A super delicious and easy Zucchini Noodles Recipe filled with flavor. Spiralized Zucchini, crispy roasted chickpeas, and an out of this world Tahini Herb Sauce.
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 pasta 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 you 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 vegetable noodles less watery
Zucchini or any vegetable really contains a lot of water so the number 1 complaint with spiralized vegetables is that they become soggy when cooked. You can, of course, eat them raw and avoid them 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.
The best sauce for this noodle dish
Zucchini noodles don’t have a strong taste themselves which is why in my opinion they need an extraordinary sauce. Tahini 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.
Easy Zucchini Noodles
Ingredients
- 1 tsp avocado oil
- 1.5 cups cooked chickpeas
- sea salt
- 4 medium zucchinis or 12 oz bagged zucchini noodles
- sea salt
- 2 oz basil leaves about 2 hands full
- 1 oz cilantro leaves about 1 hand full
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 1/4 cup rice vinegar
- 1/2 lemon
- 2 Tbsp tahini unsweetened and unsalted
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce or tamari
- 1-2 Tbsp olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 deseeded jalapeño
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F (200C).
- Drain, rinse and dry chickpeas in a kitchen towel. Remove skins if desired.
- Add chickpeas to a large baking sheet and drizzle with avocado oil and sprinkle with salt. Smush around with your fingers to make sure all chickpeas are covered with oil and salt.
- Roast for 25-35 minutes moving the chickpeas around with a wooden spoon mid-through.
- Make the Tahini Sauce by adding basil leaves, cilantro leaves, honey, garlic, rice vinegar, soy sauce, tahini, olive oil, lemon juice, and jalapeño to a blender and blend until smooth.
- 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 splash of olive oil to the hot pan, add zucchini noodles, sprinkle with salt 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.
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Lisa says
Your list of ingredients calls for avocado oil and coriander leaves. Nowhere in your instructions does it say anything about these two items. The instructions have olive oil and cilantro. What ingredients are actually supposed to be used in this recipe?
Lorena Grater says
Hi Lisa, I’m really sorry for the confusion. The chickpeas need avocado oil for roasting as it has a higher smoke point than olive oil. The olive oil in the list goes into the tahini sauce, which won’t be heated. I just changed the “coriander leaves” to “cilantro leaves”. It’s the same thing. One word is English, the other is Spanish. I have noticed that in most parts of North America the two words are used to differentiate between the spice made out of the coriander seeds and the herb which are the coriander leaves (by most called cilantro). I hope it’s clearer now. I modified the recipe to make it clearer.
Marilou says
ohhh, looks so delicious and healthy. This is going in to my ‘To Do” list.
Noelle says
Wow!! I love this recipe. With that tahini herb sauce… such a light and vibrant dish!
Lorena says
Thank you 😀