Stuffed Zucchini Boats
Our stuffed zucchini boats are filled with a hearty cubed smoked pork or bacon, then topped with plenty of cheese and baked to perfection. A fun and easy low carb meal option that the whole family will enjoy!
This super-fun classic dish never goes out of style. It’s an especially good choice during the summer when everyone’s gardens are overflowing with squash.
What’s so cool about this dish is that it’s so easy to customize the flavors to your liking or to what’s in your fridge and it is naturally low in carbs!
HOW DO YOU MAKE STUFFED ZUCCHINI BOATS?
This recipe starts with zucchini, which are hollowed-out, then set aside. Bacon is sautéed in olive oil, we add onion, mushrooms and zucchini. Our country ketchup is poured on top and cooked. That mixture gets piled into the hollowed-out shells. Then everything is topped with cheese and baked until gooey and browned.
CAN YOU FREEZE ZUCCHINI BOATS?
We don’t recommend freezing zucchini boats, simply because the zucchini will be quite mushy upon thawing. That being said, you can absolutely freeze the meat filling for these boats for up to 2 months. Simply thaw the filling, spoon it into fresh zucchinis, then add cheese and bake.
HOW LONG DO THESE ZUCCHINI BOATS LAST IN THE FRIDGE?
This zucchini boat recipe will keep well in the fridge. They should be good for 3-4 days in the fridge and just reheated when needed. They can be reheated in the microwave or oven
STUFFED ZUCCHINI BOATS SUBSTITUTIONS
You can use bacon, mild or hot Italian sausage, pork or turkey sausage, ground beef or even plant-based ground meat for this recipe.
You can also make this recipe with yellow squash, or even hollowed out small eggplants! While I typically use mozzarella cheese in this dish, other great choices would be parmesan, fontina or provolone.
STUFFED ZUCCHINI BOAT VARIATIONS
This is an ‘Irish style’ stuffed zucchini boat, using our very own flavorful chunky country ketchup, but there are so many other great ways to fill your boats!
Mexican: Make a filling with 1 lb. ground beef, 16 ounces tomato sauce, 4 ounces diced green chiles, 3/4 cup black beans and 1/2 cup corn, then top with cheddar cheese and bake.
Asian: Make the sauce with garlic, ginger and hoisin sauce.
Vegetarian: Make a filling with sautéed onion and garlic, 2 cups cooked grains such as rice or quinoa, 1 diced red bell pepper, salt, pepper, 1 1/2 cups shredded cheese, and fresh herbs.
IS ZUCCHINI HEALTHY?
Zucchini is packed with nutrients such as folate, Vitamin B6, potassium, manganese, Vitamin C and Vitamin K. Zucchini is low calorie, low in carbohydrates and high in fiber. Zucchini also protects against inflammation, aids in digestion, improves thyroid function and is beneficial for your eyes.
This recipe is a great way to get some veggies into your kids. You can even assemble your zucchini boats earlier in the day, then store them covered in the fridge until you’re ready to bake them. This recipe is guaranteed to get rave reviews!
DO YOU EAT THE SKIN ON ZUCCHINI BOATS?
Once cleaned properly before you prepare your zucchini boats the skin on the zucchini is perfectly ok to eat. Some large zucchinis that have tougher skins might have a bit of a bitter taste to it. So always try to use small to medium-sized zucchinis.
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Ingredients
3 medium zucchinis
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 pound bacon cubed
1/2 cup onion finely diced
1/2 cup mushroom diced
1/2 cup Judge Casey’s Famously Thick ketchup
3/4 cup Mozzarella cheese shredded
1 tablespoon Fresh basil chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Less clean up makes a happier cook! We used a cast iron pan so we could sauté the veg and use the same pan for the oven baking. If you don’t have an oven-safe pan you will just need to coat a baking tray with cooking spray.
STEP 2
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
STEP 3
Trim off the stem ends and cut the zucchini in half lengthwise. Use a teaspoon to carefully scoop the flesh out of the zucchinis, dice and set aside. Take care not to pierce the back of the skin. Continue until each zucchini half resembles a canoe.
STEP 4
Sprinkle salt and pepper over the zucchini shells and set aside.
STEP 5
Heat the olive oil in a large pan over medium high heat. Add the bacon and cook for 3-4 minutes.
STEP 6
Push the bacon to the outside of the pan, add the onion and cook for an additional 3 minutes or until onion is softened. Push the onion to the outside of the pan, add the mushrooms and cook for 2 minutes, then add the removed zucchini and sauté for 1 minute more.
STEP 7
Season the bacon and vegetable mixture with salt and pepper. Pour Judge Casey’s Famously Thick Ketchup into the pan and bring to a simmer and cook for 4 minutes.
STEP8
Remove from the heat and place the ‘boats’ in the center of the pan. Spoon the mixture evenly into the zucchini shells and top with the shredded cheese.
STEP9
Bake for 25 minutes, or until zucchini is tender and cheese is melted and golden brown.
STEP 10
Sprinkle with chopped basil, then serve.
