Low carb and keto friendly, this easy zucchini lasagna with ground meat is a healthy alternative to your typical lasagna. This casserole is so good that you won’t miss the noodles.
Zucchini Slices Instead Of Lasagna Noodles
This saucy zucchini lasagna is the perfect low carb solution to your Italian comfort food cravings. Wheat-based lasagna noodles are replaced by thin zucchini slices, and you won’t even notice the pasta’s gone. In fact, I like this version a lot better than traditional pasta-based lasagna. Most of the flavor is in the sauce itself, so taking away the lasagna noodles doesn’t detract much.
You’ll love the sauce; it’s very savory and hearty, richly flavored with beef, onions, tomato sauce, oregano, and a pinch of cayenne. The sauce is roasted between layers of zucchini and mozzarella cheese, imparting delicious flavors to the other ingredients.
Liquid Control
Liquid control is key in any recipe that uses zucchini, which is a very wet vegetable that exudes a lot of liquid during cooking. To combat this so that you don’t end up with a soggy lasagna, a common solution is to salt the zucchini prior to cooking to release some liquid, or grill the sliced zucchini. However, I wanted to keep this recipe as simple as possible. So instead of salting or pre-cooking the zucchini, I just make sure that my meat sauce is overly thick by simmering it long enough to evaporate much of its moisture. Then, as the zucchini bakes, its released liquid gets absorbed by the thick meat sauce, avoiding an overly watery lasagna.
To ensure that your meat sauce is thick, I recommend using tomato sauce. Avoid thinner tomato mixtures such as diced or crushed tomatoes. Some pasta sauces will work, but they vary quite a bit in consistency, so adjust the simmering time accordingly.
Serving & Leftovers
You can serve the zucchini lasagna with appetizers and side dishes like:
- boiled artichokes with balsamic dip
- almond flour biscuits
- garlic roasted mushrooms
- almond flour garlic knots
- creamed spinach
Casserole leftovers usually store and reheat well, and this zucchini lasagna is no exception. Cover and refrigerate leftover servings, and reheat in the microwave. I often find that flavors and textures improve after chilling overnight in the refrigerator.
Zucchini Lasagna
An easy zucchini lasagna casserole with ground meat, onions, and tomato sauce. Keto, low carb, and gluten free.
Ingredients
- 20 ounces zucchini (about 2 large or 3 medium, peeling is unnecessary)
- 1 pound extra lean ground beef (95% lean is ideal, no less than 90% to avoid a greasy wet dish)
- 15 ounces canned unsalted tomato sauce (check the ingredients label to make sure no salt is listed)
- 1 cup finely chopped onion (about 1 small onion)
- 1 1/2 cups (5oz) shredded mozzarella cheese (I use low moisture part skim)
- 1/2 cup (2.2oz) finely grated parmesan cheese (should be powder-like, finer than sand)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne
Instructions
Making the meat sauce:
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Heat a high-sided pan over medium heat until hot (I use a 10-inch wide nonstick pan with 3-inch high sides). Add olive oil to coat the bottom of the pan. Add onions and cook until softened, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
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Add ground beef to the pan. Cook until it's no longer pink, about 5 minutes, breaking it apart as it cooks.
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Add tomato sauce, stirring it in. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, then gradually reduce the heat as needed to maintain a simmer. Simmer for about 10 minutes to thicken the sauce, stirring frequently. The resulting sauce should be thick, easily clinging to the meat and onions; this helps reduce excess moisture in the resulting lasagna.
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Add oregano, salt, and cayenne. Stir for a minute until well-mixed. Turn off the heat.
Assembling and baking the lasagna:
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Position an oven rack in the lower half of the oven, and preheat to 375 F. Set aside an 8x8 inch baking dish.
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For each zucchini, slice off both ends and discard them. Stand the zucchini vertically on a stable flat end, and carefully slice along its length into 1/8 - 1/4 inch thick strips. Don't worry if the slices aren't perfect because it won't affect the deliciousness of the lasagna.
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Arrange about one-third of the zucchini slices along the bottom of the baking dish so that they are slightly overlapping in a criss-cross pattern. Evenly spread about half of the meat sauce over the zucchini. Distribute about 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese on top of the meat sauce.
