Zucchini ‘Spaghetti’ with Salmon

I pinched the idea for salting zucchini ‘spaghetti’ and using in a salad from Melbourne chef Matt Wilkinson of Pope Joan fame. His book ‘Mr Wilkinson’s Favourite Vegetables’ is an absolute delight, filled with new ideas for veg.

If you have a spiralizer it makes life easier. But if you don’t, it’s not a problem. Cutting the zucchini by hand will only take a few minutes.

Print Add to My Inbox Go to My Inbox

Zucchini ‘Spaghetti’ with Salmon

Total Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 2 people

Ingredients

• 4 small zucchini (courgette)
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 bunch mint or parsley, leaves picked
• 6 tablespoons ricotta
• 2 salmon fillets or 4 chicken thigh fillets

Instructions

• If you have a spiralizer, get to work turning your zucchini into ‘spaghetti’. If doing it by hand, finely slice zucchini into ribbons using a mandoline, vegetable peeler or a sharp knife. Then pile your zucchini ‘ribbons’ onto the chopping board and slice the ribbons lengthwise into spaghetti strands. Place in a sieve and sprinkle over 2 generous pinches of fine salt. Stand.
• Meanwhile combine lemon juice and 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil. Don’t season as the zucchini should be salty enough.
• Heat a medium frying pan on a medium high heat. Rub fish or chicken with oil and sprinkle with salt. Cook until well browned on both sides and cooked through. About 3-4 minutes a side for the salmon and 4-5 minutes for the chicken.
• Rinse zucchini and pat dry with paper towel. Toss zucchini in the dressing with the herbs. Taste and add extra salt if needed.
• Spread ricotta on 2 plates. Top with fish or chicken and zucchini.

Variations

vegetarian – replace the salmon with a drained can of white beans. Mash them with the ricotta and serve with the salad. Or double the ricotta and serve with eggplant and roasted almonds instead of salmon.

vegan – replace salmon and ricotta with hummus or chunks of avocado.

dairy-free/paleo – replace ricotta with hummus, mashed avocado or cauliflower hummus.

different protein / carnivore – any fish fillets can be used here. Also great with tuna, canned salmon, sardines. I like to serve the salad without the ricotta as a side to BBQ lamb chops with a good squeeze of lemon and a little chilli oil drizzled over. You could also replace salmon with chicken breasts or pork chops.

zucchini ‘spaghetti’ ragu – serve the salad with your favourite bolognese sauce instead of the salmon and ricotta.

carb lovers / more substantial – serve with crusty bread, boiled potatoes or cooked spaghetti.

Waste Avoidance Strategy

zucchini – will keep for 2 weeks or longer in a plastic bag in the fridge. To keep it even longer, cook sliced zucchini in a little butter until just soft then store in an airtight container in the fridge.

lemon – whole lemon will keep wrapped in a plastic bag in the fridge for months.

mint – best to use for another meal.

parsley – will keep in the fridge wrapped in a plastic bag for a few weeks. Can be frozen or make a parsley oil by packing the leaves into a clean jar and covering with extra virgin olive oil.

ricotta – in a sealed tub it usually has a shelf life of a few weeks in the fridge. If in an opened container, will only keep for a few days so use for another meal or freeze.

salmon fillets / chicken thigh fillets – freeze them.