Zoodles Perfected!

This recipe is posted as a courtesy to those following a variety of low-carb and ketogenic diets (not necessarily Meal Plans designed by me). This recipe may or may not be appropriate for you.

Last March, I made “zoodles” for the first time. I thought it was ingenious to use shredded zucchini in place of noodles – not realizing that people long before me had thought of the idea! I posted my recipe here, but have since tried to perfect them, to keep them from ending up sitting in a puddle of water.

Someone online mentioned baking the shreds first, immediately after making them. While they oozed less water when served, they were limp. Quite disappointing!

Yesterday, I was craving spaghetti and Bolognese sauce and had some beautiful pastured beef to make it with and fresh oregano that was still surviving in my garden so I decided to see if I could solve the “water problem” of zoodles, without affected the texture. I did it!

Zoodles perfected!!

I had both yellow and green zucchini in the house (2 of each) and decided in the interest of colour, to use the yellow ones. Here’s the technique for perfect zoodles!

Shred the zucchini lengthwise on a mandolin down to the core on each side (but not including the too-soft core).
Lightly salt the shreds and then toss well and let them sit a few minutes to let it start to draw out the water.
Microwave the zoodles for 3 minutes on high, covered with a microwave cover.
Dump into a mesh colander (the kind for sifting flour).
Allow to cool just long enough to handle them (don’t rinse with water to cool them, as they will absorb it readily) then gently squeeze out all the water in cupped hands (as one would do with frozen spinach when preparing it for a recipe).
Top with your favourite spaghetti sauce, serve and enjoy!

These were amazing!! No pooled water!

…and they twisted just like pasta!