Taco Stuffed Zucchini Boats
Why Is My Taco Stuffed Zucchini Boats So Good!
- No soggy zucchini boats here. Draining the filling well, baking uncovered so steam can escape, and scooping out zucchini seeds well all keep the filling from turning watery.
- No tipping, no spilled filling. A thin slice off the bottom of each half keeps the boats flat and steady in the pan.
- Perfect for taco night without the tortilla. You get the same taco flavors, just swap the shell for a vegetable that goes great with the taco. Melted pepper jack, crisp lettuce, fresh tomato, and my creamy avocado dressing bring the same crunch and cool contrast you’d get from the real thing.
- The beef filling has real depth. Onion, tomato, and jalapeño sautéed before beef and seasoning adds great texture and flavor to the taco filling.
- My favorite way to use up garden zucchini overload without making another loaf of zucchini bread. If you like this method, try my Italian beef zucchini boats and southwest chicken zucchini boats next, same technique, different fillings.
Table of Contents
Ingredient Notes and Tips
- Zucchini – Pick medium to larger zucchini that are about 9-10 inches in length and 1.5-2 inches in thickness. You will want your zucchini to hold a good amount of stuffing.
- Ground Beef – You can swap this with ground turkey or chicken if you’d prefer.
- Taco Seasoning – If you have any left over, use it to make my favorite creamy beef taco dip!
- Pepper Jack Cheese – I like to top my boats off with this cheese because it adds a little spice. You can swap it with shredded Mexican 4 cheese blend for a tamer flavor.
- Avocado Dressing – creamy avocado dressing is the BEST on these zucchini boats! While it only takes a minute or so to whip up, you can use sour cream instead if that’s easier for you.
See the recipe card below for the full list of ingredients and instructions.
How to Make Taco Zucchini Boats
- Hollow out the zucchini completely. Use a melon baller or spoon to scoop out all of the seeded flesh, not just a shallow dent, so you’ve got enough room for a generous amount of filling.
- Pro Tip: For an extra layer of insurance against watery boats, salt the inside of the hollowed zucchini halves and set them upside down in a colander in a clean sink for 30-40 minutes before you do anything else. The salt pulls out extra moisture, which drains away instead of ending up in your baking dish. This step is optional, but worth it if your zucchini is on the larger, juicier side.
- Stabilize the boats before you fill them. If your zucchini is on the rounder side, slice a very thin strip off the bottom of each half so it sits flat instead of rocking and spilling its filling in the oven.
- Build the filling in stages. Sauté the onion, tomato, and jalapeño first until they’re fragrant and softened. That base is what gives the beef its flavor. Then add the ground beef, and let it cook about halfway before stirring in the taco seasoning, so the seasoning cooks into the meat.
- Drain the filling well before filling the zucchini. If you see excess liquid or grease in the filling, drain it off. This also will keep prevent soggy zucchini boats.
- Don’t overfill the boats. Pack the beef mixture generously, but keep it to a small dome on top, not overflowing. If zucchini boats are overpacked, zucchini won’t cook though well and the tops of filling will start to dry before it does.
- Bake uncovered. 20-30 minutes at 350°F is the range, and the right time for you depends on your zucchini’s size and how much bite you like left in it. Leaving the boats open lets steam escape instead of condensing back down into the filling.
- Add the cheese at the end. Topping with pepper jack only for the last few minutes keeps it melted and gooey instead of dried out or browned too far.
- Let the boats rest a few minutes. That short rest gives any remaining liquid a chance to settle and firm up before you top them, instead of running everywhere the second you cut in.
- Add fresh toppings right before serving. Lettuce, tomato, and avocado dressing go on cold, right after the rest, so they stay crisp instead of wilting in the residual heat.
Storing, Reheating and Freezing Stuffed Zucchini Boats
- Storing: Store your leftovers in the refrigerator, in air-tight container, for 3-4 days and preferably without the toppings.
- Reheating: Individual boats are just fine in the microwave, but you can always reheat them in the oven at 350°F until just heated through. Note that the top of the beef could dry out while reheating, and if you cover it with aluminum foil, it will take a bit longer to heat through.
- Freezing: You can freeze assembled, baked stuffed zucchini without the topping. Make sure to cool them completely after baking. Place the baked boats into an aluminum baking pan that holds them well without too much extra space. Cover tightly with a couple of layers of foil and a layer of plastic wrap to help prevent freezer burn. Label and freeze for 2-3 months.
- To thaw, take the covered zucchini boats out of the freezer and place them in the refrigerator to slow-thaw for about 24 hours. Take off the plastic wrap and foil and bake at 350°F for about 20 minutes, until completely warmed through.
