Italian Stuffed Zucchini Boats

This Italian Stuffed Zucchini Boats recipe has a lean ground turkey and veggie filling with marinara and plenty of mozzarella cheese. It’s a hearty, low-carb way to satisfy your craving for Italian food.

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Why You’ll Love This Reader Favorite Recipe

We have always been serious pasta lovers in this house, so I was surprised by just how satisfying these zucchini boats were the first time I made them. And we’re not alone! Over the years, this recipe has become a solid reader favorite and one of the most-loved recipes on Valerie’s Kitchen.

There are a few key things that make this recipe work so well:

• Hearty but lighter: The ground turkey and vegetable filling is satisfying, while part-skim mozzarella helps keep things on the lighter side.
• Simple ingredients: Jarred marinara adds plenty of flavor while keeping the filling easy to prepare.
• Perfectly tender zucchini: My two-step baking method ensures the zucchini is tender all the way through, never firm or crunchy.
• A little crunch: Toasted breadcrumbs add great texture without adding many carbs.
• A meal in itself: With ground turkey and plenty of vegetables tucked into each boat, you really don’t need much on the side.
• Family-friendly flavors: Marinara, ground meat, and melted mozzarella give these zucchini boats familiar Italian flavors that appeal to kids and adults alike.

Ingredient Notes

• Zucchini: Choose medium, uniformly sized zucchini so the boats cook evenly and are similar in size for serving.
• Ground turkey: I use 93% lean ground turkey for a lighter filling that still has plenty of flavor. Ground beef works well, too.
• Marinara sauce: A good-quality tomato basil marinara keeps this recipe easy while adding lots of flavor. You’ll use it both in the filling and underneath the zucchini boats.
• Vegetables: The filling is loaded with onion, garlic, red bell pepper, cremini mushrooms, fresh parsley, and the scooped-out zucchini. Cremini mushrooms add an especially savory, meaty quality.
• Seasonings: A simple blend of Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper, plus optional red pepper flakes for a little kick.
• Cheese: Part-skim mozzarella melts beautifully while keeping things a little lighter, and Parmesan cheese adds a salty, savory bite.
• Panko breadcrumbs: Italian-style panko adds a light, crispy finish after a quick trip under the broiler.

How to Prep the Zucchini

1. Slice the zucchini. Trim the ends from the zucchini, then slice each one in half lengthwise.
2. Scoop out the centers. Lightly score around the inside of each zucchini half with a sharp knife, being careful not to cut through the skin. Use the tip of a spoon to scrape out the flesh.
3. Chop the zucchini. Chop the reserved zucchini flesh and set it aside. You’ll add it to the meat and vegetable filling later.
4. Partially bake the zucchini. Arrange the hollowed zucchini boats in a baking dish with about 1 inch of water. Cover and bake until just slightly fork-tender.

How to Make Italian Stuffed Zucchini Boats

1. Cook the turkey and vegetables. Cook the ground turkey with the onion, bell pepper, and garlic until the turkey is cooked through and the vegetables are tender.
2. Add the remaining ingredients. Stir in the reserved zucchini, mushrooms, marinara, parsley, and seasonings.
3. Simmer the meat filling. Let the mixture simmer briefly to develop the flavors and thicken slightly.
4. Fill the zucchini boats. Spread the reserved marinara in the baking dish, arrange the zucchini boats over the sauce, and spoon the filling into each one. Cover and bake until tender.
5. Add the topping. Sprinkle the zucchini boats with mozzarella, Parmesan, and panko bread crumbs.
6. Broil until golden. Broil briefly until the cheese is melted and the panko is golden brown.

• Try a different protein: Readers have had great results with ground beef, Italian sausage, chicken sausage, ground chicken, and even a combination of ground beef and Italian sausage. For a meatless option, one reader used crispy tofu, while others simply left out the meat.
• Add more veggies: Toss in whatever you have on hand. Readers have added spinach, olives, and a variety of other vegetables to the filling.
• Switch up the cheese: Mozzarella is my go-to, but readers have successfully used other cheeses, including cheddar Jack. One reader even tucked a mozzarella stick into each zucchini boat before adding the filling!
• Grill the zucchini: Instead of partially baking the hollowed zucchini, some readers have given it a head start on the grill before filling and baking.
• Make them “unstuffed”: One reader chopped the zucchini and cooked everything together in a skillet, leaving off the breadcrumbs for a quicker stovetop version.
• Use the extra filling: Have leftover filling? One reader used it to make stuffed baked potatoes the next day. Or, just scatter it around the stuffed zucchini boats for an even meatier dish.

