Too Much Zucchini? Here’s What To Do With It!

From cooking, baking, and preserving, there are multiple different ways you can use up all that freshly harvested zucchini from your garden when your plants produce way too much.

If you’ve ever grown zucchini in your vegetable garden, then you know just how quickly one or two plants can produce way more squash than your family can consume.

In fact, it’s kind of a running joke in the gardening circle that if you grow zucchini, your neighbors, coworkers, and friends will start to hide whenever they see you coming during gardening season in fear that you will hand them a bag of zucchini!

Zucchini are one of the best-producing crops you can grow, with a single plant providing enough for a family to enjoy all summer long. That is as long as the squash vine borers and squash bugs stay away, but that’s a discussion for another article! (Just imagine how much zucchini I have on my countertops from the 9+ plants I grow each year!)

Instead of going the “ding dong ditch” route with all those extra zucchinis, I’ve put together a list of multiple great ways to use it all up. From “healthy” baked goods, delicious cooking recipes, and multiple ways of preserving zucchini, you will go through that pile of squash in no time at all!

Bake With It – Too Much Zucchini?

Zucchini doesn’t have a super intense flavor profile. That makes it perfect for either taking on other stronger flavors in recipes, or hiding it in baked goods. (If you are a parent, then you know how handy this can be!)

The best way to do this is to shred your zucchini. Shredded zucchini is great for sneaking in all sorts of baked recipes. Products like banana bread, cornbread, yeast bread, dinner rolls, brownies, etc. can all easily hide it without altering the recipe much. Just be sure to squeeze out any excess moisture before adding to the recipes.

You can also find specific recipes for baked zucchini products. While this might come as no surprise to most people, the most common baked zucchini product is bread. There are a thousand recipes out there, but if you want a classic sweet and moist zucchini bread recipe, check out mine: “Grandma’s Zucchini Bread.

Another baked zucchini product I specifically like is Zucchini Chocolate Chip Cookies. These cookies are moist and fluffy with warm cinnamon spices. You can never go wrong when chocolate chip cookies are involved!

Cook It

In addition to all sorts of baked goods, zucchini is also great to cook with. It can be a delicious, stand-alone side dish, or you can add it to other recipes for added body and nutrients to your meals.

One of my favorite side dishes is a simple Sautéed Zucchini. You can use whatever seasonings you prefer, but I love to do just butter and garlic. It’s a mild side dish that cooks up quickly and works with about any main course.

Another side dish option is to make a Garlic Butter Zucchini Mash. It is delicious and a great way to use up a ton of zucchini. (Plus, it freezes well, too, so you can enjoy it all year long!)

Zucchini can be added to all sorts of other recipes. Make zucchini boats and fill them with your favorite ground meats, rice, and vegetables. Slice up zucchini to make lasagna or pasta noodles. Add cubed zucchini to baked casseroles, soups, and stews. And don’t forget to add them to stir-fries and egg dishes as well.

Freeze It – Too Much Zucchini?

One of the best and safest ways to preserve zucchini is to freeze it. You can freeze it as chunks, slices, noodles, or shredded. The method you use will depend on how you plan to use the zucchini later on.

Cubed and sliced frozen zucchini works great for casseroles, soups, and stews. It will be a bit mushier, but it works fine for cooked dishes. Shredded zucchini works best for baked goods like breads, cookies, pancakes, etc. Noodles obviously work to replace traditional pastas.

To freeze zucchini of any type, first wash and trim off the ends. Scoop out any of the squishy middle and seeds if they are larger zucchinis. (My chickens LOVE that part!)

For cubed zucchini, cut it into similar-shaped pieces. Steam blanch it for 2 to 4 minutes. Drain and allow them to cool and dry completely. Flash freeze, then pack them into freezer-safe containers or bags.

For shredded zucchini, use a box grater or a food processor to shred the fruit. There is no need to peel the zucchini first. Place the shredded zucchini into freezer-safe bags or containers. Consider doing it in quantities that you frequently use. Silicone Freezer Molds (Product Link) or even silicone muffin pans work great for this.

You can even freeze noodles, or what is sometimes referred to as “Zoodles”. To make the zoodles, you will need a spiralizer of some sort. Steam-blanch the fruit for 2 to 4 minutes, then drain and dry. Pack the noodles in freezer-safe bags or containers.

Other Preserving Methods

Another way to preserve zucchini is to turn it into chips by using a dehydrator. You can season them with about anything you want, but garlic salt is my favorite (surprise, surprise!). They turn out super crispy and are a great guilt-free snack that resembles and tastes like you are eating potato chips. You can find my recipe for those here: “Crispy Dehydrated Zucchini Chips”.

Unfortunately, there is no USDA or National Center for Home Food Preservation approved and safety-tested recipe for zucchini or other summer squash. Instead, you need to can it with other produce in order to make it safe. (Source)

Hopefully you have a few more ideas on how to use up all of that zucchini that is sitting on your kitchen counter. If not, there’s always selling your excess produce at local farmers’ markets, donating it to food pantries, bringing it to church, or handing it out to every stranger you meet out and about!

Until next time, thanks for stopping by!
– Chelsea

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