This zucchini risotto (courgette risotto) is light and creamy and topped with microgreens and parmesan cheese! It's surprisingly easy to make and comes together in about 30 minutes! This risotto is delicious on its own, or as a side dish to any spring meal! It's also a great way to sneak in some extra veggies!
Risotto is a classic Italian dish of rice cooked with broth until it reaches a super creamy consistency. It falsely has a reputation of difficult or time consuming to make, but it's actually super simple! It can be a tad annoying because you do have to stir it pretty regularly, but that's it!
Risotto is one of my favorite things to make when I want to impress someone. It’s super easy to make, has amazing depth of flavor, and just seems fancier than other side options. It's also extremely versatile! You might also like this spring pea risotto or this spinach lemon orzo!
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Ingredient Notes
You just need a few simple ingredients to make this creamy zucchini risotto!
Arborio Rice - This recipe is best if you use rice that’s specifically for risotto! Risotto is traditionally made with short grain rice that has a high starch content. This is what gives risotto that super creamy, luxurious texture! Arborio rice is most common but I’ve also made this recipe with loto rice and paella rice and they work great! But always double check the cooking instructions for your rice. This recipe uses a 1:4 rice to liquid ratio but if your rice uses a 1:3 ratio, you’ll want to reduce the liquid by 1 cup.
White Cooking Wine - This is optional but adds some great flavor to your risotto! I always keep cheap, dry white wine on hand that I use for cooking. It’s amazing how much flavor a $3 bottle of sauvignon blanc can add to a dish!
Vegetable Stock - I always use my homemade vegetable stock when I make risotto for the best flavor!! You can also use store bought vegetable stock, chicken stock, or even water.
Shallot - The mild flavor of shallots are perfect for the light, spring risotto. But you could also use half a yellow onion instead.
Fresh Herbs - I love the combination of thyme and zucchini, but you could also use sage, basil, parsley, or whatever other fresh herbs you have on hand! I also like to garnish the risotto with microgreens!
Lemon Juice and Zest - A little fresh lemon juice and lemon zest helps add some brightness to the risotto!
Zucchini - This risotto has 2 whole zucchini in it! Which makes it a filling, balanced meal all on its own, or a great side dish!
The complete list of ingredients and amounts is located in the recipe card below.
How to Make Risotto
In a medium pot, heat your vegetable stock over medium heat until simmering (you can also use a microwave if you're lazy like me). Remove from the heat and set aside.
Using a large box grater, finely grate the zucchini and set aside.
In a large skillet or stockpot, melt the butter over medium heat and sauté the shallots, and garlic for about 5 minutes or until soft and fragrant.
Add in the grated zucchini and cook down for about 10 minutes until soft and tender.
Add in the rice and toast, stirring frequently, for about 2 minutes. Then add in the white wine to de-glaze the pan and make sure to scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the pot.
Add in ½ cup of the warmed vegetable stock and the fresh thyme, and stir the risotto until completely absorbed, then add in another ½ cup and repeat. Continue to add in the stock ½ cup at a time until it's all absorbed and the rice is fully cooked.
Stir in the parmesan and lemon juice. Then taste and add salt and pepper if needed.
Garnish the zucchini risotto with microgreens and lemon zest and enjoy!
Recipe Notes
This zucchini risotto is already vegetarian but you can also make it vegan by just omitting the parmesan and swapping out the butter with olive oil! It’s still creamy and tasty without the cheese! But if you do eat cheese then it's nonnegotiable!
Recipe FAQ's
Store risotto in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Technically yes, but I don't recommend it. Long grain rice will take a little longer to cook and won’t be quite as creamy. Follow the same instructions as below but use 3 cups of water instead. You can also add in ¼ cup of heavy cream towards the end to make it extra creamy if desired.
Yes, but it will be a lot less flavorful. If using water, I recommend also using some sort of bullion to enhance the flavor.
More Risotto Recipes You Might Like!
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Recipe Card
Zucchini Risotto
Special Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 medium zucchini, grated
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, or olive oil
- 1 large shallot, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup arborio rice
- ½ cup white cooking wine
- 2 teaspoons fresh thyme
- 4 cups vegetable stock, substitute chicken stock or water
- ½ cup parmesan cheese, shredded
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- salt and pepper, to taste
- microgreens, for garnish
Instructions
- In a medium pot, heat your vegetable stock over medium heat until simmering (you can also use a microwave if you're lazy like me). Remove from the heat and set aside.
- Using a large box grater, finely grate the zucchini and set aside.
- In a large skillet or stockpot, melt the butter over medium heat and sauté the shallots, and garlic for about 5 minutes or until soft and fragrant.
- Add in the grated zucchini and cook down for about 10 minutes until soft and tender.
- Add in the rice and toast, stirring frequently, for about 2 minutes. Then add in the white wine to de-glaze the pan and make sure to scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the pot.
- Add in ½ cup of the warmed vegetable stock and the fresh thyme, and stir the risotto until completely absorbed, then add in another ½ cup and repeat. Continue to add in the stock ½ cup at a time until it's all absorbed and the rice is fully cooked.
- Stir in the parmesan and lemon juice. Then taste and add salt and pepper if needed.
- Garnish with microgreens and lemon zest and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Sue F says
This was soooo delicious!! Hubby loved it and he’s not a huge fan of zucchini!!! I used low sodium chicken broth and scallions instead of shallots because that’s what I had on hand. Everything else exactly like recipe. Will definitely make again. This could be a meal in itself❤️
Erin says
I made two simple swaps to veganize this risotto: I subbed Earth Balance buttery spread for real butter in equal parts and subbed 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast for 1/4 cup Parmesan. I also added 1 grated carrot at the end (just before adding the lemon juice and zest.Grated carrots are nature’s confetti 🙂
This came out fabulous and I will make again with the substitutions and addition noted.
Sabrina G says
I added summer squash also! Very good!