My oven-roasted zucchini with parmesan is a delicious way to get your family to eat more vegetables. My easy recipe uses fresh zucchini squash tossed with olive oil, seasonings, and grated parmesan cheese. It’s roasted to perfection and takes minutes to make, making it the perfect side dish for a busy weeknight, date night, or dinner party.
Made with simple ingredients, my easy zucchini is ready in less than 20 minutes, and I know after one bite, you’ll agree this is the best roasted zucchini recipe you’ve ever made and is guaranteed to become your favorite squash recipe. You can also use yellow squash or a combination of both to make my squash recipe.
I love roasted vegetables. Something magical happens when the high heat caramelizes them and brings out the natural sugars. I know my roasted zucchini with parmesan is a side dish your whole family will love!
If you’re a fan of zucchini, make sure to take a look at our French Ratatouille and Chocolate Zucchini Bread.
Ingredients to make Roasted Zucchini with Parmesan
Let’s start by gathering the ingredients needed to make my Roasted Zucchini with parmesan recipe. In Chef Speak, this is called the “Mise en Place,” which translates to “Everything in its Place.”
Not only does setting up your ingredients ahead of time speed up the cooking process, it also helps ensure you have everything you need to make the dish.
Can I use other seasonings to make roasted zucchini?
Absolutely! You can use your choice of spices or a seasoning blend. Italian seasoning and lemon pepper seasoning are two of my favorites. For a touch of heat, add a little red pepper flakes or chili powder to the seasonings.
You can also use fresh herbs and chopped fresh garlic if you prefer to make this easy side dish recipe.
I like using parmesan cheese or grated Locatelli Romano cheese to perk up the zucchini slices, but if you’re not a fan of cheese or want to make the veggie vegan, you can leave the cheese out of the recipe.
How to make Roasted Zucchini with Parmesan
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Add the salt, black pepper, smoked paprika, and garlic powder to a small bowl.
- Mix to thoroughly combine the seasonings.
- Rinse the zucchini and dry them with paper towels. Then slice the zucchini, end to end, into ½ thick slices.
- Add the zucchini slices to a large bowl and drizzle the olive oil over the top of the sliced zucchini.
*You can also cut the squash into zucchini spears if you prefer.
- Sprinkle the seasoning mixture over top of the oiled zucchini.
- Toss the zucchini with the seasonings so that all the slices have been seasoned.
- Cover a baking sheet with aluminum foil and place a wire rack over top of the baking sheet.
*If you don’t have a wire rack, you can place the slices directly on foil or parchment paper. - Place the seasoned slices in a single layer on the wire rack, leaving a little space between them.
- Sprinkle the parmesan cheese over top of the zucchini slices.
Place the sheet pan on the center rack of the hot oven and cook for 10-12 minutes until golden brown.
Carefully remove the pan from the oven and allow to cool for one minute. Then, place the oven-roasted zucchini with parmesan in a serving bowl.
This is one of my favorite ways to serve zucchini. The light, smoky flavor from the smoked paprika adds a nice touch to the crispy slices of zucchini, and the grated parmesan perks up the flavor.
Store any leftover oven roasted zucchini in an airtight container, refrigerated for two days. Reheat in a 400-degree oven for 7-10 minutes.
Recipe FAQ’s
Look for zucchini that are firm, glossy, and free from blemishes. They should be small to medium-sized for a sweeter, tender texture. The larger ones start to lose some of their naturally sweet flavor.
No, you don’t need to peel zucchini before roasting. The skin is edible, and adds a nice texture, flavor, and contains nutrients.
I like to slice the zucchini end to end into ½-inch-thick rounds, but you can also slice it lengthwise into 2-3 inch spears.
More Recipes You’ll Love!
Roasted Zucchini with Parmesan Cheese
Ingredients
- 3 – 4 zucchini Depending upon the size, use more or less.
- 2 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon grated parmesan cheese or grated Romano cheese
- ½ teaspoon table salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika or sweet paprika
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Rinse the zucchini and dry with paper towels.
- Slice the zucchini, end to end into ½ thick slices.
- Add the salt, black pepper, smoked paprika, and garlic powder to a small bowl and mix thoroughly.
- Add the zucchini to a large bowl and drizzle the olive oil over the top of the sliced zucchini.
- Sprinkle the seasoning mixture over top of the oiled zucchini.
- Toss the zucchini with the seasonings so that all the slices have been seasoned.
- Cover a baking sheet with aluminum foil and place a wire rack over top of the baking sheet. If you don't have a wire rack, you can place the slices directly on the foil.
- Place the seasoned slices in a single layer on the wire rack leaving a little space between them.
- Sprinkle the parmesan cheese over top of the zucchini slices.
- Place the baking sheet on the center rack of the preheated oven and cook for 10-12 minutes depending on your desired tenderness.
- Remove the pan from the oven and serve.
LINDA
I have sliced frozen zucchini from last year’s garden. Can I use the frozen for this recipe?
Chef Dennis Littley
I don’t think they will work with this recipe, as freezing zucchini makes it mushy.
Moop Brown
This was very easy to make, and perfect for busy weeknights, everyone in my family enjoyed it.
Laura Arteaga
Love the idea behind this recipe: help your family to eat more veggies. It totally worked with my two kids, they ate quite a few slices! Thanks a lot for such a wonderful and easy recipe!
Hayley Dhanecha
This roasted zucchini was simply amazing, enjoyed with pasta bake yesterday for our lunch. Thanks
Cathleen
I always buy so much zucchini, but then have no idea what to do with it. This recipe was so easy, there really is no excuse NOT to make it! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe 🙂
Katie Crenshaw
I bought some beautiful zucchini from the farmer’s market and decided to try this recipe. They turned out fabulous. The whole family loved them.
Lori | The Kitchen Whisperer
I knew as soon as I saw this recipe I had to make it! I’ve been OBSESSED with zucchini lately and these were so good! Dare I say this was a dinner for me one night?! Definitely putting this on repeat!
Kim
Delicious! Such an easy side dish and a great healthy way to eat zucchini. Definitely going to make this regularly!
Krysten
Roasted zucchini is a favorite, but I especially love it with the addition of grated Parmesan. I like that this recipe doesn’t have added breadcrumbs, which I find makes it a bit heavy with some other fried or roasted zucchini recipes I’ve tried. This one is five stars.
Mikayla
We all loved this recipe, the zucchini was so good with our roasted chicken. To be honest though, I’ll make this for a grab and eat snack, it was so delicious!
veenaazmanov
Super easy and yummy. I love the Parmesan combination to making these Roasted Zuchinni.
Jenny
Ever since we found this recipe, we made it four times already! The zucchini always comes out deliciously crispy. Wonderful recipe, thanks!
Sue
Hello Chef Dennis. This recipe was awesome!!! You nailed it perfectly. Made exactly as written. Will definitely make again. Thank you!