Storage Tips

Refrigerate: Transfer leftover zucchini boats to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days.

Reheat: Reheat individual servings in the microwave until warmed through, or cover and reheat in a 350°F oven until hot.

Freeze: You can freeze the cooked zucchini boats, but keep in mind that the zucchini will have a softer texture after thawing. Transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 2 to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.

Love zucchini? Be sure to try my Taco Stuffed Zucchini Boats for a fun Mexican-inspired twist. And for more ways to put fresh zucchini to work, check out my Zucchini Lasagna, Zucchini Pizza Casserole, and Skillet Parmesan Chicken and Zucchini.

Italian Stuffed Zucchini Boats

4.50 from 102 votes

Author: Valerie Brunmeier

Servings: 6

Prep Time: 25 minutes mins

Cook Time: 22 minutes mins

Total Time: 47 minutes mins

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This Italian Stuffed Zucchini Boats recipe has a lean ground turkey and veggie filling with marinara and plenty of mozzarella cheese. It’s a hearty, low-carb way to satisfy your craving for Italian food.

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Ingredients 

1x2x3x

• ▢ 3 medium zucchini, uniformly-sized
• ▢ 24 to 26 ounce jar tomato basil marinara, divided
• ▢ 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ▢ 1 pound 93% lean ground turkey or beef
• ▢ ⅓ cup diced onion
• ▢ 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• ▢ ⅓ cup diced red bell pepper
• ▢ ½ cup chopped brown button (cremini) mushrooms
• ▢ ¼ cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
• ▢ 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• ▢ ½ teaspoon salt
• ▢ freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste
• ▢ 1 ½ cups shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
• ▢ ¼ cup shredded Parmesan
• ▢ 2 tablespoons Italian style panko bread crumbs

Instructions 

• Preheat oven to 375 °F. Measure out 1 cup of the marinara sauce and set aside.
• Trim ends from zucchini and slice in half, lengthwise. Use the tip of a spoon to scrape out the zucchini flesh (see recipe note), chop it and set it aside. Place the scooped out zucchini boats into a 13- x 9-inch baking dish and add about 1-inch of water. Cover with foil and bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes, until just slightly fork-tender. Remove from oven, and set aside to cool slightly.
• Meanwhile, add olive oil to a 12-inch skillet and place over MEDIUM heat. Add turkey (or beef), onion, bell pepper, and garlic to the skillet. Cook, stirring to break up the ground meat as it cooks. Continue to cook and stir until meat is thoroughly cooked and veggies have softened. Drain off as much grease as possible and return the skillet to the heat.
• Add the chopped zucchini flesh, mushrooms, remaining marinara in jar (reserve 1 cup for later), parsley, Italian seasoning, salt, fresh ground black pepper, and crushed red pepper. Stir well to combine. Bring to a simmer, then reduce heat and allow to simmer over low heat for about 15 minutes.
• Remove partially cooked zucchini from baking dish and pour off water. Pour the 1 cup of reserved marinara sauce into the empty baking dish and place zucchini boats on top of the sauce.
• Divide the filling between the zucchini boats. If you have extra filling, spoon it into the dish around the zucchini boats. Cover the dish with foil, and bake for 20 minutes, or until zucchini is fork tender. Remove dish from oven and set oven to BROIL.
• Remove foil and sprinkle zucchini boats with mozzarella, Parmesan and the panko bread crumbs. Place dish in oven, watching closely, and cook for just a couple of minutes until cheese has melted and bread crumbs are golden brown.

Notes

Tip for scraping out zucchini flesh. Use a sharp knife to lightly score the zucchini to outline the area you want to scoop out being very careful not to cut through. You just want an outline. Use the tip of a spoon to scrape the flesh out and on to a cutting board.

 

Storage and Reheating

Refrigerate: Transfer leftover zucchini boats to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days.

Reheat: Reheat individual servings in the microwave until warmed through, or cover and reheat in a 350°F oven until hot.

Freeze: You can freeze the cooked zucchini boats, but keep in mind that the zucchini will have a softer texture after thawing. Transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 2 to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.

Nutrition

Calories: 301kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 28g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 84mg | Sodium: 527mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 4g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated using generic ingredients, and is an estimate not a guarantee. For more accurate results, please refer to the labels on your ingredients at home.

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