Garlic Parmesan Zucchini Noodles

A white bowl filled with zoodles and a fork.

5 from 2 votes

These Garlic Parmesan Zucchini Noodles are a healthy, low-carb option to pasta that's ready to serve in about 10 minutes! Top them with your favorite sauce or serve them as a side dish to round out any meal.

Prep Time5

Cook Time5

Total Time10

Course: Side Dish, Vegetable

Cuisine: American

Diet: Diabetic, Low Calorie, Low Salt, Vegetarian

Keyword: garlic parmesan zucchini noodles, zoodles, zucchini noodles

Servings:

Calories: 95kcal

Equipment

spiralizer

Ingredients

3 medium zucchini
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 heaping teaspoon minced garlic
freshly ground black pepper to taste
pinch of crushed red pepper flakes or to taste
1/4 teaspoon fine ground sea salt or to taste
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese or a vegetarian, plant-based hard cheese, plus additional if desired

Instructions

Slice off and discard the ends of the zucchini. Spiralize the zucchini using a spaghetti-sized blade on your spiralizer. Run a sharp knife through the pile of zoodles several times to cut them to a more manageable size.
Melt the butter with the oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 1 to 2 minutes. Lower heat, if necessary, to prevent the garlic from burning.
Increase the heat to medium-high and add the zucchini noodles, black pepper, and crushed red pepper, to taste. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes or just until the zoodles are al dente. They should be tender when pierced with a fork but still have some bite to them.
Season with salt and stir in the Parmesan. Remove the skillet from the heat and serve immediately. Sprinkle with a little additional Parmesan for garnish, if desired.

Video

Notes

Tips for Avoiding Soggy Zucchini Noodles:

Cook them for 3 to 4 minutes, maximum. You want them to retain some texture and bite for the perfect al dente experience.
Add salt last. Salt draws moisture out of vegetables and zucchini contains a large percentage of water.
There will be liquid at the bottom of your skillet and this is okay! Liquid from the zucchini will combine with the buttery-garlic-Parmesan mixture and it's going to be delicious.
To avoid watering down pasta sauce, don't add the sauce directly into the skillet with the cooked zucchini noodles. Instead, use tongs to pull the zucchini noodles from the skillet and transfer them to a serving bowl to eliminate the liquid altogether. Then proceed to top them with sauce or any other ingredients.

Feeding more than four? Double the recipe and use a Dutch oven.

Nutrition