the spaghetti, I spiraled then put them in colander with a little salt for 30 min. Then squeezed out a little extra water. Sauted 2 large garlic heads in olive oil and then added the zucc noodles for about 2-3 minutes…..delicious!
Sounds awesome JoAnn!
I bought a vegetti about a month ago and I’m totally addicted to ‘zoodles’. I’m a 21 Day Fixer and stick to a strict rule of ‘no carbs after lunch’. So my dinners of meat and veggies can be a little on the boring side…but now I have zoodles with my dinner every night (no matter what protein or what other veggies/sauces I’m making the zoodles go with everything)….I get to ‘feel’ like I’m having pasta but it’s still a no carb meal. I don’t salt and drain mine b/c I don’t like the extra saltiness and I didn’t find that it made any difference once I combined the zoodles with the rest of my meal. I don’t boil my zoodles b/c they will turn to mush in a matter of minutes. I use one of two cooking methods: Easiest – once your meat/veggies or sauce is 99.999% cooked in a saucepan just toss in the zoodles, cover, turn off heat and they will steam to al dente in a few minutes…OR I steam them in my crockwave microwave steamer (another GREAT ‘as seen on TV’ item that is invaluable to people who eat a lot of steamed veggies). Tip for cleaning the blades of the vegetti – use an old toothbrush.
Great tip on the old toothbrush for cleaning the blades Stephanie!
Thanks for the photos. I’ve been scouring local food shops for what NZers call a zucchini and making do with courgettes. Your photos show “courgettes” so I wonder what Americans call the giant versions that I call zucchini?
Great question Sarah! I don’t really see huge squash (bigger than a zucchini or a courgette) in my markets. I wonder what they would be called!
Big zucchini (over 12″ long) are the boon or bain of home veggie gardeners. I don’t know if they’d be full of seeds (down the center) but certainly they’d work great for zucchini noodles.
Roberta, the last time I made the zoodles I cooked them for only 2 minutes or so in boiling water. It wasn’t a full rolling boil; I was afraid I’d break them up. But the point is they don’t need a ton of cooking.
As for overly salty, if I want to get out the bitterness I salt them only as much as I would when eating, so it’s a light touch. Let them drain in a colander in the sink for about 15 minutes. Then press down on them lightly to squeeze out the bitter juices. Then cook.
Thank you for your site! I am going to make the Paleo Pesto Meatballs with the zucchini noodles. I was just wondering how you recommend to cook the zucchini noodles? Sorry if it is here somewhere. I think I must have missed it somehow. Thanks!