Mediterranean Zucchini Pasta Salad
Try this Mediterranean Zucchini Pasta Salad recipe, or contribute your own.
Try this Mediterranean Zucchini Pasta Salad recipe, or contribute your own.
- salt and pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- for the salad:
- for the dressing:
- 2 medium zucchinis
- 1/2 cup crumbled feta
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1/2 cup halved pitted kalamata olives
- 1 small red onion peeled
- (1) 14.5oz can quartered artichoke hearts drained
- 1 cup drained and rinsed canned chickpeas
- (1) 14.5oz can diced tomatoes drained
- Carbohydrate 7.4640838041789 g
- Cholesterol 11.125 mg
- Fat 7.17585249997267 g
- Fiber 1.35993333306805 g
- Protein 3.12106666662917 g
- Saturated Fat 2.49303024999291 g
- Serving Size 1 1 -8 (145g)
- Sodium 172.768126693233 mg
- Sugar 6.10415047111085 g
- Trans Fat 0.340319833328826 g
- Calories 103 calories
Step-by-step
- Place all of the ingredients for the dressing into a bowl and whisk together.
- Slice the zucchinis halfway through lengthwise, careful not to pierce through the center.
- Spiralize the zucchinis with Blade C and add to a large mixing bowl.
- Grab the onion and again, slice halfway through lengthwise, careful not to pierce through the center.
- Spiralize the onion with Blade A and add half of the noodles to the bowl with the zucchini noodles and save the rest for future use.
- Then add in the artichokes, olives, chickpeas, feta, and diced tomatoes.
- Pour the prepared dressing over the zucchini salad and toss well to combine.
- Serve or refrigerate for future use.
Should the dressing go on before the vegetables sit, or right at the table? When combining raw spiralized squash with canned legumes and cured olives, managing moisture release dictates the final texture of the dish. Zucchini contains a high percentage of water, meaning salt in the dressing will draw out cellular moisture within minutes of contact. Emulsifying the extra virgin olive oil and red wine vinegar thoroughly with Dijon mustard creates a stable bond that coats the ingredients rather than pooling at the base of the bowl. Whisking the dried oregano, garlic powder, and lemon juice into the oil mixture ahead of time allows the fat-soluble compounds in the spices to disperse evenly. Blade selection matters during the prep phase; using Blade C for the zucchini yields a thicker strand that holds up better against heavy additions like artichokes and chickpeas than a fine shredder would. Slicing both the zucchini and the red onion halfway through lengthwise before feeding them into the spiralizer produces manageable lengths of noodles instead of unbroken ribbons that tangle around serving utensils. Draining canned diced tomatoes and quartered artichoke hearts in a colander for ten minutes eliminates excess canning liquid that would otherwise dilute the red wine vinegar dressing. Incorporating the feta cheese gently at the very end prevents the brine from breaking down the soft texture of the cheese into a paste. Salting the dressing rather than the vegetables directly controls the osmotic pressure, keeping the zucchini crisp for up to twenty-four hours in the refrigerator. Swapping kalamata olives for Castelvetrano varieties offers a milder, buttery profile if a sharper brine flavor is undesirable.
