This fresh, raw zucchini salad recipe has summer squash for added color and texture, is served cold, and is tossed in a lemon caper vinaigrette salad dressing with bright and zingy Italian flavors. Almonds add crunch and fresh herbs are a flavor bomb! Ready in minutes!
You know the drill. Summer comes along and then, what to do with all that zucchini? How about a salad? There are literally thousands of ways to make a raw zucchini salad, but you want something with a little pizazz. Well, what's more pizazz-y than lemon and capers?
I love that the zucchini and summer squash are cold and sliced into batons, so they keep their texture in the salad and don't wilt or get watery, as they are sometimes wont to do.
And it's summer. This is no time to be exerting yourself. You can make this raw zucchini salad almost instantly. As zucchini recipes go, it's not labor intensive at all. No cooking, no grating, no squeezing, no wringing.
When you DO want to cook, try my easy zucchini parmigiana, a baked zucchini frittata, or this quick lemon zucchini pasta.
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Raw Zucchini Salad Ingredients
This raw zucchini salad is cold and delicious, and full of bright, fresh Italian flavors, just like summer should be.
- Zucchini: Choose smaller zucchini for this recipe because you don't want them to have too many seeds. You can use a combination of zucchini and squash for a bit of color variation if you like.
- Summer Squash: Listen, you can make this salad entirely with raw zucchini, or a combination of summer squash and zucchini. I like the combo because it's colorful and adds a different texture.
- Fresh herbs: Basil and parsley add so much flavor and texture. You can also swap out one or the other for mint if you like. All of three of these soft herbs go well with zucchini.
- Pecorino cheese: Pecorino is a sheep's milk cheese that has a stronger flavor and is a bit saltier than parmesan. Shaving it into big flakes gives it more impact in the salad than grating it. It's a nice change.
- Capers: What's not to love about these briny bits of goodness? Capers add a salty bite to the dressing and pops of flavor throughout. The lemon caper combo in this salad dressing is one of my faves, and I'll put capers in everything if you let me! Try my fish with lemon, caper, butter sauce and these chicken thighs with garlic, capers, and lemon!
- Lemon juice and zest: I am a BIG fan of lemon zest and using citrus zest in savory recipes. It brings a freshness and beautiful aroma. The lemon juice in the salad dressing goes beautifully with raw zucchini and basil, creating a delicious combo of fresh summer Italian flavors. You might as well be in southern Italy with this ingredient combo!
- Almonds: Because the cheese and capers are salty, we are using raw or roasted unsalted almonds. They add great crunch and texture.
- All that's left is a bit of olive oil, garlic, and a pinch of salt and you're ready to go!
How to make raw zucchini salad
Recipe adapted from NYT Cooking.
Step 1: Make the salad dressing
Chop 2 tablespoon capers, set the rest aside. Use a microplane grater to zest the lemon and grate the garlic. Add olive oil, lemon juice, capers, lemon zest, and garlic to a mixing bowl and whisk together. Season with a pinch of salt.
Prep tip
It's important to make the dressing first, so the garlic can mellow out a little before you toss it into the salad.
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Step 2: Prep the herbs, almonds, and parmesan
Roughly chop the parsley and tear the basil and set aside. (Cutting the basil will cause it to bruise and turn brown at the edges.)
Use a good chef's knife to roughly chop the almonds. Use a vegetable peeler to shave the pecorino cheese into big flakes.
Step 3: Slice the zucchini
How to slice the zucchini into batons: First, cut the very top and bottom off, then slice the zucchini into 2-inch pieces. Next, turn each piece on a flat end, and slice in half lengthwise. Now continue to slice each half lengthwise into thick-ish planks. Stack the planks and slice into batons.
Step 4: Assemble and serve the zucchini salad
Combine the zucchini, herbs, nuts, and ยพ of the cheese in a large mixing bowl and pour the salad dressing over, mix the salad gently. Taste for seasoning.
Transfer to a serving plate and top with remaining capers, pecorino, and a few more sprigs of herbs.
Expert tips
- Don't over salt the salad dressing: The pecorino and capers have a lot of salt, so I find the pinch of salt in the salad dressing is plenty. You might just want a sprinkle of Maldon sea salt or something like that at the time of serving. Keep in mind that the more you salt, the more water will be released from the raw zucchini, which could make the salad watery.
- Watch out for squash seeds: Summer squash has very large seeds. So if you are using both squash and zucchini, use very small squash and cut out the seeds as you cut the batons.
- Keep it rustic: The batons do not have to be perfectly uniform. It's summer, and it's hot and we are not cooking here, so get over yourself.
FAQ
No you can't make this ahead. It should be made and served immediately. Once the ingredients are tossed in the salad dressing, the raw zucchini and summer squash will start to get watery and lose their texture.
