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    Home » Recipes » American

    Updated: Sep 29, 2023 by Marc Matsumoto · 12 Comments

    Zucchini Gratin

    With only a handful of ingredients this zucchini gratin is incredibly easy to make, and yet what comes out of the oven is a rich creamy gratin with a blanket of crisp, flavorful cheese on top.
    Recipe Pin

    For anyone who says they hate zucchini, I'd be willing to bet they've never had one so fresh that the verdant gourds tingle the tips of their fingers with a glistening coat of spines. Fresh zucchinis are a real summer treat and one of the joys of cultivating a garden during the warmer months.

    A little olive oil, salt and pepper are all you need to make these prolific summer wonders sweet, juicy, and bursting with the essence of a sun drenched summer garden. When it comes to squash, "prolific" is the key word, so by now that initial elation about the garden bounty has probably turned to boredom, and those luscious baby zucchinis are starting to look more like bloated baseball bats, basking in the later summer sun.

    Here's a simple recipe that might inject a little of that initial enthusiasm back into this humble gourd. Best of all, it works well with zucchinis that have grown a little past their prime.

    The key to this recipe is to salt and squeeze the zucchini to get rid of the excess water before baking the gratin. If you don't, you'll end up with a soggy mess with bits of watery cheese in between. Along the same lines, I salt my zucchini almost universally. Whether you're slicing and sautéing, or shredding and putting on pizza, removing the extra water keeps the zucchini from getting soggy and speeds up caramelization.

    The other thing that sets my gratin apart from most is that I use a trick I learned while developing my mac and cheese recipe. Instead of making a béchamel, I just toss the shredded cheese in potato starch before adding the cream. This creates a rich, cheesy sauce that's faster and more foolproof than doing it the long way.

    More Zucchini Recipes

    • Fluffy Zucchini Pancakes
    • Savory Zucchini Bread
    • Crispy Zucchini Fritters

    📖 Recipe

    Zucchini Gratin

    No ratings yet
    Print Pin Discuss
    Prep Time 15 minutes mins
    Cook Time 30 minutes mins
    Total Time 1 hour hr 45 minutes mins
    Yield 4 side servings

    Units

    Ingredients 

    • 600 grams zucchini (⅛-inch thick slices)
    • 1 teaspoon salt
    • 100 grams Gruyère cheese (shredded)
    • 2 teaspoons potato starch
    • ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
    • ½ cup heavy cream

    Instructions

    • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 C).
    • Put the zucchini in a colander and sprinkle with the salt. Toss to coat evenly with salt and leave the zucchini in the colander set over a bowl for one hour. The salt not only seasons the zucchini it draws out extra water, preventing your gratin from getting soggy.
    • Add the Gruyère, potato starch and ground nutmeg to a bowl and toss to combine evenly.
    • Use your hands to squeeze out the excess water from the zucchini, then arrange ⅓ of them in a single layer in an oven safe dish with high sides.
    • Cover with ⅓ of the cheese.
    • Do two more alternating layers of zucchini and cheese, then pour the cream evenly over everything.
    • Place the gratin in the oven and bake until the zucchini is soft and the cheese on top has browned.
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    Nutrition

    Calories 234kcalCarbohydrates 6gProtein 10gFat 19gSaturated Fat 12gPolyunsaturated Fat 1gMonounsaturated Fat 5gCholesterol 61mgSodium 780mgPotassium 450mgFiber 2gSugar 5gVitamin A 974IUVitamin C 27mgCalcium 297mgIron 1mg

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    Reader Interactions

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      Recipe Rating




    1. Agnesma says

      September 23, 2012 at 12:32 pm

      Pls advise what the oven temperature is? tks

      Reply
    2. Marilia says

      September 23, 2012 at 4:05 pm

      This looks so good 🙂

      Reply
    3. Kelly Siew says

      September 24, 2012 at 6:54 am

      I love Zucchini, this looks really delicious! Need to replenish my cheese counter before making this dish, thanks for sharing!

      Reply
    4. Rty says

      September 24, 2012 at 5:44 pm

      Roughly how long does it take to bake in the oven?

      Reply
    5. Marc Matsumoto says

      September 24, 2012 at 11:34 pm

      It depends on a lot of factors, but anywhere from 45 minutes to 1 hour.

      Reply
    6. Marilia says

      October 06, 2012 at 8:46 pm

      Loved this simple delicious recipe.

      Reply
    7. kathleenditommaso says

      October 14, 2012 at 11:21 pm

      Grams to ounces: love the internet for a quick translation. That said, I used my judgement or lack thereof. 🙂
      Excellent results - and in my toaster/convection oven no less since my big oven is on hiatus. However, I found it necessary to use my spatula after the dish was served...to fight for leftovers. 😀

      Reply
    8. Peugot206cc says

      September 17, 2013 at 7:48 am

      What would be my main dish for this?

      Reply
    9. Marc Matsumoto says

      September 18, 2013 at 3:19 am

      Hi Peugot, this would go well with any chicken, fish or beef dish. It depends on what you feel like eating it with:-)

      Reply
    10. Nagi | RecipeTin Eats says

      April 20, 2015 at 1:39 am

      That's a really interesting technique, to toss the cheese in potato starch. Do you think it works for saucier dishes? Perhaps your Mac and Cheese recipe will answer that question - off to check it out!

      Reply
    11. Nadine says

      January 15, 2019 at 4:08 am

      A perfect classic.

      Reply
      • Marc Matsumoto says

        January 15, 2019 at 1:50 pm

        😁

        Reply

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    Hi, I'm Marc Matsumoto, a retired chef living in Tokyo, and I founded No Recipes to empower home cooks of all levels by sharing essential techniques and my kitchen secrets.

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