Learn how to make easy roasted zucchini! It's beautifully caramelized, golden brown, and seasoned to perfection with lemon, herbs, and cheese.
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I’m finally coming around to roasted zucchini. You’d think, given how much I love pretty much all zucchini recipes, that I would have been a fan of it forever. But no. Roasted zucchini and I got off to a rocky start.
See, I have a strong aversion to anything mushy. Before I worked out this game-changing recipe, that’s how my roasted zucchini always ended up. It was too soft and too watery, basically mush.
But this summer, I decided to give roasted zucchini another chance. Instead of slicing the squash into thin rounds like I had in the past, I went for chunkier half-moons. I baked them at a high heat for just 15-ish minutes. They came out caramelized and golden brown, and they kept a nice bite. I liked them so much that I had eaten half the batch off the baking sheet before it occurred to me that I should save some for Jack.
I hope you try this recipe – I think you’ll love it too!
Roasted Zucchini Recipe Ingredients
Oh, and another great thing about this oven roasted zucchini recipe? The seasoning! I punch up the squash with
- garlic powder,
- Italian seasoning,
- sea salt,
- black pepper,
- olive oil,
- and fresh lemon juice.
It’s savory, fruity, aromatic, and bright. Seriously, SO delicious!
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
Cut the squash into thick, 1-inch half-moons. Place it in a large bowl and toss it with the olive oil and seasonings. When it’s well coated, transfer it to a parchment-lined baking sheet, and spread it in a single layer.
Roast it at 425°F until it’s golden brown around the edges, 15 to 20 minutes. Squeeze it with lemon juice, and enjoy!
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
Roasted Zucchini Recipe Tips
- Cut the zucchini into evenly sized pieces. That way, they’ll cook at an even rate in the oven. If the pieces vary widely in size, smaller ones will burn (or worse – turn to mush!) before larger ones are tender.
- Don’t crowd the baking sheet. The hallmark of perfect roasted zucchini is beautifully golden brown, caramelized edges. In order to achieve this browning, the zucchini needs space on the baking sheet. If the pieces are too close together, they’ll steam instead of getting brown and roast-y.
- Season it before and after baking. Tossing the zucchini with garlic powder, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper before baking gives it an amazing foundation of flavor. But adding a few extra seasonings after it roasts really takes it over the top. At a minimum, toss it with a squeeze of lemon juice for bright, fresh flavor. I also like to add a sprinkle of cheese or vegan Parmesan cheese and fresh herbs like basil or parsley.
Roasted Zucchini Serving Suggestions
This roasted zucchini is a great quick and easy side dish recipe. Pair it with your favorite protein, a veggie burger, or any pasta. Lately, we’ve especially enjoyed it with this pesto pasta, spaghetti aglio e olio, and stuffed shells.
You can also use roasted zucchini as a starting point for a larger dish. Here are a few of my favorite ways to do this:
- Add it to a vegetable frittata.
- Toss it with noodles, lemon butter sauce, and pine nuts for a speedy weeknight pasta.
- Stuff it into veggie tacos. Sub cumin and chili powder for the Italian seasoning!
- Serve it over polenta with a spoonful of homemade marinara.
- Add it to a grain bowl. I especially like it with farro, roasted chickpeas, and romesco sauce.
How do you like to serve roasted zucchini? Let me know in the comments!
More Favorite Zucchini Recipes
If you love this oven roasted zucchini, try one of these easy zucchini recipes next:
- Zucchini Fritters
- How to Make Zucchini Noodles
- Pasta Primavera
- Stuffed Zucchini Boats
- Air Fryer Zucchini Chips
- Zucchini Muffins
- Chocolate Zucchini Bread
- Or any of these 35 Best Zucchini Recipes!
