If you’re looking for a great new summer side dish that’s more exciting than traditional pasta salad or grilled veggies, I have a treat for you! I’m absolutely bonkers over this bright and tangy zucchini salad.

This easy summer salad hits all the right notes: peppery arugula, sweet zucchini and corn, creamy feta cheese and crunchy nuts. It all comes together with a tart lemon vinaigrette that I could eat by the spoonful.

Zucchini salad is a great healthy side to serve with burgers, grilled chicken (or chicken spiedies!), or steak. You can also top it with grilled shrimp to transform it into a light meal!

Ingredients for zucchini and corn salad

To make this summer zucchini salad, you’ll need just five simple ingredients (plus oil, salt and pepper)!

• Zucchini. For this salad, you’ll need 2-3 medium zucchini.
• Corn. Corn adds a great texture to this salad, and the flavor screams summer! Fresh, in-season corn has the best flavor, but you can also thawed frozen corn if fresh isn’t available.
• Walnuts. Walnuts are great for adding crunch to this salad. They pair with zucchini so well! For a nut-free version, use sunflower seeds or pine nuts.
• Arugula. Arugula makes a great, peppery base.
• Feta. Feta adds a nice salty pop to this recipe. For the best flavor, look for blocks of feta in brine (you can use the leftover brine to make salad dressing or as a marinade for chicken!)
• Lemon. Fresh lemon juice and zest adds tons of flavor to the tart vinaigrette that salad dressing.

How to choose the perfect zucchini

The freshest zucchini will be firm to the touch and will be free from any cuts or bruises. The stem will also be rough, with a texture similar to velcro.

Look for small to medium zucchini that feel heavy for their weight. Avoid very large zucchini, which tend to have a watery flavor and be loaded with seeds. For the best fresh ingredients if you don’t have a bumper crop from your own garden, I always love shopping at our local farmers market.

The best way to cut zucchini for salad

Zucchini is usually served cooked, but I’m a huge fan of raw zucchini! It has a sweet and almost floral flavor and a tender-crisp texture.

I love slicing raw zucchini into very thin, long strips almost like carpaccio. The easiest way make zucchini ribbons like this is with a mandolin, but you can also use a standard vegetable peeler or a y peeler. In a pinch, you can also use a sharp knife and a lot of patience.

If thin strips aren’t calling out to you, you can also spiralize your zucchini or buy fresh zucchini noodles. (I do not recommend frozen zucchini noodles for this salad, since they’ll be soggy and won’t have any snap to them.) If you love raw zucchini noodles, be sure to check out this gingery shrimp zoodle recipe!

Can I use yellow squash in this recipe?

You can use yellow summer squash instead of zucchini, but it typically has larger seeds that don’t always result in the best texture. I definitely prefer zucchini for eating raw!

What are some variations on this salad?

This is a great. simple base recipe but you can definitely riff on it, too! Go ahead and add thinly sliced red onion, swap out goat cheese or Parmesan cheese for the feta, add fresh herbs like basil. You can even grill the zucchini to make a grilled zucchini salad.

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Summer Zucchini Salad

Zucchini salad is a super simple side dish made with just 5 ingredients! This healthy recipe is the perfect summer side dish to serve with your favorite protein.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 10 minutes minutes

Servings 4 servings

Calories 197kcal

Author Lauren Keating

Equipment

• OXO Good Grips V-Blade Mandoline Slicer

Ingredients

• 1 Lemon zested and juiced
• 2 Tablespoon olive oil
• 2-3 medium zucchini
• 1 cup fresh corn kernals
• 2 cups arugula
• ¼ cup chopped walnuts
• ¼ cup crumbled feta

Instructions

• In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, lemon zest, and oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.
• Use a mandolin or vegetable peeler to cut the zucchini into long, thin strips. Add the zucchini and corn to the vinaigrette and stir to coat. Let sit for 10 minutes so the vegetables soak up the flavor.
• Stir in the arugula, feta, and walnuts. Season to taste with salt and freshly cracked black pepper.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 197kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 11g | Cholesterol: 8mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 5g

I used to be the kind of person who would go to the grocery store 3 times a week to grab whatever I felt like making for dinner that night. I never really had to plan ahead, could make whatever it was that I was craving, and didn’t have to worry about my ingredients being fresh.

Like so many things, that completely changed over the last year.

Now, I get groceries delivered once a week or so which means planning ahead is crucial. And no matter how well I plan, my produce starts to look pretty sad by the end of the week.

