Sweet and Spicy Szechuan Zucchini Noodles | Szechwan Zoodles
A low-carb sweet & spicy Szechuan noodles made with zucchini noodles. Making zucchini noodles with a julienne peeler and the Szechuan noodles is quite easy!
Trim the edges of the zucchini and hold it tight. Then hold the peeler against one side of the zucchini and run across length-wise to create strands/strips. Keep rotating the vegetable after two to three peels. This method leaves a big chunk of the core; you can use it for soups, dal, and other recipes.
I used one massive(yes, a massive one) zucchini from my backyard, and after peeling, I got about 550 grams of zucchini noodles.
Blanching the zucchini- (Optional step)
I blanched the zucchini just for one minute in hot water. But if you like raw zucchini, you can ignore this step.
I am insisting this, again, and again, do not blanch the zucchini for more than one minute. It will become soggy if you blanch for more than a minute.
Bring 8 to 10 cups of water to boil until you see the bubbles—no need to bring it to a rolling boil and add salt as well.
Turn off the heat and add the zucchini into the water. Make sure you have immersed the zucchini well inside the water—there is no need to cover it and let it sit in the water for one minute only.
Immediately drain the water and run it through cold water and let it sit.
Prepare the sauce-
In a wok or kadai, heat 1 tbsp of oil.
Add the sesame seeds and roast for 20 to 30 seconds. Then add the chopped onion and garlic and saute until the onion turns soft.
Now add the soy sauce, Szechuan sauce, almond butter, salt, and sugar.
Mix thoroughly and turn off the heat.
Mix the sauce and zoodles and serve-
Now add the blanched zoodles and gently mix. Do not overmix, and no need to cook zoodles again. Zucchini will ooze out water, but it won't become mushy. Even if you skip the blanching process, with time, zucchini will ooze out water. So serve right away.
The oozed out water will serve as a sauce. But do not store it for a long time.
Notes
Blanching is optional, and if you are blanching, do not blanch for more than a minute.
Also, after preparing the sauce, toss and mix the zoodles just before serving. Do not cook the zoodles again.
Adjust the sauces according to your preference. Reduce the Szechuan sauce amount for a not-so-spicy zoodles.
Instead of almond butter, you can use any nut butter of your choice. Peanut butter equally works well in this recipe.
If you have roasted sesame seeds, you can drizzle after preparing the zoodles instead of roasting them in the beginning.
Add a handful of roasted and crushed peanuts for crunchy noodles.
The sauce I made is very basic with available ingredients at home. You can always mix and match different sauces and come up with your concoction.
Make sure you use a gluten-free sauce if you are intolerant to gluten.