Sauteed Zucchini and Carrots

Are you looking for quick and easy ways to use zucchini? Then make this easy sauteed zucchini and carrots and serve it as a side dish. This vegan and gluten-free side dish pairs very well with quinoa, rice, pasta, and toasted bread.

Contents

• Ingredients
• Instructions
• Recipe Notes & variations
• Serving suggestions
• Storage
• Recipe

Ingredients

• Zucchini: I used green zucchini and sliced it into thin strips in this recipe. In this way, zucchini will cook very quickly. You can chop the zucchini into cubes or circles. And the cooking time of the recipe varies accordingly.  
• Carrots: Carrots add a light sweetness to this stirfry. And I used shredded carrots so that they cook in less time.
• Aromatics and spices: Onion, garlic, and dried thyme is all we need to flavor this stirfry. To flavor this sauteed zucchini, you can use fresh thyme or other herbs like oregano, basil, parsley, and cilantro. Freshly ground black pepper will add spice to this dish, and you can use red chili flakes or paprika powder to make it spicier.

Instructions

• Heat a saute pan or skillet and add oil, finely chopped onion, garlic, and dried thyme. Saute them for acouple of minutes.

• Now add chopped zucchini and cook it on high flame for a couple of minutes.

• Season the zucchini with freshly ground black pepper and salt. Salt will release the water from the zucchini. Mix everything once.

• Then goes the shredded carrots, and stir them once. Let the carrots zucchini mixture cook on high flame for around 2 to 3 minutes.

• Switch off the flame, and the easy sauteed zucchini and carrots is ready to serve.

Recipe Notes & variations

• Carrot is optional, and plain sauteed zucchini will also taste good and be a good side dish.
• In this recipe, I used green zucchini. You can use either yellow zucchini or both to make this dish.
• Instead of zucchini, you can use summer squash or butternut squash. Cooking time will vary accordingly.
• To make spicy sauteed zucchini, use red chili flakes or paprika powder.
• Fresh herbs like cilantro, milt, parsley, and dill leaves are a good addition to this dish.
•  In this recipe, I used dried thyme to flavor the zucchini. You can use dried oregano or dried Italian herbs as well.
• You can season the zucchini with Mexican or cajun seasoning as well. 

Serving suggestions

This vegan and gluten-free sauteed zucchini pairs very well with almost everything. Some of the ways I usually serve this veggie side dish are

• Serve with fluffy quinoa or millet.
• Have some leftover boiled pasta? Quickly add it to the last step and cook the pasta for a couple more minutes. You could add a splash of water if the pasta is on the drier side.
• Use this stirfry as a sandwich spread or tortilla filling. Use cashew cheese sauce or pesto as spreading sauce, and I am sure kids will like it.
• Use it as a side dish for rice.
• Add some cooked chickpeas, kidney beans, or black-eyed peas to this sauteed zucchini for a light dinner, and turn this stirfry into a salad.

Storage

As this recipe hardly takes time, I prefer to make it when needed and serve it immediately. But you can store this dish for a day in the refrigerator.

Some other zucchini recipes to try from my blog

Zucchini and potato stir fry

Zucchini coconut curry

Zucchini flatbread

Zucchini and chickpea curry

Zucchini chickpea pancakes

Have you tried this recipe? Provide your feedback by giving a star rating and/or leaving comments. And don't forget to share the recipe with others on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, or Twitter.

Recipe