Zucchini Scampi

Better to put the garlic into a tablespoon of oil and the microwave for 30 seconds at half power. The infused oil can be used for the cooking and the garlic will loose that raw bite.

I toasted some bread crumbs in olive oil before I started cooking the zucchini and sprinkled it over the top at the end. Added a nice texture. Also I threw the garlic into the pan with the wine to take a little of the rawness away.

Is there a reason not to add the squash back to the pan at the end? I would think a minute in the pan would take the edge off the raw garlic and also reheat the squash.

How about grilling the zucchini slices and while that’s going on, make the sauce on the stove. When zucchini/squash is done, plate it, pour the sauce on top and sprinkle with parsley and/or other herbs.

Classic. (For those protesting, “Scampi” is used here because of the white wine, garlic, and butter – the underpinning of scampi.) The secret to doing squash like this – in my experience – is don’t try to caramelize both sides, and don’t slice it too thin- doing either will break down the squash too much – and you’ll get a very soft result. Some might like this – but I think these need a bit of snap to them. Go with the full half inch thickness and a very hot pan.

I liked this. The zucchini was nutty in that lovely way zucchini can get, and crisp-ish. I used the microplane to grate the garlic over the zucchini slices, it had a nice bite that seemed right, like on pizza. Didn't add the squash back to the pan because the sauce would have pulled out some crispness. Now. Why isn't this just pan-fried zucchini? Seems gimmicky to compare it to scampi. Nah.

If you’re going to add this to pasta, as I did. Double the sauce. Delicious!

I regularly sub apple juice for wine in recipes. I use 1/2 the amt of wine the recipe indicates. A vegetarian X20 yrs, I cannot call zucchini in lemon-garlic-butter “Scampi”, but I am eager to try any recipe that takes the bland and makes it flavourful! Thanks for this new take on zucchini— my garden overflow-eth already!

long ago, i learned to use a small pinch of sugar when sauteing squash - much better flavor. i also definitely agree with the notes recommending sauteing the garlic briefly. the raw garlic is unpleasant and difficult to digest.

I added an extra step and ingredient. After Step 2 I seared some scallops in the same pan which, with a side of rice completed the dinner.

So I also added the garlic and red pepper flakes with the white wine and butter to cook the rawness off, then once the sauce was finished, added the squash back into the pan for a minute off heat to help meld the flavors. Used mint as the herb; it was really delicious. Salting then patting dry the squash is essential; don’t skip this step, really put a beautiful brown sear on the squash. And I did sear the squash quickly on the second side as well. Would absolutely made again…

This seems like a bit of a reach. Many dishes can be manipulated to have a texture of a dissimilar food. This recipe is a good one but scampi-like it is not.

I made the sauce with a few mods, a la Murphy below: a smaller amount of vegan butter mixed with some olive oil & finely minced garlic, microwaved for 30 seconds to get it started & then into the pan to pick up the fond after the veg was cooked; plenty of lemon juice, but skipped the wine (none open on a weeknight!). Prepared the zucchini itself with the cooking method recommended & poured the hot sauce over it. Yum! Great texture. Will do it again & modify sauce as the fridge/pantry dictates.

cooked sliced squash in oil, with some onion, then added lemon juice and sprinkled with parsley -- VG

That's why these things are called accidents: they are not planned. I'm pretty sure that a note of caution is a good thing. Some food writers state that the flame should be OFF before adding wine.