Pan-Seared Zucchini Recipe (2024)

Don't discard the "scraps!" Dice and put in a salad. Add to an omelet. Or, better yet, don't trim the zucchini in the first place. We should not be throwing away perfectly good food.

Would this work with eggplant?

If you don't want so much fat, just place the zucchini 'steaks' on a lightly oiled (or else nonstick) sheet-pan in a hot oven (say, 425, low shelf). Optional: You can finish off briefly under the broiler—or not. Just be sure to watch broiling closely, as not to burn. We season the slabs before cooking, e.g., w granulated onion, Thyme, pepper + a little sea salt... but you could do it plain, too. Super easy in the oven—and low-fat, low-cholesterol, sears with hardly any clean-up. Comes out great.

I like to grill zucchini over charcoal -- no need to trim the sides. After cooking, I season with olive oil, coarse sea salt, and marjoram flowers when they're in season.

Substitute EVOO for butter and use Old Bay Seasoning or celery seed powder instead of rosemary.

Run a vegetable peeler two times along the length of opposite sides of the zukes before slicing to create a flat surface for browning with minimal waste

Is anyone else bothered by recipe directions that tell you to oil until it is “almost smoking”? I’ve never figured out how to identify that point.

Shred Parmesan over it before you flip the final time and let it become golden!

Like Michael (below), I also do them on the grill. Cut the zucchini in half lengthwise, coat with a thin coat of oil and cook on both sides until a little soft. You can eat them plain, with a little salt and pepper or in a sandwich with fresh pita bread and some hummus. Eggplant will also work. Make it into 1/2 inch slices. It needs more oil as the eggplant absorbs it readily and it cooks more quickly than the zucchini. Enjoy.

Way too complicated for me. I’ve done these countless times over the decades.A tablespoon of olive oil or even nothing. Instead of a pan better use a cast iron skillet. Sear the zucchini sliced lengthwise.Put in a plate and dress with good olive oil , oregano or other spice of your liking, salt and a little vinegar.Much healthier and simpler.

No need for a recipe here! This technique works beautifully with zucchini, eggplant or bell peppers. It can be done in a frying pan or at 450F for 20 minutes in a toaster oven, without flipping, or on a BBQ grill. Topping variations are unlimited; any fresh or dried herbs work, including Indian, Oriental or European spices. Drizzle with olive oil, add some Panko and top with Parmesan. Always a favorite of family and friends. Even kids love it!

Grilling or broiling works with the long asian eggplants that I grow. I don’t peel them and since they have no seeds inside they aren’t bitter - just delicious.

Seriously people. This recipe is for a delicious brown butter sauce to go with the sautéed zucchini. I don’t get why people add their completely different versions to the notes.

Six minutes total is too much at high heat! I cooked on one side for four and then barely flipped, served immediately with the grilled side up. PS Bittman has a great archived feature with 12 different zucchini recipes: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2013/09/08/magazine/bittman-zucchini-recipes.html

Yes, eggplant (particularly Japanese) substitutes for zucchini. You may want to remove the purple/white skin. It can be bitter.

Could've used a wee bit more flavour but easy peasy and quite yummy.

So simple, so delicious! :D

Making planks wastes too much. Better to cut the zucchini in long quarters and sautée the two inside sides.

Zucchini, not my favorite vegetable, but this works. Important to add the lemon zest and red pepper flakes at the end.

Made this last night, filtering the recipe. New favorite way to serve zucchini. It was delicious.

8/10

Try these zucchini slices as part of a sandwich. I assemble the layers as follows: slice of sourdough bread, mayo, thin slice of summer tomato, slice of turkey, zucchini, grated fontina, another slice of bread. I select the size (length) of the zucchini according to the size of my bread to get perfect coverage.

Also a big squeeze of that lemon in nice

I possibly cooked this a minute or two too long, so the slabs became caramelized a bit, which was wonderful actually. Wonderfully simple and delicious. I personally found the rosemary a bit overpowering, and on the next cook will do sprigs of thyme instead.

When I pan-sear zucchini I usually cut the zucchini into disks bc that's what my family prefers. I put oil in a large pan or toss the disks with oil, make it really hot, and add a little salt and pepper. Then I flip them with tongs (sometimes rapidly) as they get a nice brown char on them. I add them to pasta but they are quite good on their own.

I do essentially same recipe but use smaller pieces of cut-up zucchini, using olive oil, no butter. Get a good char on zucchini pieces, then make a small well in the middle & add a diced half onion (yellow or red), & let sautee for a few minutes. Then add a diced large garlic clove & saute for a minute. Toss in a small handful of chopped herbs: Oregano, thyme, basil, marjoram, etc., few pinches of red pepper flakes. Let cook for a while, then stir together with zucchini

Kinda meh. Rosemary is the wrong herb, thyme would be better.

We have not done a good job of "drying" the slices and it doesn't make a difference for us. Every time the grill is going, I make this.

I skip the butter, use olive oil and finish with a dash of soy sauce.

Of course grilling is a great technique for zucchini. This is something different. And fabulous. Try it as written, with the brown butter. Made to rave guest reviews last night and will make again often. Of course keep the scraps for another recipe