Zucchini Carpaccio is a quick salad of thin sliced zucchini, fresh ricotta and a lemon juice and olive oil drizzle. The perfect summer recipe!
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Why we love this recipe
Zucchini carpaccio is the one of the recipes I pull out all the time as a side dish (and sometimes as a light main course!). Carpaccio usually means beef that is pounded super thin, but in this case we are doing a vegetarian version with zucchini.
It’s nice and light and comes together in all of 15 minutes.
AND, it involves one of my favorite things in life, which is fresh ricotta cheese.
First of all, I love to make ricotta. It is one of the easiest things in the world to make and when you are done (in about 10 minutes) you feel supremely worldly and intelligent for being able to make your own ricotta cheese.
Once you’ve procured or made the ricotta the rest of this zucchini carpaccio dish is a snap. Slice up the zucchini (more on that below), arrange it on a pretty plate, dollop with ricotta, scatter on some scallions and drizzle on a light lemon dressing and you are READY TO ROCK. Zucchini-wise!
Ingredients you need
Ingredient notes and substitutions
- Zucchini: You want medium sized to small zucchini for this recipe, and if you want to swap it for yellow summer squash that will work too.
- Ricotta: If you aren’t going to make your own ricotta, try for the fancy kind in the specialty cheese section of your supermarket.
- Basil: We love basil for this recipe, but it will also work with other fresh herbs like oregano, sage and even fresh mint!
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities and nutritional information.
Here’s how to make this recipe
STEP 1: Slice the zucchini as thin as you can get it. I used a Mandoline Slicer, but you could also use just a plain old knife, if you are a really good thin zucchini slicing type of person. Then arrange them in a pretty pattern on a pretty plate. You can also arrange them directly on your dinner plates if you want.
STEP 2: Sprinkle the zucchini with some salt and pepper and scatter on some fresh chopped scallions – they give this dish a little sass!
STEP 3: Mix up a quick dressing of fresh lemon juice and olive oil and drizzle it over the zucchini.
STEP 4: My favorite part! Drop little dollops of ricotta cheese all over the zucchini and scatter some fresh chopped basil on top. And serve it up!
PRO TIP: If you are serving this on a platter, a cake server is perfect for folks to be able to scoop some of this scrumptious zucchini carpaccio salad onto their plates.
Equipment we used for this recipe
These are some of my favorite kitchen tools! These are Amazon affiliate links, which means I get a little something if you buy through my links at no extra cost to you. (Which helps pay for all that bacon I keep buying! 😄) And I only share things I use and love. I’m so grateful for your support!
- Mandoline: This slicer is the absolute best way to get super thin slices of zucchini (or anything else that needs slicing)…just be super careful with the sharp blades.
- Cutting Board: We love this dishwater safe board, and it comes in all different sizes!
- Measuring Spoons: These magnetic spoons are our fave – they separate and have two different shaped measuring ends.
- Prep Bowls: Perfect for making the quick lemon sauce for this recipe.
Recipe FAQs
This kitchen gadget is a mini version of those big slicers you see at the deli counter, and just as sharp so you need to use it with care and keep it far from the kiddos! But it can’t be beat for super speedy slicing of zucchini, french fries and anything else that needs slicing!
All you need is buttermilk, whole milk and ten minutes, and you will never go back to the supermarket kind. Here is everything you need to know about making fresh ricotta!
You can make this zucchini salad an hour or two ahead…if it is made much longer than that the zucchini might dry out a little bit.
Leave your question (or comment or suggestion) in the Comments box below the recipe and I will answer pronto!
What’s YOUR favorite way to use up the summer zucchini crop? Tell me in the comments!
Other zucchini recipes we love!
We want to hear what you think! 🤔
If you try this recipe, we would love to hear how it came out for you! I’d be super grateful if you could leave a star rating (you pick how many stars! 🌟 ) and your thoughts in the Comments section below the recipe.
PrintZucchini Carpaccio
Zucchini Carpaccio is a quick salad of thin sliced zucchini, fresh ricotta and a lemon juice and olive oil drizzle. The perfect summer recipe!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: No Cook
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 2 medium zucchini with the stem end trimmed off
- Coarse kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 2 green onions, thinly sliced
- 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- One cup ricotta cheese, preferably fresh
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
Instructions
- Using knife or mandoline slicer, cut zucchini into paper-thin rounds.
- Arrange rounds, slightly overlapping, on large platter. Sprinkle lightly with coarse salt and pepper, then green onions.
- Whisk lemon juice and oil in small bowl. Drizzle dressing evenly over zucchini.
- Drop small spoonfuls of cheese all over zucchini. Sprinkle with basil and serve.
Notes
-
- Zucchini: You want medium sized to small zucchini for this recipe, and if you want to swap it for yellow summer squash that will work too.
-
- Ricotta: If you aren’t going to make your own ricotta, try for the fancy kind in the specialty cheese section of your supermarket.
-
- Basil: We love basil for this recipe, but it will also work with other fresh herbs like oregano, sage and even fresh mint!
Mandy says
Who knew ricotta was so easy to make?? I used your recipe to make the ricotta for this side dish and it was heavenly! It complimented the zucchini perfectly. Another winner!
Hi Mandy and yes! Homemade ricotta is a game-changer, right? :)
peggy rea says
do you eat this like an appetizer or with a fork ?
Hi Peggy! You do need a fork for this one…I serve it like a salad. We don’t want to miss one bite of the ricotta cheese!
nilu says
I made this tonight..so simple and so delicious….perfect summer side..especially when you have an excess of zuches..Thanks!
Yes, this and zucchini gazpacho are my go-to too-much-zucchini recipes! Glad you like it too.
Rachael@SimplyFreshCooking says
Super pretty and creative salad idea. I love it! I’ve been wanting to make homemade ricotta. Maybe now I will! I have a feeling it’ll be one of those things I’ll end up regretting that I didn’t try sooner! :)
Kate says
Thanks – and you’re absolutely right on the ricotta, that’s how I was too. And now I’ve started making my own butter…it’s even easier! :)
Rachael@SimplyFreshCooking says
Oh my goodness, butter?? I NEED to do this!! I recently have been into homemade mayo also… much better than the store bought. I suppose it’s just true for everything :)
Kate says
I think it is! – I’m already pondering what ELSE I can do the homemade version of.
Barbara says
What a super idea! I love the idea of the thinly sliced zucchini. And I have made ricotta…it's not as difficult as I thought it would be.
This is just such a perfect side dish for grilled meat.
Photocat says
Green delice! It will be my first time ever to make ricotta. I will let you know how I got on!
Kate Morgan Jackson says
@Laura: I think feta would be great, actually! I'd use a little less of it so the dish doesn't get too salty, and crumble it into really tiny pieces, but I think that's a great alternate. :)
flaky says
Looks delicious – I am going to have to tuck this one in my book of tricks for quick summer recipes.
And I've always wanted to try making my own ricotta – this is the encouragement I needed.
Laura says
This looks so beautiful! Do you think it would be good with goat cheese, feta, or some other type of cheese? I'm not a big fan of ricotta, wondering if you have a good alternative or if I should just wing it.
vanillasugar says
:::printing:::
i am carb free for a while and need kicked up recipes. to keep me occupied from having daydreams of eating my weight in pb cups.
need to make my own ricotta too–good point.
Joanne says
I am so impressed with your fresh ricotta making skillz. I think it's something that I need to attempt soon because really good ricotta here costs an arm and a leg. This zucchini carpaccio is making me giddy because it's so summerful!