Mediterranean Diet Friendly Paleo Zucchini Noodle Primavera
This vibrant, vegetable-forward dish is everything a warm-weather dinner should be — colorful, fresh, and packed with flavor without feeling heavy. Spiralized zucchini stands in for pasta, tossed with blistered cherry tomatoes, tender asparagus, and sweet bell pepper, all brought together with a bright hit of lemon juice, lemon zest, and a generous handful of fresh basil and parsley. The technique of salting and thoroughly drying the zoodles before cooking is the key move here — it keeps the finished dish from turning watery and gives the noodles a satisfying, just-tender bite. Extra-virgin olive oil does double duty, both sautéing the vegetables and acting as the base of the sauce, which is exactly the kind of simple, ingredient-driven cooking that makes this approach so appealing. A finishing scatter of toasted pine nuts adds a subtle richness and a little crunch that pulls the whole bowl together. It comes together in one skillet and relies entirely on whole, unprocessed ingredients, so there's nothing to second-guess — just honest, produce-driven cooking at its best.
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Learn more →Ingredients
4 servings
For the zoodles
- 4 medium zucchini (about 2 lb total)
- 1 tsp kosher salt, for drawing out moisture
For the vegetables
- 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, divided
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 medium yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
- 1 medium zucchini, thinly sliced into half-moons (about 1 cup)
- 1 cup asparagus, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- ¼ tsp red pepper flakes
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
For the sauce
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice (from about 1 lemon)
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- ¼ cup fresh basil leaves, torn
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley, roughly chopped
For serving
- 2 tbsp toasted pine nuts (optional)
Instructions
- 1
Spiralize the 4 trimmed zucchini into noodles using a spiralizer or julienne peeler. Place the zoodles in a colander set over the sink, toss with 1 tsp kosher salt, and let stand for 10 minutes until moisture begins to bead on the surface. Pat thoroughly dry with paper towels — the drier the zoodles, the less watery the finished dish.
- 2
Heat 2 tbsp of the olive oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the asparagus and bell pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until just tender and bright, about 3–4 minutes.
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