Zucchini Pasta
The recipe is pretty loose on this one. It is more a technique than a polished recipe. The key is to have a mandoline, the French slicer not the instrument. It has a number of blades that you can raise up to cut your ingredients in varying thicknesses and cuts. Use the rippled cut blade and make a couple of passes to get the adjustment correct: you want shreds that look like linguini or al chittara.
This recipe works well on those large footballs you somehow overlooked in your zucchini patch. Exact amounts will vary, but if you’re making it, you might as well make a lot. One or two big zucchini or four or five smaller ones will probably serve 4 as a side.
Adjust your mandoline. Cut the ends off of the zucchini and slide it all the way down the mandoline. Repeat until you hit the seeds in the center. Rotate 90 degrees and repeat. When you have all four sides done, discard the seeds.
Place in a colander and sprinkle with 1 – 2 tsp kosher or sea salt. Let sit for 15 minutes. This will draw some of the moisture out of the zucchini and make it a little more firm. You can wash the salt if you want, but make sure to drain well. I usually don’t bother.
Heat 3 TBS olive oil or butter in a large saute pan or wok. Saute the zucchini over medium heat until it is cooked through. Again, your timing will vary so taste or press one edge against the pot with a spoon to see whether it is as done as you like. Al dente is better than mushy.
While it is cooking, in another pot, saute some garlic in about 3 TBS olive oil. Add a minced hot red pepper if you like. Add three or four chopped tomatoes and cook briefly. Place the zucchini pasta in a bowl and top with the tomatoes. Sprinkle with julienned basil leaves and coarse ground black pepper. Pass with plenty of parmesan cheese.
--Don Lesser
