Autumn is rich in a variety of gourds: watermelons, zucchini, melons and pumpkins. They stew, bake, make preparations with them for the winter and just dishes for every day. It would seem that there is nothing to surprise here. But this is as long as the zucchini-spaghetti is unknown. Cooking and serving can be different, only it is possible to identify it far from immediately. And all because in appearance and taste it does not at all look like a zucchini.
What is this fruit"?
What is so remarkable about this sort of squash? At first glance, they are no different from others. The same oblong fruits covered with a light yellow skin. Even the smell and taste of raw vegetables does not differ from ordinary zucchini. And cutting it, nothing special can be seen. But how then is it different from other zucchini-spaghetti, recipes with which are considered a culinary delight?
The fact is that after cooking, the flesh of this vegetable becomes similar to the famous Italian spaghetti. And naturally, the cooks around the world didn’t take advantage of this and came up with a lot of dishes with him. In addition, such "spaghetti" will suit both vegetarians and losing weight. Obviously, the calorie content of dishes will be low. Indeed, instead of flour pasta, zucchini-spaghetti is used.
How to cook?
There are many ways to cook zucchini spaghetti. But first of all, you need to heat the vegetable itself. This is necessary in order for the pulp to acquire the desired consistency and structure.
If the fruits of zucchini are small, then it is easiest to boil them whole, without even removing the peel. To this end, zucchini is dipped in boiling water and left in it for 20-30 minutes. It is also very convenient to bake them whole in the oven. You need to do this at 180 degrees for about 30-40 minutes. Then the vegetables are removed and left for 5-7 minutes, so that they cool, and you can work with them. Cut the zucchini into 2 parts, remove the seeds and choose the pulp with a fork or just with your hands.
But it’s better to cut large zucchini and remove seeds from raw ones. Then cut into slices 12-15 cm in size. This length will be "spaghetti" in a plate. Dip in boiling water and cook in it until soft. It is very important not to digest them so that the structure is preserved. Then simply knead with a fork and season with your favorite sauce of zucchini-spaghetti. How to cook the vegetable itself is clear, but you can still make different dishes with it.
With meat sauce
While zucchini will be baked or boiled, you can cook for it not at all dietary and non-vegetarian meat sauce. This will make vegetable spaghetti look like real spaghetti. For it, you will need 500 grams of minced meat, 2-3 fleshy and juicy tomatoes, 2 onions, bell pepper, herbs, salt and spices to taste and desire.
Fry the minced meat in a pan until the juice stands out and the meat becomes light brown. If it is non-greasy, you can pour a little vegetable oil. Meanwhile, all the vegetables are diced, the greens are finely crumbled. Grated carrots, chopped garlic and tomato paste can also be added to the sauce. Then all this is combined with meat, salted and seasoned well, mixed and stewed over low heat until the meat is ready. It remains to pour this sauce already in a plate of zucchini-spaghetti. How to cook with meat is understandable, but can it be done with cheese? Of course yes.
"Pasta with cheese
Such "spaghetti" with cheese can be made both from an Italian restaurant. You just need to use garlic, basil and, of course, grated parmesan for cooking. And it is unlikely that these dietary "pasta" will yield to the taste of the classic. And the number of calories is many times less. Shredded garlic is lightly fried in olive oil to give its taste and aroma. Then chopped basil is added (green or red, or both), and a little more fried. Squash-spaghetti is added to the pan ( it is already known how to cook it). Sprinkled with grated Parmesan, mixes, and you can surprise your home or guests with "pasta" with zucchini cheese .