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Spiralizers always seemed a little snake oil-ish to me. They promise to turn any vegetable into faux-pasta, but I just couldn’t believe it. Texturally, maybe, but taste-wise? Fuhgettaboutit.
Then I received a handheld spiralizer. It sat in my cupboard for months, until one day, while trying to eat like Gwyneth Paltrow (cooking entirely from her book, which included a zucchini cacio e pepe recipe), I finally busted it out.
I Googled recipes beforehand, and learned it was crucial to dry out the spiralized vegetables before cooking with them, just so they wouldn’t turn slimy and watery. What a difference that step makes! So many recipes don’t even mention it, but it goes a long way in making vegetable ribbons taste closer to pasta (though, admittedly, nothing makes them truly taste like the carbs you know and love).
The more I experimented, the more I became obsessed with one dish in particular: a ground turkey-based spaghetti sauce on top of zucchini ribbons. I make the sauce on the dry side, and toss it with the zuke noodles.
I add some sauteed onions and red bell pepper, for an extra dose of veggies, and the best part is, you can easily throw this together in 20 minutes. Even if your brain is fried after a loooong day.
You have no excuse not to make it one night this week, honestly.
Zucchini Spaghetti
Ingredients
- 3 large zucchini
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 small white onion, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- 1 jar tomato sauce (8 oz if you like it drier, 16 oz for a more traditional sauce)
- salt & pepper, to taste
- 2 tbsp grated parmesan cheese (optional)
Instructions
- Twist the zucchini through a spiralizer to create noodles. If you don't have a spiralizer, use a vegetable peeler to peel it into very thin ribbons, like pappardelle. Gently salt and set in a colander for 15 minutes to drain excess water.
- As they sit, start the sauce: Pour the vegetable oil in a large skillet over a burner on medium heat. Add the onion and bell pepper. Cook until softened and lightly browned, stirring occasionally, about 2-3 minutes. Add the ground turkey, breaking it up as it cooks. Once it's largely browned, add the minced garlic and gently stir. Keep cooking until the meat is no longer pink. Stir in tomato sauce, stirring the meatsauce together and seasoning with salt and pepper to your taste.
- Finish the pasta: Bring a medium-sized saucepan of water to a boil. Once boiling, add the zucchini and cook for 1-2 minutes. Drain, then toss in the meatsauce.
- Top with grated parmesan and serve.
