Skillet Zucchini with Tomatoes and Garlic
So simple, so easy, so fast, and so good for you! Skillet zucchini with tomatoes and garlic makes a terrific vegetable side for any meat or poultry. It's also great as a quick snack or a light, low-calorie dinner — and it couldn't be easier to make!
Cooking method
-
Step 1:
How do you make skillet zucchini with tomatoes and garlic? Gather your ingredients. Any zucchini works, but young ones with tender skins are best. If yours are older, peel them and scoop out the tough seeds. Choose meaty, juicy tomatoes. Use any vegetable oil and whatever spice blend suits your taste. Wash and dry the vegetables and herbs.
-
Step 2:
Wash and dry the zucchini, then cut it into medium sticks. I first sliced it into rounds about 1/2 inch (1 cm) thick, then cut each round into 3 pieces.
-
Step 3:
Wash and dry the tomatoes, then cut them into wedges. Instead of fresh tomatoes you can use canned ones in their own juice — the dish will just come out saucier.
-
Step 4:
Peel the garlic and press it through a garlic press.
-
Step 5:
Heat the vegetable oil in a skillet. Add the zucchini and cook, stirring, over medium heat for about 5–7 minutes.
-
Step 6:
Add the tomato wedges and the herbes de Provence to the skillet.
-
Step 7:
Season with salt and pepper.
-
Step 8:
Stir everything together.
-
Step 9:
Pour in the water. Cover the skillet and simmer the vegetables over low heat for about 7–10 minutes, adjusting for your stove.
-
Step 10:
Add the pressed garlic and chopped fresh dill to the vegetables, stir, and simmer everything together for another 2–3 minutes over low heat.
-
Step 11:
Divide the zucchini and tomatoes among plates and serve. Enjoy!
- I used yellow zucchini, which give the dish a bright, sunny look. But regular pale green zucchini or standard green zucchini work just as well.
- Feel free to change up the vegetables depending on the season and what you like. I make it without onion, for instance, but a little onion would fit right in here.
- Which zucchini are best? Choose young ones with tender skins. Wash and peel them — very thin skin doesn't need to be removed. If you're using more mature zucchini, cut away the tough peel and scoop out the seedy center.
- Use an oil with a high smoke point for frying! Every oil is only good up to a certain temperature — its smoke point, the point at which it starts to burn and forms toxic compounds, including carcinogens. Unrefined oils, with a few exceptions, have a low smoke point; they're full of unfiltered organic particles that scorch quickly. Refined oils stand up to heat better and have a higher smoke point. If you're cooking in the oven, in a skillet, or on the grill, make sure you're using an oil with a high smoke point. The most common high-smoke-point oils are refined sunflower, olive, and grapeseed oil.
Caloric content of the products possible in the composition of the dish
- Tomatoes - 23 kcal/100g
- Zucchini - 23 kcal/100g
- Garlic - 143 kcal/100g
- Ground black pepper - 255 kcal/100g
- Dill greens - 38 kcal/100g
- Vegetable oil - 873 kcal/100g
- Salt - 0 kcal/100g
- Water - 0 kcal/100g
- Herb mixture - 259 kcal/100g
