Zucchini mystery solved!

  Remember my zucchini issue? I posted last week that I was going nuts trying to remember how I used to make zucchini salad. I remembered the ingredients (duh: zucchini, oil and lemon juice, garlic, pine nuts, basil or mint … hard to forget one of those). But there was a truc I was missing, one of those little chef’s tricks that transformed the raw zucchini. I knew it wasn’t cooking. And I’d tried soaking the zucchini in ice water (a la Marcella Hazan), but that wasn’t it either.

A couple days later I was reading through my friend Joyce Goldstein’s new book, “Mediterranean Fresh,” and there it was! Not the exact recipe, but a zucchini salad that starts with salting the zucchini and letting it stand. That was the step I’d forgotten. The salting pulls moisture from the squash, softening it a little and removing that bitter vegetal edge, turning the flavor nutty.

So here’s how you do it: Cut up zucchini about a quarter-inch thick (quarters, halves, rounds — depends on the size of the squash). Put them in a colander, salt liberally and let stand for 30 minutes. Rinse them well, pat them dry and then combine them in a bowl with just a smidgen of garlic puree, olive oil and lemon juice and toss well to coat the squash pieces. Toss in some torn basil or mint leaves and a bare handful of toasted pine nuts.

It’s one of my favorite summer salads. I’ve served it at least three times in the last week and will keep serving it as long as the plants (and my wife’s patience) hold out.

— Russ Parsons

Photo by Russ Parsons

Comments

[Michael]

Tried the recipe sans galic puree. Not really sure how to make it. Used roasted freeze-dried instead. Very tasty salad but slightly bland. Was it the garlic or did I not use enough mint or lemon juice? Didn't add any salt but should one use pepper? Thank you.

[Russ Parsons]

You did your homework better than I did Tracy! And just for the record, ANY time is the right time to re-read "Simple French Food." That is still one of the best cookbooks ever written. Richard Olney was amazing.

[Tracy Flinders]

See also page 363 of Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Vol. 2. JC mentions using this method for both cut and grated zuke, but doesn't actually use it in any of the recipes. Also used for Zucchini Pie in Richard Olney's Simple French Food (it's a perfect time of year to start browsing thru this book...)