Yes! Zucchini is delicious raw and can be served in a cold salad like this one, or on a crudité platter.
Serving Suggestions
A raw zucchini salad goes well with other summer Italian dishes like Chicken Thighs with Tomatoes, Basil and Garlic, or a simple pasta like Penne all'Arrabbiatta. It would be the perfect complement to Slow Roasted Salmon with Citrus Herb Salsa Verde or a simple roast chicken.
Recipe variations
- Experiment with different fresh herbs: You can make a zucchini salad with other soft herbs like cilantro, tarragon or chives.
- Try different nuts: Swap different nuts into the salad like pistachios (their green color would pair so well with the zucchini) or hazelnuts.
- Use different cheeses: If you can't find pecorino cheese, use parmigiano reggiano (parmesan) or grana padano.
More summer salad recipes
Here are a few more no-cook, easy summer salad recipes to try.
- This Sweet Corn Salad is packed with flavor from cilantro leaves and STEMS, and a bright lime dressing. Blistered shishito peppers add a smoky note.
- Green Bean Salad with Tomatoes, Feta and Mint takes 10 minutes to make and it's perfect for summer picnics and potlucks.
- Is it even summer without some Dill Potato Salad?
- The juices from freshly sliced and macerating strawberries create the base of the dressing for this Strawberry and Arugula Salad with Basil and Mint.
This raw zucchini salad recipe is served cold, perfect for summer!
- Easy prep: We are using raw zucchini and guess what? You don't have to grate it or squeeze it or wring it out! (Unlike so many other zucchini salad recipes...)
- Loaded with fresh herbs: It tastes like summer on a plate! If you know me at all, you know that if I can put fresh herbs in a salad I will! They add a whole new dimension of flavor I love to use fresh herbs from the garden if I can. Remember if it grows together it goes together: Zucchini and basil are summer buddies so they work perfectly in this cold, refreshing salad.
- Zingy flavor: Lemon juice and capers in the salad dressing add bright, tart, salty, and Italian flavors that don't overpower the zucchini.
- It's so quick: Ready in 15 minutes!
- It's vegetarian and gluten free: Everyone should be able to enjoy summer's bounty.
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Recipe
Raw Zucchini Salad with Lemon Caper Vinaigrette
Ingredients
- 18 oz small zucchini or a mix of zucchini and yellow squash
- 3 tbso olive oli
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice
- zest of one lemon
- 1 clove garlic
- 3 tbsp capers divided
- ½ cup fresh basil leaves
- ½ cup fresh parsley
- ½ cup shaved pecorino cheese
- ⅓ cup raw or roasted almonds unsalted
Instructions
- First, make the salad dressing. Chop 2 tablespoon capers, set the rest aside. Use a microplane grater to zest the lemon and grate the garlic. Add olive oil, lemon juice, capers, lemon zest, and garlic to a mixing bowl and whisk together. Season with a pinch of salt. (It's important to make the dressing first, so the garlic can mellow out a little before you toss it into the salad.)
- Roughly chop the parsley and tear the basil and set aside. (Cutting the basil will cause it to bruise and turn brown at the edges.)
- Cut the zucchini into batons: First, cut the very top and bottom off, then slice the zucchini into 2-inch pieces. Next, turn each piece on a flat end, and slice in half lengthwise. Now continue to slice each half lengthwise into thick-ish planks. Stack those planks and slice into batons.
- Combine the zucchini, herbs, nuts, and ¾ of the cheese in a large mixing bowl and pour the salad dressing over, mix gently to combine. Taste for seasoning.
- Transfer to a serving plate and top with remaining capers, pecorino, and a few more sprigs of herbs.
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Notes
- Adapted from NYT Cooking.
- The pecorino and capers have a lot of salt, so I find the pinch of salt in the dressing is plenty. You might just want a sprinkle of Maldon sea salt or something like that at the time of serving. Keep in mind that the more you salt, the more water will be released from the zucchini.
- Yellow squash has very large seeds. So if you are using both squash and zucchini, use very small squash and cut out the seeds as you cut the batons.
- The batons do not have to be perfectly uniform. It's summer, and it's hot and we are not cooking here, so get over yourself.
- This salad is best eaten right away. It's not well-suited for make-ahead or leftovers.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated as an estimate. Calorie accuracy is not guaranteed.
SARAH says
This is delicious! Our zucchini is one of the first veggies to explode in our summer garden and with the heat index consistently above 100 this fresh and light dish is a nice compliment to any meal!
Debra says
Hi Sarah!
Yay for fresh zucchini from the garden! So glad you like it!
Thanks as always for reading,
Debra
Linda Cummings says
Great way to use that abundant Sumner squash