Zucchini Marinara: A Healthy And Delicious Meal Idea

Try this zucchini marinara dish! Fresh zucchini, green peppers, onions and garlic gets stewed in a simple marinara sauce made from canned tomato soup and a couple basic dried herbs. Serve it as side dish or as your main course on top of rice or pasta.

Easy Zucchini Marinara Ingredients

I found this easy zucchini marinara recipe in old cook book called The Creative Cook. It was published by the Campbell Soup Company, so obviously every recipe includes one of their soups.

This particular recipe caught my eye because I always have canned tomato soup on hand. Haters can hate, but my kids love tomato soup and grilled cheese, and it’s so easy to make. I often make it on Sunday nights when I’ve already cooked 99 meals over the weekend, and I’m over it.

• Butter
• Onion
• Green Pepper
• Garlic
• Fresh Zucchini
• Dried Oregano
• Canned Tomato Soup
• Bay Leaf
• Salt

Italian Zucchini Recipe

I love this Italian inspired zucchini recipe. It’s a nice change up to my line up of old fashioned zucchini casseroles, like:

• Sausage and Zucchini Casserole
• Cheesy Zucchini, Squash and Corn Casserole
• Sour Cream Zucchini Casserole
• Zucchini Casserole with Ground Beef and Rice
• Breakfast Casserole with Zucchini
• Cheesy Summer Squash and Zucchini Casserole

The marinara sauce goes together quickly, and the zucchini gets stewed right in the sauce in a large skillet. If you don’t like a mushy zucchini, then don’t stew it as long.

How to make zucchini marinara?

Step by Step Instructions

1. Dice fresh zucchini into bite-sized pieces. Finely chop green peppers, onions and garlic.
2. Heat butter over medium heat in a large skillet.
3. Add diced peppers and onions, and sauté until the onions are translucent.
4. Stir in minced garlic and dried oregano, and sauté for 30 seconds, stirring constantly.
5. Add the prepared zucchini, and cook for 3 to 5 minutes or until the zucchini begins to soften.
6. Pour in the canned tomato soup, and add a bay leaf. I add a little water to the can to rinse out all the soup. Pour the water into the pan too, no more than 1/4 cup.
7. Simmer the zucchini marinara sauce for 10 to 12 minutes or until the zucchini is stewed to your preferred texture and the sauce has reduced and thickened.
8. Remove the bay leaf. Taste, add salt, taste again and adjust as needed.
9. Serve alone as a side dish, or serve it on top of cooked rice or the cooked pasta of your choice. If desired, top with grated parmesan cheese.

Storage Instructions

Let leftovers cool completely. Transfer to an airtight container, and store in the refrigerator.

For the full ingredient amounts and recipe steps for zucchini marinara with tomato soup, scroll the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

Recipe FAQs for Zucchini Marinara

• Use fresh zucchini for this recipe.
• If you like a bite to your zucchini, don’t stew it as long.
• To save time, I chop by onions finely, and then flash freeze. When I need onion for a recipe, I measure it out from a zip-lock bag in the freezer.
• Use condensed tomato soup.
• I often serve this as a side dish along side a protein such as steak or pork chops but it’s also perfect as a main course. Serve it over cooked white rice or cooked pasta.
• Be sure to remove the bay leaf before serving.
• Sprinkle with grated Parmesan or shredded mozzarella cheese.

Recipe Variations

• Try swapping out zucchini for yellow squash, if desired.
• Cut the zucchini into zucchini slices, if preferred.
• Olive oil works great instead of butter, if desired.
• Red bell peppers, yellow bell peppers or orange bell peppers would work too instead of green bell peppers.
• Red onion, yellow onion or white onions work great or substitute in dried minced onion or onion powder.
• The original recipe calls for one small jar of sliced mushrooms. Drain it first, and add it into the skillet with the zucchini.
• Swap out the dried oregano for other herbs such as basil or parsley.
• If you don’t have canned tomato soup on hand, use canned diced tomatoes (undrained) or even a regular can of tomato sauce. You may need to season the zucchini marinara to taste but it will still work.

