A vegan, super nutritious and Easy Zucchini Noodles Recipe filled with flavor. Spiralized Zucchini, crispy roasted chickpeas and an out of this world Tahini Herb Sauce.
My Sweet Potato Noodles Recipe was a huge success on Facebook. I had however several comments about how to replace specific ingredients. Some said they don’t like sweet potato, others said they are vegan and looking for alternatives for the chicken, yet others said they hate cilantro and some don’t like avocado.
Here is an alternative for all of the above that can be mixed and matched with the Sweet Potato Noodles Recipe. You don’t like Sweet Potato? Use Zucchini Noodles instead. You don’t like the avocado cilantro lime sauce? Use my out of this world Tahini Herb Sauce instead. You don’t want to eat chicken? Add roasted chickpeas for protein. Everything in both recipes is interchangeable. The spiralized vegetable, the protein and the sauce. Choose your favorite combination!
So, what “machine” makes zucchini noodles?
All you need is some sort of “spiralizer”. Let me post some affiliate links here for you to consider if you are in the market for one:
There are cheap spiralizers I’ve heard work just fine, require quite some elbow grease though. It’s hard work to get the job done BUT you’ll get it done eventually. The question is, will you ever want to make zucchini noodles again, haha.
The one I have is very similar to this semi professional spiralizer. I love it. It’s still fairly inexpensive and it does a really great job and getting those perfect curly noodles. Since zucchinis are fairly soft it requires no effort at all to get them spiralized with this.
If you love vegetable noodles more than life or maybe you have to eat gluten-free and don’t love the rice/quinoa/chickpea pastas on the market I would suggest getting this super handy dandy ultra professional spiralizer. This obviously assuming you have a kitchen aid stand mixer. If your don’t, get the semi professional spiralizer :)
How to make zucchini noodles without a spiralizer
You don’t have to buy a spiralizer to make zucchini noodles. It will take a little more work without but is totally and absolutely possible without any fancy equipment whatsoever. If you have a mandoline, put it on the thickest setting and slice your zucchini into thick slices and then cut into long noodles with a sharp knife.
If you don’t have a mandoline use a vegetable peeler and peel the zucchini into long slices, then use a sharp knife to cut noodles. It’s important to note that by using a vegetable peeler your noodles will be much thinner than with a spiralizer and need even less time in the pan.
How to make zucchini noodles less watery
Zucchini contains a lot of water so the number 1 complaint with them is that they become soggy when cooking. You can of course eat them raw and avoid from getting soggy altogether. I prefer mine warm though. The trick is to sautée super quickly and on a large surface.
A big pan on medium heat. Wait for the pan to be really hot, add the zucchini noodles and move around constantly so the steam can evaporate instead of settle at the bottom. As soon as the first zucchini becomes soft remove it from the pan. It’s warm and steamy and will continue cooking on your plate. That’s why it’s important to immediately remove from pan. If you overcook it, it becomes soggy. Which brings us to our next point.
How long to cook zucchini noodles
When I say don’t overcook and remove from pan as soon as the first zucchini becomes soft I’m talking about 1-3 minutes of cooking time. It’s suuuuuper short and quick. You should not walk away from the pan or you’ll miss that crucial moment. Cook it literally until the first noodle doesn’t look completely raw anymore.
The best sauce for Easy Zucchini Noodles
Zucchini noodles don’t have a strong taste themselves which is why in my opinion they need an extraordinary sauce. Tahini Herb Sauce couldn’t be more perfect. Basil, coriander or parsley, tahini, soy sauce, rice vinegar, honey, garlic, lemon, jalapeño…..it’s an explosion of flavor! It’s all made in a food processor in 3 minutes. Spiralizing zucchini = easy. Making Tahini Herb Sauce = easy. Easy+easy = Easy Zucchini Noodles. It’s getting super mathematic here, eh?
The best protein for Easy Zucchini Noodles
Since we are keeping cooking time and effort low for this recipes I had to think of the perfect source of protein and roasted chickpeas couldn’t be any easier to prepare. Besides, they taste UHHH-mazing! You just drain, rinse and dry your cooked chickpeas, through them on a baking sheet, drizzle oil over them, sprinkle salt over them and off they go in the oven. Easy peasy! I like my chickpeas naked, so I take the time to remove their skins before oiling and salting. It takes only 5-10 minutes, is not necessary though if you’re in a hurry. It’s just a texture thing, not a flavor thing.
Spiralizing zucchini = easy. Making Tahini Herb Sauce = easy. Roasting chickpeas = easy. Easy+easy+easy = SUPER Easy Zucchini Noodles!!
P.S. Video will as always be added a day or two later. It just takes forever to edit those so I need some extra time. Sorry folks!
- Preheat oven to 450F (230C).
- Drain, rinse and dry chickpeas in a kitchen towel. Remove skins if desired.
- Add chickpeas to a large baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Smush around with your fingers to make sure all chickpeas are covered with oil and salt.
- Roast for 30-35 minutes moving the chickpeas around with a wooden spoon mid-through.
- Make Tahini Herb Sauce.
- Preheat a large skillet over medium heat.
- Spiralize zucchinis with a spiralizer. (If using mandoline/veggie peeler and knife technique you will need longer for this step so start the whole recipe by preparing your noodles first, with a spiralizer it won't take more than 5 minutes, so can be done while waiting for chickpeas to finish roasting and pan is preheating).
- Add a dollop of olive oil to hot pan, add zucchini noodles, sprinkle with salt and pepper and stir constantly for the zucchini to be able to release it's steam upwards instead of into the pan. Remove from the pan as soon as slightly soft.
- Add zucchini noodles to a big bowl, add roasted chickpeas and drizzle with Tahini Herb Sauce.
- Decorate with a slice of lemon and some basil.
http://greenhealthycooking.com/out-of-this-world-tahini-herb-sauce/
Wow!! I love this recipe. With that tahini herb sauce… such a light and vibrant dish!
Thank you 😀