One night not too long ago I was staring at the fridge wondering what on earth I was going to make for dinner. My eyes landed on a bag of frozen mixed vegetables that had been in the freezer for who knows how long.

I thought to myself… can you roast frozen vegetables?

It turns out you can! Roast frozen vegetables are super easy to make and very convenient.

You don’t have to worry about fresh produce going bad and since most vegetables are frozen at peak ripeness they can be better than what’s languishing in your refrigerator drawers.

I know, frozen vegetables might bring back some not-so-great memories.

I promise you these aren’t the waterlogged, bland boiled frozen vegetables that we grew up with. Roast frozen vegetables are surprisingly tasty!

They’re still softer than fresh vegetables are, but their flavor gets concentrated and they caramelize and brown better than I would have guessed.

Pro Tip: Like anything, different quality products will give you different results.

I loved the way Whole Foods 365 organic root vegetables roasted and could happily eat them every day.

I also had great luck with locally grown frozen broccoli that’s available at our neighborhood co-op. And I’m OBSESSED with roast frozen Brussels sprouts.

The store-brand mixed vegetables shown here were tasty but did come out much softer and with less flavor than the more premium products did. They also had a thicker layer of ice on them straight from the bag, which resulted in them steaming a little more than roasting. They didn’t get quite as browned or crispy as the other vegetables did.

How to roast frozen vegetables in 3 easy steps

Step 1: Lightly coat the frozen vegetables with oil

Like I explained in my roast carrots recipe, coating the vegetables with oil helps increase their surface temperature and insulated them so they don’t dry out in the hot oven.

You can do this by tossing them with oil in a mixing bowl or by using an oil spray to lightly mist them.

You do not need to defrost the vegetables first.

Step 2: Spread them in a single layer on a preheated baking sheet

Stick your baking sheet in the oven while it preheats to help speed up the cooking process and get those veggies nice and hot!

Be sure the spread the vegetables in a single layer so they have plenty of space around them. If you crowd them together, they’ll steam and won’t get those terrific browned bits that make roasted vegetables so good.

Step 3: Flip them after 15 minutes

After about 15 minutes, the vegetables should start to brown. Flip them over so both sides can get nice and caramelized.

Seasoning ideas for frozen vegetables

When it comes to seasoning roast vegetables, there are so many options!

Try:

• Homemade Cajun seasoning
• Curry powder
• Chili powder
• Za’atar and lemon zest
• Lemon pepper
• Garlic and red pepper flakes

You can also add flavor to these roast frozen veggies after they come out of the oven by:

• Tossing them in your favorite vinaigrette
• Drizzling them with a balsamic reduction
• Mixing them with lemon zest and fresh parsley
• Using them as a base for another recipe, like this roast cauliflower with pomegranate seeds

Serving suggestions

These roast vegetables are perfect as a side dish when you need something in a pinch. I love serving them on the side of roast chicken thighs.

But you can also get creative!

Try piling roasted root vegetables on top of baby spinach and pouring on some citrus vinaigrette to make a hearty winter salad.

You can also add them to broth to make an easy but flavorful soup. I love adding leftover roast butternut squash to store-bought coconut-lime broth for an easy lunch.

More vegetable side dish ideas

• Fresh green bean casserole
• Scalloped potatoes
• Roast acorn squash
• Baked butternut squash
• Grilled zucchini
• Classic cucumber salad
• Easy corn salad

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How to Roast Frozen Vegetables

If you're like me and love roasting veggies but don't always have fresh vegetables on hand, I've got great news for you. You can roast frozen vegetables! Frozen veggies are picked at the peak of their ripeness and flash-frozen to lock in those flavors and roasting them straight from the freezer is so easy.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Keyword frozen vegetables, roast frozen vegetables, roated frozen vegetables

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 35 minutes minutes

Servings 4 servings

Calories 77kcal

Author Lauren Keating

Ingredients

• 1 16 ounce bag frozen vegetables
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• Salt and Pepper

Instructions

• Preheat your oven to 450°F. Place a baking sheet in the oven while it heats up.
• In a mixing bowl, toss the frozen vegetables with the oil. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and any other seasonings you want to use.
• Spread the vegetables in a single layer on the hot baking sheet. Roast for 15 minutes, then give them a good stir. Return them to the oven and bake for another 10-15 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown and crisp. (Note larger cuts and sturdier vegetables will take longer to roast than more delicate vegetables. Some, like green beans, may be done after the first 15 minutes.)

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 77kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g | Sodium: 82mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g