Roasted Zucchini
Ingredients
- 1 pound zucchini, about 3 medium, cut into 1-inch half-moons
- 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon Italian Seasoning
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Lemon wedges, for squeezing
- Crumbled feta cheese, grated Parmesan cheese, pecorino cheese, or Vegan Parmesan, optional, for serving
- Fresh herbs, optional, for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, toss the zucchini with the olive oil, Italian seasoning, salt, garlic powder, and several grinds of pepper. Spread it evenly on the prepared baking sheet and roast for 15 to 20 minutes, or until golden brown around the edges.
- Remove from the oven, transfer to a serving dish, and squeeze with lemon. Sprinkle with cheese and herbs, if desired.
Delicious, but absolutely not caramelized at all. Did 15 minutes, and no browning, then added 5 more minutes and… nothing. Would have kept going but it was getting mushy. Not sure where I went wrong.
Hi, it might just depend on your oven or baking sheet! I find that in most ovens, placing the zucchini on the bottom rack helps get it nice and brown. Most ovens have their heat source near the bottom.
followed this recipe exactly, including keeping my zucchini pieces well spaced. My roasting took 50 minutes not 15. That matches all my other veggie roasting like peppers, broccoli, small potatoes. YMMV. It tasted good.
My experience was the same. Tasted good but did not brown or crisp after 30 minutes.
This recipe is amazing! Both my partner and I were unsure of the lemon at the end, but It. Was. Perfect!
Growing zucchini in my garden so I have a bounty. I find 12 minutes makes the layer next to the skin mushy. Was wondering if cooking time cut to 8-10 would help but still cook skin? Thanks
Hi Robert, yes, if it’s mushy, just reduce the time.
The lemon juice at the end really added a brightness to this recipe.
Going to make it this weekend for a party but was wondering about serving it room temperature, or is it meant to be hot?
Did you end up trying? I’m thinking about bringing it to a potluck.
I love this recipe for roasted zucchini! I find myself forcing myself to stop snacking on it because it is so good.
This is a really yummy recipe and a definite must-try!
Exactly what I was looking for g for. I like that it is not missy and tastes phenomenal. Thank you for sharing
We LOVE this recipe! We’ve already made it a few times and look forward to making it again! Thank you for the delicious, fast & easy recipe.
WOW! Flippin phenomenal in my opinion! Got a fairly big zucchini from a friend’s garden the other day and started googling recipes and came across this one. VERY glad I did cause holy moly it’s really, really good! And of course nice and easy too! I added red pepper, onions and a few cloves of garlic to the roasting pan, cause I had them and figured may as well while the oven was doing its thing. Sooooo glad I did, the flavours combined were truly delightful! Also added a bit of nutritional yeast after it was roasted, yummy! The zucchini didn’t crisp up too much at all but honestly, it mattered not! Cause I shoveled this into my mouth! Seriously, make it! Well done and thank you!
This is my favorite way to prepare zucchini. . This time my ADD ass couldn’t find the lemons I just bought and I used a lime I had instead and I really recommend trying it, it actually goes well with italian spices. And turns out my lemons are just sitting on the counter in a grocery bag
Well, this was fantastic! The only thing I did slightly differently was to sprinkle grated Parmesan on them during the last 10 minutes of cooking to brown it a little. I was hesitant about the lemon, but sooo glad I did. This is super easy but is something I would serve to company in a heartbeat. Thanks for this one, it goes in the summer rotation!
Easy & delicious (even without salt).
So glad you enjoyed the zucchini!
delish, ty
My favorite recipe for oven roasted zucchini! It’s delicious, my whole family loves it!
Hi Samantha, I’m so glad you love the zucchini!
Delicious! Lemon took it over the top. Husband and I enjoyed this dish very much.
I’m so glad you loved it!
I added some onion powder to this as well but this was delicious :D. Great snack. Can’t wait to add this as a side to my meals!! 🙂
I’m so glad you loved it!
I used to really enjoy your recipes but your website has gotten so hard to navigate with all the ads. So much visual noise, and all these videos constantly loading and making the screen jump around. I know we all gotta make money, but this is a shame. There are literally three video ads in my view as I type this.
If you click print recipe you can see the ingredients and recipe all on one page without any ads 😉
Excellent and easy!