Zoodle Salad

This healthy and easy to make zucchini ‘zoodle’ salad is perfect when zucchini is in season. & the best part? It’s a great side dish that doesn’t require turning on the oven in the summer.

What are zoodles you ask? Zoodles have been around for awhile now. If you haven’t heard/seen them, they are a zucchini that’s been turned into noodles with a special tool called a ‘spiralizer’. This is the spiralizer my mom has and this is the one I have. No need to invest in an expensive one, the simple one does the job. Although if you are wanting to spiralize a sweet potato the nicer spiralizer does hold the vegetable in place, which is helpful and important.

I started making zoodles off and on to use zucchini more. In the summer time, zucchini is plentiful and if you’re lucky enough to have a lot of blossoms you can also ‘fry’ the blossoms and stuff them with goat cheese. That too is always good. But in the meantime how to use up all the fresh summer zucchini – a nice simple raw ‘zoodle’ salad.

I love using this as a simple side dish to bring to any get together, use as a simple weeknight side, but never as a replacement for carbs. You can read all about it in the experiment that I did here.

Zoodle Salad & Additions

1. Zucchini– in season now and abundant in the farmer’s markets and grocery stores. If you’re lucky to have a garden and have fresh zucchini, tell me your secret! This salad highlights zucchini because it’s raw. If you are going to sauté the zoodles, depending on their thickness, it takes just a minute or two. Cook them too long and you have mush. And no one wants that!
2. Cheese – I used feta cheese in this recipe. I went with a Mediterranean spin on this dish with the flavors. Feta pairs well with zucchini also. I did not use a low-fat version as sometimes it can be saltier and also because fat provide flavor and fullness – it really is all about balance.
3. Dressing– This is a simple mix of lemon juice and extra-virgin olive oil. I’ve seen some recipes that will do a 2 to 1 ratio of the oil to lemon juice, but I really wanted the lemon flavor to shine through here, so I did equal amounts.
4. Cucumbers and Red Onion – This can be added to really make it similar to a Greek salad. Once again, cucumbers and red onion are veggies I want to like, but seem to not like me. I will eat them here and there, but they do tend to give me reflux – see oregano below!
5. Greens – You could easily serve this over a bed of greens – spinach or arugula. I kept this super simple and made zucchini the star of the show, but feel free to add a green for more veggies!
6. Basil– I used basil instead of oregano here. You could use either. I like oregano but oregano doesn’t like me – I always seem to get reflux after eating it. Basil sticks with the light and fresh taste of this simple zoodle salad!

How To Make ‘Zoodle’ Salad

It really is as simple as spiralizing the zucchini, throwing on some cheese with a quick drizzle of lemon vinaigrette. Zucchini, in season now, it doesn’t get any fresher than that!

1. Spiralize the zucchini: Use the ‘spiralizer’ to cut the zucchini into noodle like strands. If you don’t have a spiralizer you can use a mandolin (just watch your hands!) or simply dice the zucchini into tiny cubes.
2. Add Tomatoes and Cheese: Halve the tomatoes and crumble the feta cheese. Mix altogether with the zoodles.
3. Make the Vinaigrette: Whisk the lemon juice, olive oil, black pepper, and basil altogether until thoroughly mixed. Drizzle the vinaigrette over the zoodle mixture.
4. Garnish & Serve: Add any extra basil, if you like. Add more pepper if desired. Serve and enjoy!

This zoodle salad is light, refreshing, and one more easy way to add veggies to the table. Admitedly zucchini is not one of my favorite veggies. But this raw version is definitely one I like to use when zucchini is in season in the summer. What’s your favorite way to eat zucchini?

LOOKING FOR MORE EASY VEGETABLE DISHES?

• Roasted Green Beans
• Roasted Mushrooms
• Sugar Snap Peas
• Sautéed Kale

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