Skip to content

Meat, Busy evenings

Stuffed round zucchini with rice

Stuffed round zucchini with rice is a complete dinner for 4, ready in 65 minutes and rated easy. Round zucchini are hollowed out, filled with a beef and herb stuffing, baked in tomato sauce, and served with rice. The key is packing the filling firmly and basting the dish with sauce while it bakes. It costs about €2.90 per person.

Tonight, pretty round zucchini, hollowed out and filled with a herb scented stuffing, plus rice for the sauce.

Stuffed round zucchini with rice
Total time
1 h 05
Difficulty
Easy
Cost per person
€2.90
Calories per person
460 kcalcalculated by Kiloach, your weight coach
Season
Summer, Fall
The kids
They generally like it

Round zucchini are scooped out and filled with a ground beef stuffing seasoned with garlic and parsley, then baked gently in their own juices and a tomato sauce. The scooped out zucchini flesh goes straight into the filling, keeping it moist without being noticeable, and the rice is there to soak up every bit of sauce left in the dish.

This is the kind of meal you can put in the oven on a weeknight without much thought, while the rice cooks alongside. Kids like hollowing out their own zucchini like a little bowl to fill with rice, and there are usually enough leftovers for the next day. It takes a bit of patience to scoop out the zucchini, but almost none after that.

The ingredients

4 people

Fruits and vegetables

  • Round zucchini 8
  • Onion 1
  • Garlic 2 cloves
  • Parsley 1 bunch

Butcher

  • Ground beef 400 g
  • Egg 1

Pantry

  • Breadcrumbsoften in the pantry 3 tbsp
  • Tomato sauceoften in the pantry 400 g
  • Riceoften in the pantry 280 g
  • Olive oiloften in the pantry 3 tbsp
  • Saltoften in the pantry 1 pinch
  • Pepperoften in the pantry 1 pinch

Allergens Gluten, Eggs

The step by step recipe

  1. Cut off the tops of the zucchini, scoop them out with a small spoon, and chop the flesh.

    Leave a border about half a centimeter thick, otherwise the zucchini collapse while baking.

  2. Sauté the onion, garlic, and chopped zucchini flesh in the olive oil, let cool slightly, then mix with the ground beef, egg, breadcrumbs, parsley, salt, and pepper. 8 min

    Press the liquid out of the zucchini flesh before adding it, the filling holds together better.

  3. Fill the zucchini with the stuffing, put the tops back on, and arrange them in a baking dish with the tomato sauce around them.

    Pack the filling down with the back of a spoon, there should be no air pockets.

  4. Bake at 180°C, basting with the sauce from time to time. 40 min

    If the tops brown too much, cover with aluminum foil.

  5. Meanwhile, cook the rice in salted boiling water, drain, and serve alongside the zucchini. 11 min

    The rice soaks up the tomato sauce from the dish beautifully, don't leave a drop behind.

Our tips to get it right

  • Pick round zucchini that are similar in size so they all finish cooking at the same time and are easier to serve.
  • Set aside a little raw zucchini flesh if the filling looks dry, it will release juice as it bakes.
  • Spoon plenty of tomato sauce over the zucchini at the start of baking, it keeps the filling from drying out during the 40 minutes in the oven.

The variations

  • Swap the ground beef for veal or a veal and pork mix for a milder tasting filling.
  • For a vegetarian version, replace the beef with cooked lentils mashed with a little grated cheese in the filling.
  • For busy nights, stuff halved regular zucchini instead of round ones, so you skip scooping them out with a spoon.

What to serve it with

  • A green salad with vinaigrette
  • Bread for mopping up the sauce
  • A glass of lemon water

Storage

Stuffed zucchini keep for 2 to 3 days in the fridge in a sealed container. They freeze well once cooked, without the rice. Reheat in the oven or microwave, adding a little tomato sauce if the filling has dried out.

Questions about this dish

Can I prepare the stuffed zucchini ahead of time?

Yes, you can stuff them in the morning and keep them in the fridge until you're ready to bake. Add a few extra minutes of baking time if they go in cold.

Can I freeze stuffed zucchini?

Yes, once cooked and cooled, they freeze well in an airtight container. Cook the rice fresh when serving, since it doesn't freeze as well.

What if I can't find round zucchini?

Regular long zucchini, halved lengthwise and hollowed out, work just as well. They'll cook a bit faster, so check after 30 minutes.

How do I keep the filling from drying out?

Press out excess moisture from the zucchini flesh before mixing it in, and baste with tomato sauce regularly while baking. The egg and breadcrumbs also help keep it moist.

How long does it take to make stuffed round zucchini with rice?

Count 1 h 05 in total, prep and cooking included. The recipe is rated “easy”.

How many calories are in stuffed round zucchini with rice?

About 460 kcal per serving, for a recipe meant for 4 people. Calories are calculated by Kiloach, your weight coach, the app that partners with Mon Chou.

How much does stuffed round zucchini with rice cost?

About €2.90 per serving, or €11.60 for 4 people, based on average supermarket prices.

What allergens does this recipe contain?

This recipe contains gluten, eggs. Always check the labels of the products you buy.

Busy evenings and family life

See all

Beef recipes

See all