Do you peel zucchini before cutting?

It is unnecessary to peel a zucchini before cutting. Doing so is just a waste of time and energy since the zucchini peel is thin and edible and is a good source of fiber.

How can I enhance the flavor of zucchini?

Zucchini is quite bland in flavor yet it absorbs flavors easily. That makes stewing a good option for zucchini since the zucchini will take on the other flavors in the stew. Season it with dried herbs and spices, fresh aromatics such as onion and garlic, or even add it to your favorite marinara or pasta sauce where it will absorb the Italian flavors.

Tried and True Zucchini Recipes

We love using zucchini in everything from casseroles to baked goods. Check out some of our tried and true recipes featuring this versatile garden vegetable.

Mom’s Zucchini Bread

Creamy Zucchini Casserole

Zucchini Fritters

Zucchini Hamburger Casserole

Kitchen Tools Needed for this Recipe

• Cutting Board and Sharp Knife
• Large Skillet
• Can Opener
• Spatula

Print Recipe

Zucchini Marinara: A Healthy And Delicious Meal Idea

Try this zucchini marinara dish! Fresh zucchini, green peppers, onions and garlic gets stewed in a simple marinara sauce made from canned tomato soup and a couple basic dried herbs. Serve it as side dish or as your main course on top of rice or pasta.

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time20 minutes mins

Total Time30 minutes mins

Course: Entree, Main Course, Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Keyword: easy zucchini marinara, italian stewed zucchini, stewed zucchini, zucchini marinara

Servings: 8 servings

Calories: 69kcal

Author: Barbara

Ingredients

• 2 Tablespoons Butter
• 1/2 small Onion
• 1 Green Pepper
• 2 teaspoons Minced Garlic
• 3 medium Fresh Zucchini
• 1 teaspoon Dried Oregano
• 10.5 ounces Canned Tomato Soup
• 1 Bay Leaf
• 1 teaspoon Salt

Instructions

• Dice fresh zucchini into bite-sized pieces. Finely chop green peppers, onions and garlic.
  
• Heat butter over medium heat in a large skillet.
  
• Add diced peppers and onions, and sauté until the onions are translucent.
  
• Stir in minced garlic and dried oregano, and sauté for 30 seconds, stirring constantly.
  
• Add the prepared zucchini, and cook for 3 to 5 minutes or until the zucchini begins to soften.
  
• Pour in the canned tomato soup, and add a bay leaf. I add a little water to the can to rinse out all the soup. Pour the water into the pan too, no more than 1/4 cup.
  
• Simmer the zucchini marinara sauce for 10 to 12 minutes or until the zucchini is stewed to your preferred texture and the sauce has reduced and thickened.
  
• Remove the bay leaf. Add salt, taste and add more if needed.
  
• Serve alone as a side dish, or serve it on top of cooked rice or the cooked pasta of your choice. If desired, top with grated parmesan cheese.
  

Notes

• • Use fresh zucchini for this recipe.
  • If you like a bite to your zucchini, don’t stew it as long.
  • To save time, I chop by onions finely, and then flash freeze. When I need onion for a recipe, I measure it out from a zip-lock bag in the freezer.
  • Use condensed tomato soup.
  • I often serve this as a side dish along side a protein such as steak or pork chops but it’s also perfect as a main course. Serve it over cooked white rice or cooked pasta.
  • Be sure to remove the bay leaf before serving.
  • Love zucchini side dishes? Try these zucchini fritters. 
  • The nutritional information is auto-calculated and can vary depending on the products used.

Nutrition

Calories: 69kcal | Carbohydrates: 9g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 8mg | Sodium: 169mg | Potassium: 440mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 441IU | Vitamin C: 30mg | Calcium: 25mg | Iron: 1mg