Pan-Fried Stuffed Zucchini

Name: Pan-Fried Stuffed Zucchini
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 60 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: Zucchini small to medium 8; Ground meat blend 0.7 lb; Eggs 2; Parmigiano Reggiano PDO cheese 1.8 oz; Breadcrumbs 1.8 oz; Nutmeg to taste; Fine salt to taste; Black pepper to taste; Cherry tomatoes 2 ¾ cups; Peas 3.1 cups; Extra virgin olive oil to taste; Vegetable broth 1.7 cups; Fine salt to taste; Black pepper to taste

Difficulty: Easy
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 40 min
Serving: 4
Cost: Average

PRESENTATION

Recipe by
Lulù Gargari

Pan-Fried Stuffed Zucchini—zucchine ripiene in padella—skips the oven entirely, a real advantage on a hot summer day when keeping the kitchen cool is half the point. The zucchini are hollowed into clean cylinders, packed with a ground meat filling, then braised on the stovetop in cherry tomatoes and peas until the sauce reduces into something flavorful enough to justify a piece of fresh bread at the end.

The dish holds up well to planning. You can hollow and fill the zucchini ahead of time and cook them at the last moment, or make the whole thing a day early and let the flavors settle overnight—the sauce only gets better. A reliable technique for hollowing without cracking makes that flexibility easy to act on.

INGREDIENTS

Zucchini 8 - small to medium

Ground meat blend 0.7 lb (300 g)

Eggs 2

Parmigiano Reggiano PDO cheese 1.8 oz (50 g)

Breadcrumbs 1.8 oz (50 g)

Nutmeg to taste

Fine salt to taste

Black pepper to taste

For the side: Cherry tomatoes 2 ¾ cups (400 g); Peas 3.1 cups (500 g); Extra virgin olive oil to taste; Vegetable broth 1.7 cups (400 g); Fine salt to taste; Black pepper to taste

Preparation

How to prepare Pan-Fried Stuffed Zucchini

To prepare the pan-fried stuffed zucchinis, cook the whole zucchinis in boiling salted water for 10 minutes 12. Drain them and let them cool on a tray 3.

In a bowl place the ground meat, the grated cheese 4, the breadcrumbs 5 and the whole eggs 6.

Salt 7, pepper and season with nutmeg 8. Mix all the ingredients with a fork 9.

You should obtain a homogeneous, compact mixture 10. Now take the cooled zucchinis, trim the ends 11 and scoop out the flesh with a vegetable corer 12.

This way you'll obtain cylinders to cut in half 13, fill the interior with the stuffing 14 and set aside. Take care of the sauce: wash and halve the cherry tomatoes 15.

Heat a drizzle of oil in a pan, add the peas 16 and the cherry tomatoes 17, then add the stuffed zucchinis as well 18.

Drizzle with a little oil 19, add some broth to loosen the sauce 20, then salt 21 and pepper.

Cover with a lid 22 and cook for 30 minutes. Once ready 23, serve the pan-fried stuffed zucchinis immediately with the cherry tomato and pea sauce 34.

Storage

Store the pan-fried stuffed zucchinis in the refrigerator in an airtight container for a couple of days. You can freeze them if you used fresh, not previously frozen, ingredients.