The grilled zucchini in green sauce is a cold, tasty, and light side dish, perfect for accompanying grilled meat or fish dishes, or also to be served as an appetizer. This preparation is typical of the summer period when looking for fresh and low-calorie recipes, but, admittedly, grilled zucchini alone don’t have a very strong flavor. For this reason – as it happens also with the zucchini carpaccio – it’s common to enrich them with emulsions and sauces, like salmoriglio or the Greek yogurt-based sauce. Today, however, I recommend trying a green sauce, based on parsley, capers, and anchovies in oil, simple to prepare and very versatile. This sauce not only enhances the taste of grilled vegetables but is also perfect for dressing boiled meat or boiled beef, grilled chicken breast, steamed fish, or salt roast. Before serving the grilled zucchini in green sauce, it is advisable to let them rest for at least an hour. The result will be a dish with a rich and fresh taste, perfect for any occasion!
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- Difficulty: Very Easy
- Cost: Very Inexpensive
- Rest time: 1 Hour
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 4 People
- Cooking methods: Grill
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Spring, Summer and Autumn
- Energy 96.20 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 5.03 (g) of which sugars 0.06 (g)
- Proteins 4.51 (g)
- Fat 7.74 (g) of which saturated 1.15 (g)of which unsaturated 0.38 (g)
- Fibers 1.84 (g)
- Sodium 139.80 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 125 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 Grilled Zucchini with Green Sauce
- 21.2 oz zucchini
- 1 tbsp salted capers
- 2 anchovies in oil
- 1 tbsp vinegar
- 1 bunch parsley
- A few leaves mint
- 3 tbsps extra virgin olive oil
- 1 pinch salt
- to taste pepper
Tools
- 1 Cutting Board
- 1 Knife
- 1 Grill Pan non-stick
- 1 Blender small
How to Prepare Grilled Zucchini with Green Sauce
To prepare the grilled zucchini in green sauce, start by washing and trimming the zucchini. Slice them thinly lengthwise using a knife. If you prefer, you can use a mandoline (1) but adjust it to avoid cutting slices too thin, otherwise they will burn as soon as they touch the hot grill.
Place a non-stick grill pan on the heat (or turn on the electric grill at maximum power) and once it’s hot, place the zucchini slices side by side (2). Grill them for one or two minutes, then flip them (3) and let them cook on the other side as well.
As they cook, remove them from the grill and let them cool on a plate (4). Once all the zucchini are grilled, focus on the green sauce: in a small blender, add the washed and dried parsley along with the mint leaves (just 3 or 4), the well-drained anchovies, and the desalinated capers (5). Blend for a few moments, then add a splash of vinegar to taste and 3 tablespoons of oil (6).
Blend again until you obtain a homogeneous sauce (7). Taste and add a pinch of salt and pepper if needed. In a bowl or on a plate, layer the grilled zucchini, then season them with a few tablespoons of sauce; form another layer of zucchini seasoned with green sauce and continue until all ingredients are used (8).
Let the grilled zucchini in green sauce rest in the fridge for at least an hour before serving.
Storage
The zucchini prepared in this way can be stored for 3 or 4 days in the refrigerator, in a glass container.
Tips and Variations
If you like, you can also add a clove of garlic to the blender, with the skin and the central part removed.
