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Turkey Zucchini Boats are a fresh, flavorful way to enjoy zucchini and lean ground turkey—bursting with Italian-inspired seasoning and a hearty meat sauce.
Unlike some zucchini recipes that can be bland, these stuffed zucchini boats are packed with flavor and make a healthy dinner your family will love. They’re perfect for using fresh summer zucchini from the garden and come together in under an hour.
For more easy dinner ideas, check out my 9 Best Minimal-Step Ground Turkey Recipes, or try my Italian Ground Beef and Vegetable Skillet for a beef variation.
Why you’ll love this family favorite recipe!
I love making this zucchini boats recipe for my family as a fresh way to introduce another healthy dinner idea in a fun way.
It has plenty of meat filling to load up the fresh garden zucchini for a delicious and filling dinner. Plus, you only need a few simple ingredients for this summer recipe.
Ingredients for Turkey Zucchini Boats:
- Protein: I like to use ground turkey in the recipe to keep it a healthy and budget-friendly meal
- Fresh vegetables: Get fresh zucchini from the grocery store or your garden
- Sauce: I like to keep this recipe simple by mixing the ground turkey in marinara sauce for maximum flavor
- Cheese: Grab a bag of shredded mozzarella cheese for another easy way to add flavor to the ground meat
- Onion: Dice up a white onion to add to the filling mixture
- Seasoning: Use a combination of Italian seasoning, kosher salt, and ground black pepper to taste
How to Make these Turkey Zucchini Boats:
Prep zucchini:
- Cut each zucchini in half, lengthwise.
- Use a spoon and scoop out the flesh of the zucchini to create zucchini shells.
- Place the zucchinis in a greased 9×13 baking dish.
Cook turkey:
- To a skillet on the stove, add the turkey, seasonings, and onion cook for about 10 minutes while breaking apart with a spatula until the turkey is cooked.
- Now add the marinara sauce and let everything simmer for 10 minutes. Add 1/3 cup mozzarella cheese, stir together so the cheese melts.
Fill turkey boats:
- Scoop the turkey mixture to the inside of the zucchini halves, and sprinkle with the rest of the cheese.
- Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 25 minutes.
- After the first cook time, remove the aluminum foil and bake for an additional 10 minutes. Enjoy
Turkey Zucchini Boats
Equipment
- 9×13 baking dish
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 4 medium zucchini’s
- 24 oz marinara sauce
- 1 white onion diced
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese, 1/2 for filling and remaining for topping
- ½ tsp Italian seasoning
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Prep zucchini:
- Cut each zucchini in half, lengthwise.
- Use a spoon and scoop out the flesh of the zucchini to create zucchini shells.
- Place the zucchinis in a greased 9×13 baking dish.
Cook turkey:
- To a skillet on the stove, add the turkey, seasonings, and onion cook for about 10 minutes while breaking apart with a spatula until the turkey is cooked.
- Now add the marinara sauce and let everything simmer for 10 minutes. Add 1/3 cup mozzarella cheese, stir together so the cheese melts.
Fill turkey boats:
- Scoop the turkey mixture to the inside of the zucchini halves, and sprinkle with the rest of the cheese.
- Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 25 minutes.
- After the first cook time, remove the aluminum foil and bake for an additional 10 minutes. Enjoy
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
How to store this healthy zucchini boat recipe:
Fridge: Place the leftover filled zucchinis in an airtight container and store them for 4-5 days for another easy dinner recipe.
Tips and tricks for making a delicious zucchini dinner:
Meat to use:
Ground turkey is my go-to option for this recipe to keep it healthy, but you can always use lean ground beef, or even ground Italian sausage would be amazing.
Make this into vegetarian zucchini boats:
If you want to keep this a low-carb meal and still high in protein, using cooked lentils in place of the ground turkey is a great way to turn this into a vegetarian option.
How to remove zucchini flesh:
It is pretty simple, you can use a melon baller, or just a simple spoon will do. Then just scrape it along the inside of the zucchini until all the seeds have been removed.
More add-ins for zucchini boats:
- Black beans
- Fresh basil or other fresh herbs
- Canned corn
- Garlic powder
- Diced red pepper
- Halved cherry tomatoes
More Summer zucchini recipes to make:
Quick links for making dinner easy:
- Family meal plans
- Tools for the kitchen and more
- The best cookbook for family dinner recipes
- FREE budget meal plan
- Cooking videos to watch
If you give these recipes a try, make sure to tag us on Instagram @julia.pacheco.cooking and let us know how much you liked the recipes!
