Why It Works
- Salting and draining the zucchini before frying helps remove excess moisture and concentrate the flavor.
- Frying zucchini planks creates gently browned zucchini that melts into the dish without turning soggy when baked.
- Letting the dish rest after baking allows the layers to settle and the sauce to absorb, making it easier to slice cleanly.
An ode to eggplant Parm in the key of zucchini, this recipe channels the summer flavors of an Italian garden, but with a nod to the eggplant Parm of my New Jersey youth. The Parm I knew best was reliably cheesy, heavy on the breading, and blanketed with an almost unreasonable amount of mozzarella—and I loved every bite of it. This version keeps that spirit but takes a simpler path: no breading, no dredging station, just zucchini planks, lightly salted and shallow-fried until golden and tender, then layered with sauce and cheese. It’s faster and easier to pull off, especially when you don’t feel like playing that whole wet-hand-dry-hand breading routine.
Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez
We also tested a breaded, eggplant-style version in the test kitchen, which delivered on richness and structure and was a hit, too, but this unbreaded version has more summer appeal. It’s saucier, lighter, and a little less intense—perfect on its own or served alongside pasta. It’s all the cheesy, tomatoey comfort, in a format that’s easy to love (and slightly easier to make).
Salt Your Zucchini
This recipe is meant to highlight peak-season zucchini. To let their grassy flavor shine, it’s essential to salt the zucchini planks before cooking. This simple step draws out excess moisture, which concentrates the vegetable’s gentle flavor while preventing a soggy texture. This also stops the zucchini from turning the whole dish into a watery mess. As associate food editor, Laila points out in her guide to properly searing zucchini, salting zucchini sets you up for better browning in the pan—giving the zucchini a chance to caramelize instead of steam. The payoff: more structure, more flavor, and a more golden fried exterior.
To Fry or Not to Fry?
Do you really need to fry the zucchini? Why can’t you just roast it? These are reasonable questions. The answer comes down to what frying does to the zucchini. It isn’t just for crispiness; it’s meant to concentrate flavor, add richness, and coax out zucchini’s natural sweetness. Roasting does some of those things—you can concentrate flavor in the oven and develop a browned exterior. Still, even though it’s slightly easier, it fails to yield zucchini that are as creamy and silky as fried, and that matters in the final dish.
Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez
Layer Like You Mean It
Once you’ve got your fried zucchini and your sauce, it’s down to the layering. You don’t need a towering stack, only enough to keep the dish together and guarantee that every bite hits the zucchini-sauce-cheese trifecta. Start with a thin swipe of sauce to prevent sticking, then alternate layers of zucchini, sauce, and cheese. Go light on each layer—balance matters more than excess. And if a few fried planks go missing (aka eaten) before layering, no one’s judging.
Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez
What comes out of the oven is bubbling and golden, with tender zucchini tucked between ribbons of sauce and molten cheese. It’s rich, gooey, and green in all the right ways—the kind of comfort you want to dive into fork-first.
Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez
This Fresh Twist on Eggplant Parm Tastes Like a Summer Garden in Italy
Cook Mode
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3 pounds (1.4 kg) medium zucchini (about 5-6 zucchini)
1 tablespoon (9 g) Diamond Crystal kosher salt, plus more for seasoning; for table salt, use half as much by volume or the same weight
2 tablespoons (30 ml) extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium clove garlic, lightly smashed
1 (28-ounce; 794-g) can whole peeled tomatoes in their juices, blended, or 1 (24-ounce; 680-g) bottle passata
1 large sprig fresh basil, plus basil leaves for garnish
Neutral oil, such as vegetable oil, for frying
16 ounces (455 g) fresh mozzarella, torn and patted dry
3/4 cup (about 2 oz; 60 g) finely grated Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino Romano
For the Zucchini: Trim ends off the zucchini, then slice each in half crosswise. Cut each zucchini half lengthwise into 1/4-inch-thick planks.
Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez
Place the zucchini planks in a colander set inside a large bowl. Sprinkle with 3 teaspoons kosher salt and toss to coat. Let sit at room temperature for 1 hour to drain, tossing once halfway through.
Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, heat olive oil with garlic over medium heat until garlic begins to sizzle. Reduce heat to medium-low and continue to cook, stirring and turning garlic occasionally, until garlic is just beginning to turn golden, about 4 minutes. Remove garlic clove and discard. Add pureed canned tomatoes or passata along with the basil sprig and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to maintain a gentle simmer and cook, stirring often, until thickened and no longer watery (this may take almost no time at all for some passata products, or up to 20 minutes for waterier canned tomatoes). Remove from heat and season with salt to taste. Set aside.
Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez
For Frying the Zucchini: Set a wire rack in a rimmed baking sheet and line with paper towels. In a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot, heat 1 inch of oil over medium-high heat until it registers to 350°F (175°C). Working in batches, fry zucchini planks, turning occasionally, until light golden brown and tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer to prepared baking sheet to drain. Lightly sprinkle zucchini with salt. Allow oil to cool before discarding or straining and storing.
Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez
For Assembling the Zucchini Parmigiana: Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). In a 9×13-inch baking dish, spread a thin layer of tomato sauce. Top with a layer of fried zucchini planks, followed by a layer of mozzarella, grated cheese, and torn basil leaves. Continue layering zucchini, sauce, cheese, and basil until all the ingredients are used up. Do not add basil to the top layer.
Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez
Bake until bubbling and browned on top, 30 to 35 minutes. Let rest for 10 to 15 minutes before serving. Top with additional fresh basil and a drizzle of olive oil.
Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez
Special Equipment
Colander, medium saucepan, wire rack, rimmed baking sheet, instant-read thermometer, large Dutch oven, 9×13-inch baking dish.
Notes
Passata is a type of tomato purée made from fresh, in-season tomatoes that’s often used as a base for pasta sauces, soups, stews, and other dishes. It’s traditionally made in late summer, during peak tomato season, as a way to preserve harvested tomatoes for the rest of the year.
