I prepared these Baked Zucchini and Tuna Meatballs a few days ago using the leftovers from the recipe Pan-Cooked Stuffed Zucchini with Ground Meat. As I often say, I hate waste and am always on the lookout for easy, quick, and economical recipes. This is precisely one of those—a recipe born from recycling ingredients.
I thought of this zucchini and tuna meatball recipe while preparing the previous recipe. In short, while hollowing out the zucchini with a scoop to fill them with ground meat, I thought: “let me put these scraps in a bowl so I can do something with them later!” That single scrap made me think—I wanted to create something to avoid throwing anything away, not even in the compost. So, I pondered and eventually found the most obvious solution in the world—what’s better than meatballs?
I needed another ingredient to add. Something that would help bind the mixture, didn’t require much time, and was already in my pantry. Tuna—how could I not think of it immediately? So, I already had: zucchini and tuna, then what did I just use to work the ground meat? Bread crumbs. So, with this and just one egg, I created another dish, which I am now showing you. Indeed, the art of recycling!
Below are a few more zucchini recipes I’ve prepared over the years. If you buy enough zucchinis, you might try some others. Each link below is clickable and will take you to the recipe of your choice. Zucchinis are in season during May, June, and July. If you want to respect seasonality, this is the period to remember and mark on your calendar. But if you find them on sale or are zucchini lovers and can’t resist, you can buy them and try these recipes.
I also remind you that you’ll find all the social channels with clickable links in the box below the recipe. You can choose your favorite social media or follow all the profiles. Every morning in the Group and on the Facebook Fan Page Le Ricette di Bea, I’ll be waiting for you with the Recipe of the Day!
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very economical
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 2 people
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Spring, Summer
- Energy 312.02 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 28.25 (g) of which sugars 1.92 (g)
- Proteins 27.08 (g)
- Fat 11.25 (g) of which saturated 4.39 (g)of which unsaturated 6.33 (g)
- Fibers 3.71 (g)
- Sodium 516.90 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 250 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients for Baked Zucchini and Tuna Meatballs
- 14 oz zucchini (in my case, only the inner part of the zucchini)
- 1 pack tuna (about 3.5 oz drained)
- 1 egg
- as needed bread crumbs (for both the coating and two or three tablespoons for the meatball mixture)
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 pinch pepper
- as needed parsley (or dried chives)
If you don’t have zucchini scraps like I did, you can use two or three medium-large zucchinis, grate or finely chop them. Advice: be sure to drain the tuna well.
Tools for Zucchini and Tuna Meatball Recipe
- 1 Bowl
- 1 Oven
- 1 Small bowl
- 2 Plates
- 1 Baking tray
- 1 Parchment paper
A small plate will be needed for the bread crumbs, and the small bowl to beat the egg. So, a small plate and a small bowl to avoid dirtying too many things. Then a plate to place the zucchini meatballs as we prepare them.
Steps for Zucchini and Tuna Meatball Recipe
Let’s begin the preparation of this quick and easy recipe. Keep in mind that we’ll take only a few minutes to work on the meatballs, so the first thing to do is to turn on the oven. I set the temperature to 356°F with the static mode. I used the small oven, without needing to turn on the large oven. It takes a few more minutes to cook but is easier to clean and consumes less. If you use your kitchen’s classic oven, you can set the temperature between 356 and 392°F. Place the tray in the central part to avoid making the meatballs too hard on one side, which you can then avoid by turning them during cooking a couple of times. I suggest turning them every 10 minutes or so. But now let’s prepare the mixture for the zucchini and tuna meatballs.
Take the zucchini, if they are like mine, leftovers from a previous recipe, break them with your hands and squeeze them well. If they are whole zucchini, chop or grate them finely.
Then place them in the bowl. Drain the tuna well and add it to the zucchini. Sprinkle with two generous tablespoons of bread crumbs, add a pinch of salt and pepper, and a chop of parsley or dried chives. Work everything with your hands and try creating the first meatball.
If you find that the mixture holds together, proceed by preparing all the zucchini meatballs and laying them on the plate. If not, add another tablespoon of bread crumbs. Once all the zucchini meatballs are prepared, beat the whole egg in a small bowl and pour some bread crumbs onto a small plate. Then pass each meatball first in the bowl with the egg, then in the breadcrumbs. I made a double coating, which is even crunchier. If you have made many small meatballs, two whole eggs may be necessary for this recipe.
Gradually arrange all the zucchini and tuna meatballs on the baking tray where you have placed a sheet of parchment paper. Bake for about 40 minutes. As mentioned, I suggest turning the zucchini and tuna meatballs every 10 minutes or so. This will prevent them from becoming hard and dark on just one side.
Furthermore, I recommend serving this delight with a side sauce, perhaps a tzatziki sauce which is always perfect with zucchini! Of course, you can find the recipe here on my cooking blog!
All that is left is to wish you bon appétit and remind you that the social media links for the blog profiles Le Ricette di Bea are below!!! Don’t miss the YouTube Channel with many easy, quick, and economical video recipes like this one! Until the next recipe!!!
Storage
You can store the Zucchini and Tuna Meatballs in a container with a lid in the refrigerator for two days, or you can place them in the freezer to have them available for the following week. However, when defrosting, place them in the refrigerator first, the night before, then heat them in a preheated oven for about ten minutes. If you put them in the oven while still frozen, they risk not defrosting inside, remaining hard and thus inedible.