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Repeat with another zucchini layer, a meat sauce layer, and a cheese layer.
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Top with remaining zucchini slices. Add another 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese and 1/2 cup parmesan cheese on top of the zucchini. Give the baking dish a quick shake so the cheeses spread out and settle into cracks.
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Bake at 375 F until the lasagna is golden brown on top, about 45 minutes. Let it cool for at least 15 minutes to allow the lasagna to set and cease bubbling before slicing.
Nutrition Info
| Makes 4 Servings |
| Amount Per Serving (quarter of 8x8 casserole): |
| Calories 430 | |
| Total Fat 23g | 36% |
| Saturated Fat 11g | 57% |
| Cholesterol 104mg | 35% |
| Sodium 1550mg | 65% |
| Net Carb 8g | |
| Total Carb 12g | 4% |
| Dietary Fiber 4g | 15% |
| Sugars 7g | |
| Protein 38g |
I have made this several times … delicious! I change it up with some fresh herbs now and then (basil, thyme, rosemary) along with the oregano. I’ve also added spinach and/or kale (finely chopped). All were good! I froze individual portions and the re-heated portions were just as tasty! Thanks for this great recipe!
Good to know that it freezes well. Thanks for sharing your add-ins!
made this today for me and my husband who are needing to lose some weight; he loved it and he is hard to please because he is a meat and potatoes man. very pleased we will be making again.
This is a big hit because my husband and some of our close friends are gluten free. You do not miss the pasta here at ALL!! I have found this recipe to be fantastic, forgiving, and easy to adjust for your taste (for instance I usually add a layer of fresh spinach… I improvise the spices and the sauce). Since I always double the recipe, but usually still use just a pound of ground meat, I have used onions and tomato paste to stretch the sauce but keep it thick enough. I have also used round thin slices of zucchini,… Read more »
Great feedback. Thanks Shannon!
Absolutely delish!! Thanks for a great recipe! Will definitely be making this again.
Love the flavors!
Can you use sugar free spaghetti sauce?
Do you peel the courgettes?
I do not peel them.
Could you cook this and freeze in portions?
I just replaced the ground beef with plant base protein and it was just as good.
This was delicious! Even my husband who isn’t much for vegetables ate it (plus 3rds!). It did come out a little runny, but I think I didn’t simmer the sauce enough. I doubled the recipe and realized as I was cooking that I was short in beef. So I made one half with beef, one half woth italian sausage just to try it. I think I prefer sausage, but both were great! Thank you!
Will turkey meat work and taste just as good?
I haven’t tried turkey, but that should work fine.
Yes I made it and we loved it will make it again. Oh by the way I used a cheese slicer to cut my lasagna noodles turned out great.
OMG! I have to make it this weekend!! Have you tried making this in the Instant Pot?
I’ve thought about it, but I haven’t tried. I think the lasagna will be too liquid-y and wet if cooked in the Instant Pot.
OMG! So yummy! I modified a little to our taste, and came out great. Thank you for the tip about the sauce, made it think using a 15oz can of sauce and a 8oz can of tomato paste. That did the trick. I used a mandoline to slice the zucchini and that worked so nicely. The zucchini was a nice texture, almost had a little crunch. I added 4 cloves of minced garlic to the onion before browning the meat. Also added some basil, parsley, paprika and ground cumin to the sauce. I have a toddler who is a picky… Read more »
This meal was so easy to make and we truly loved it! It will go on our monthly rotation!! Thank you
My husband and I LOVE this! Have made it a couple of times, this last time I actually had to use up some mushrooms before they went bad and it made it even tastier. I never thought replacing noodles with a veggie could be so good. Will keep this in our weekly rotation for dinner lol
Hello ~ I wanted to know once you cut the zucchini does it have to sit for a while?? Thanks
It does not. You can use it to assemble the lasagna immediately after cutting it.
Was great! Personally I missed the obligatory bechamel-sauce. I might add it next time (although there’s a bit more carb in the dish then).
I made it today …..without beef because we are vegans and was perfect ❤️❤️❤️
I’m excited to try this. I think I will add cottage cheese to the sauce for added fat.
If you give this a try, let me know how it goes 🙂
ricotta is better and more traditional