Ways to Serve Taco Zucchini Boats
Go with something Mexican-inspired to best complement the flavors in the ground beef! Some of my favorite pairings for these stuffed zucchini boats include:
Recipe FAQs
You want to stay away from thin and skinny zucchini if you plan to stuff them. Little ones will not hold much stuffing.
Pick medium to larger zucchini that are about 9-10 inches in length and 1.5-2 inches in thickness. You will want your zucchini to hold a good amount of stuffing. If all you can find is on a smaller side, get a couple extra and stuff them best you can. You can count two stuffed zucchini boats as one serving in that case.
So zucchini does hold quite a bit of liquid naturally, but good news is that it’s mostly in the seeds and pulp. Make sure to scrape out the seed area of the inside the zucchini halves completely.
If you have a little liquid left in the baking dish after baking, not to worry! It will not harm the zucchini boats. Just take out the boats and ignore the liquid. If you wish, you can fit a mesh cooling rack inside the baking dish so the zucchini juices drain down while baking.
No! You do not peel the zucchini for zucchini boats. The skin will help retain the shape and structure of the zucchini as it bakes.
Yes. You can hollow out the zucchini and cook the beef filling up to a day ahead. Keep them separate in the fridge, then stuff and bake when you’re ready for dinner. I don’t recommend assembling and refrigerating the fully stuffed, unbaked boats for more than a few hours, since the raw zucchini will release extra liquid the longer it sits.
Enjoy More Zucchini Recipes
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Taco Stuffed Zucchini Boats Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 large zucchini
- 1-2 Tbsp vegetable or avocado oil
- 1 lb ground beef 90% or 85% lean so it's still juicy
- 1/2 yellow onion diced
- 1 large tomato diced
- 1 large jalapeno seeded and diced
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1.25 oz packet of taco seasoning
- Salt to taste if needed
- 1 cup shredded pepper jack cheese
Topping:
- 1 tomato diced
- 1 cup lettuce finely shredded
- 1/4 cup avocado ranch dressing
Instructions
- Cut zucchini in half, lengthwise. Using a melon baller (or a spoon), scoop out the seeded flesh of each zucchini half, so there is space to stuff them. (Don't scoop out all the meat, just the softer part packed with seeds.)
- If zucchini halves are not stable, you can slice off a very thin slice at the bottom to stabilize it. (See image in the post.) Set them aside.
- Preheat the oven to 350°. Lightly grease a 9×13 casserole baking dish.
- Preheat a cooking pan and add some oil.
- Sauté diced onion and jalapeno until softened. Add tomatoes and cook until softened as well. Stir in minced garlic and cook until fragrant.
- Add ground beef and break it up as much as you can. Cover and cook covered, over medium heat, until about half way done.
- Sprinkle taco seasoning over the top and stir very well. Cook, stiffing from time to time, until beef is done. Taste to see if you need to add salt or not. Take off heat.
- Place zucchini boats into the prepared baking pan. Stuff each boat with cooked beef mixture.
- Bake for 20-30 minutes, depending on the size of the zucchini and if you like your zucchini a little crunch or not.
- Top each zucchini boat with shredded pepper jack cheese and bake a few minutes, until cheese is melted.
- Take them out of the oven and top off each boat with lettuce, tomato, and avocado dressing right before serving.
Video
Notes
- Pick medium to larger zucchini that are about 9-10 inches in length and 1.5-2 inches in thickness. You will want your zucchini to hold a good amount of stuffing. If all you can find is on a smaller side, get a couple extra and stuff them best you can. You can count two stuffed zucchini boats as one serving in that case.
- Store your leftovers in the fridge for 3-4 days and preferably without the toppings.
- Reheating is also best without the toppings. Individual boats are just fine to reheat in the microwave, but you can always reheat them in the oven at 350°F until just heated through. Just note that the top of the beef could dry out while reheating and if covered with aluminum foil, it will take a bit longer to heat through.
Nutrition
Originally published on Will Cook For Smiles in July, 2015.
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Categories:
Beef Recipes, Cinco de Mayo Recipes, Dinner Recipes, Gluten Free Recipes, Mexican and Tex-Mex Recipes, Mexican Dinner Recipes, Zucchini Recipes,All images and text ©Lyubov Brooke for ©Will Cook For Smiles. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If using my posts in collections and features, please link back to this post for the recipe.
Disclaimer: Nutrition information shown is not guaranteed to be 100% accurate as most ingredients and brands have variations.
