Zucchini Noodles With Pesto and Shrimp

Zucchini Noodles With Pesto is a light and easy summer meal. Use a spiralizer to create these light zucchini noodles, then toss with homemade pesto and shrimp.

» For more shrimp recipes check out Shrimp Scampi without Wine or Air Fryer Bang Bang Shrimp.

When I got my spiralizer, I spent a few days experimenting with all the vegetables I could spiralize, but I settled quickly into making mostly zucchini spirals. They are so versatile and their neutral flavor make them great for topping with various sauces.

Making Zucchini Noodles with Pesto

When summer comes around, and there’s a plethora of both zucchini and basil, I can’t resist making this pesto zoodle recipe. These fun and bouncy “noodles” are so easy to make. You can use any type of spiralizer you have at home. I use the handheld one from OXO, which is small and convenient to store in my small kitchen.

All that’s needed is to cut off the top and bottom of the zucchini and then attach it to the cutting prongs and twist.

PRO TIP: The OXO handheld spiralizer comes with either one, two or three blades. I always recommend the one with 3 blades, because it’s the most versatile. Out pops these beautiful noodles that can be used in so many different ways.

The “zoodles” are only flash cooked, so all you have to do is cook the shrimp and you’re done. Use our basil pesto recipe to make up a batch of flavorful pesto. It’s easy to make.

All you need is basil, pine nuts, Parmigiano cheese, olive oil and garlic. Once it’s mixed up, just toss it with your zoodles and top it with the shrimp. I also like to dust the top with a bit more Parmigiano.

How to Cook Zucchini Noodles

If you’ve made zucchini noodles before, you’ve probably struggled with keeping them from getting soggy. If you want to avoid soggy noodles, I don’t recommend boiling them. You’ll end up with a sloppy mess of watery strands that don’t hold sauce.

My preferred method of cooking zoodles is to zap them for about 30 seconds in the microwave or toss them in a frying pan for a minute or two on medium heat just to warm them up and take the full crunch away.

For this dish, I add raw zoodles and pesto to the frying pan that was used to cook the shrimp, and toss it well to coat. It will only take about 1-2 minutes to heat the noodle and sauce in the frying pan. The noodles will continue to cook once removed from the pan, so don’t leave it on the heat for longer than 2 minutes.

Serve & Enjoy

It’s a great dish to make up for lunch when you don’t have a lot of time. You can make this dish even easier by buying pesto and/or already cooked shrimp. You can also spiralize the zucchini a day or so ahead.

So really, all the parts of this dish can be made ahead and stored in the refrigerator to put together whenever you want.

Other Recipes to Try

• Shaved Asparagus Salad with Pesto
• Tagliatelle Pesto Pasta
• Crispy Shrimp Tacos

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