Grilled Zucchini

Grilled Zucchini in the summertime is a necessary tradition. Anyone that has a home garden has two things. Tomatoes and Zucchini. The problem is too many people just dice up zucchini and turn it into a mushy mess. It’s understandable folks don’t want to eat a bland soggy zucchini. Continue reading if you want to learn how to grill this fantastic vegetable. My I present to you grilled zucchini with pesto!

How do you grill Zucchini?

First step to grilling zucchini is remembering you are looking for the perfect spot where a little char meets a little bite on a zucchini. Zucchini are great raw and don’t need a lot of time to cook. You don’t want a mushy overcooked mess and you don’t want to burn the heck out of this delicious summertime treat.

It’s also important to pick the right zucchini. As always, I like vegetables straight from the farmers market. No matter where you pick up your zucchini make sure it is fresh. You don’t want it too feel slimy to the touch. Make sure you don’t smell anything unpleasant and the zucchini should not have any mushy spots.

Size matters when picking a zucchini for grilling. Don’t go after the really big zucchini that have been laying in your garden too long. They will be full of seeds. I nice medium to small zucchini is what you should look for.

Summer Zucchini grilling

Cut of the end pieces and slice the zucchini down the middle. Try your best to slice the zucchini on an even plane. I’m not saying take out a level to doublecheck your knife skills, but make sure you’re as even as possible with your cut. The reason why is you want as much surface area to touch the grill and an uneven cut will prevent that from happening.

Rub some olive oil and salt on the open face of the cut zucchini. Then place the zucchini facing down over direct heat on a pre heated 400 F degree grill. Lower the grill cover and grill for 5 minutes. Flip the zucchini and lower the heat down to low and grill for another 3 minutes.

Can you overcook zucchini on the grill?

Absolutely, if you cook zucchini on the grill for too long the vegetable will be ruined just like any other cooking method. How to know when grilled zucchini is done is extremely important. Either two things will happen when zucchini is overcooked. First, you may end up with a charged burnt mess. A little sear marks on the zucchini helps with the flavor. However, no one wants to eat charred vegetables.

why is my grilled zucchini soggy?

The other problem with cooking zucchini too long is the firmness. You do not want a mushy zucchini! Soggy flavorless vegetables will not get you compliments at the dinner table. So, like I always recommend, stay close to your grill and keep an eye on the food!

Sear Marks on Zucchini

Can Zucchini be grilled whole?

Yes, zucchini can be grilled whole. Instead of slicing the zucchini in half you can place the whole zucchini on the grill grates and rotate the zucchini as it cooks. The cooking time will need to be double, but grilling whole zucchini and then slicing it is a great technique.

What goes with grilled Zucchini?

When grilling zucchini find other fresh summer ingredients that  compliment the zucchini. For this recipe I used just picked off the vine cherry tomatoes and arugula pesto. Before you place the zucchini on the grill put a 1/2 pint of cherry tomatoes, a pinch of salt, and some olive oil in a cast iron skillet over direct heat.

Cherry Tomatoes in cast iron skillet on grill

How do you make Arugula Pesto?

Arugula Pesto

Making Arugula Pesto is a simple process that only has a few ingredients. The best thing about this pesto is the availability of ingredients. Sometimes in the winter months basil is tough to find in large quantities but arugula is always around for recipes. Take all of the ingredients except the olive oil and place into a blender. Turn the blender on and slowly drizzle in the olive oil until you have a nice smooth pesto. Taste the pesto and you can add additional salt or arugula depending on your preference.

Arugula Pesto

When you take the zucchini off the grill place them with the sliced side looking up. Then drizzle the arugula pesto over the zucchini. Finish the plate off with the cherry tomatoes and ricotta cheese.

Plated Grilled Zucchini topped with pesto, ricotta cheese, and cherry tomatoes by Searmarks.

Take advantage of fresh seasonal summer vegetables and enjoy this fantastic recipe for grilled zucchini.

Grilled Zucchini topped with pesto, cherry tomatoes and ricotta cheese.

If you enjoy vegetables on the grill check out these other fantastic recipe ideas from Searmarks! Links are below….

Grilled Eggplant with tomato and pepper medley

Grilled Stuffed Cherry Peppers

Print Recipe

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Grilled Zucchini

By sear marks – Serves: 2

Prep Time: 10 – Cooking Time: 10

Grilled Zucchini combined with Arugula Pesto, Cherry Tomatoes, and Ricotta Cheese are all you need for this super simple summer grilled vegetable dish.

Ingredients

• 4 Medium sized Zucchini
• 1/2 Pint Cherry Tomatoes
• 8 ounces ricotta cheese
• For Arugula Pesto
• 4 Cups Arugula
• 1/2 Cup Basil
• 2 cloves of garlic
• Olive Oil
• Salt
• 2 cloves garlic

Instructions

1

Remove zucchini ends and slice zucchini down the middle.

2

Salt and brush olive oil on the zucchini.

3

Heat grill to 400 degrees.

4

Place cherry tomatoes in cast iron skillet on the grill over direct heat.

5

After 5 minutes place zucchini on the grill grates over direct heat.

6

After 5 minutes flip the zucchini and cook on low temp for another 3 minutes.

7

Place zucchini and drizzle pesto over zucchini then add tomatoes and ricotta cheese.

8

For pesto....

9

Take 2 cloves of garlic, arugula, basil and a pinch of salt and place in blender.

10

Slowly add olive oil and turn on blender.

11

Blend until a smooth consistency is achieved.