If you follow us on Instagram and/or Facebook, you may have seen the poll asking if you'd like me to post this recipe for pasta with zucchini, corn and cilantro. The majority voted YES, so I've written up the recipe for you.

I make this delicious pasta with zucchini, corn, and cilantro all summer long. It's also an excellent dish for fall when you can still get fresh corn and zucchini. You can also make it any time of the year and use fresh frozen corn.

If you’re looking for a quick pasta dish that’s hearty enough for a main dish yet works well as a side with fish, chicken, or pork, you’ll want to try this recipe. This zucchini and pasta dish is also a great way to offer kids zucchini. My older daughter used to eat around the zucchini, but now she loves this dish and often requests either this zucchini and pasta or my Zucchini fritters.

Why you'll love zucchini and pasta recipe

Why you’ll love this recipe
It’s simple and quick to make.
It reheats well. It’s great at room temperature, too.
It’s a great option for picky eaters because you can serve the zucchini, corn, and cilantro mixture on the side. Alternatively, you can serve the pasta, zucchini, and corn mixed together, which allows them to easily eat around the zucchini.

Ingredients

Zucchini is easy to prepare. It doesn’t require peeling and cooks quickly. Its subtle flavor helps it take on the flavor of the other foods and flavors it’s cooked with. The mild taste may make it more palatable to picky eaters.
Fresh corn blanched corn on the cob with the kernels cut off.
Olive oil—I tend to use extra virgin olive oil (Kirkland brand) for cooking. EVOO is made from the cold first pressing of olives, as opposed to olive oil, which is heated. That said, you can use any olive oil you like. Just keep in mind that the flavor of the olive oil will impact the flavor of what you’re cooking. And any type of olive oil is good for one year.
Unsalted butter—I cook and bake with unsalted butter because it allows me to control the taste of the final product.
Fresh garlic—You can also use minced garlic that comes in jars
Red pepper flake (optional) — I love using a pinch of red pepper flake. It gives just a hint of heat.
Water saved from blanching the corn and cooking the pasta - Using water, your cooked pasta or veggies (like the corn in this recipe) adds flavor to your sauce and helps thicken it a bit because of the starch from the pasta.
Fresh cilantro—If you hate the taste of cilantro, you can use fresh basil instead. Many people report a strong dislike of cilantro, and it turns out this dislike is genetic.
Juice of half a lemon—Lemon juice adds brightness to the dish.
Salt and pepper to taste—I use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt. It’s less salty than table salt which makes it easier to season what I’m cooking. I also use fresh ground black peppercorns in a pepper mill because I prefer the flavor to that of pre-ground pepper. A reminder though, do what works best for you!
Fettucini—Any brand will do. I use fettuccine noodles here because the sauce sticks to it easier due to the larger surface area than a noodle like spaghetti. That said, any shape of pasta will work with this recipe.
Parmesan cheese—Freshly grated parmesan cheese adds depth of flavor to the finished dish.

Steps to make zucchini corn pasta

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Shuck the corn and blanch it on the cob. Save the water to boil your pasta. You’ll also need some corn/pasta water to finish the dish.
Once the corn is cool enough to handle, cut it off the cobs and set the kernels aside. Discard the cobs.
Dice the zucchini. Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the diced zucchini and cook for about 5 minutes or until some of it begins to brown. While the zucchini is cooking, peel and chop two cloves of garlic.
Cook the fettuccine in the large pot of water you cooked the corn in.
Add the pinch of red pepper flake, the garlic, and the corn to the pan and cook on medium to medium-high heat for about another 5 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Chop the cilantro and set aside.
After 5 minutes (or once the zucchini has begun to brown), add 3 tablespoons of unsalted butter, the chopped cilantro, and the 1 cup of the water you used to cook the corn.
Once the fettuccine is cooked, drain it and add it to the pan of zucchini and corn sauce. Toss with the sauce. Squeeze the half lemon and add to the pan. Taste the sauce to see if it needs more salt, pepper, or lemon.

Expert tips from a Registered Dietitian

We get it! Kids and teens can be unpredictable about the foods they eat. The first time I made this zucchini recipe over the summer, my 16-year-old loved it! She also likes the zucchini fritters when I coat them in bread crumbs before cooking. But prior to then, she would only eat a zucchini, tomato, and cheese recipe my mother-in-law used to make.

This pasta and zucchini recipe is a quick and easy way to cook zucchini and offer kids another opportunity to try it. My youngest still doesn't eat zucchini (she's 17 now and was 13 when I wrote this post originally), but that could change at any time. I'm still serving this dish and silently wonder if she'll ever try it.

Making back-to-school lunches

first day of school picture — First day of VIRTUAL school: 8th and 11th grades

Yet another reason to make this pasta is it reheats well. Since school is back in session, I’m back to planning lunches more strategically. And anything that reheats well is considered a win! This summer, my kids fixed lunch on their own fairly often. With the start of (virtual) school, I feel like I need to bring back some of the structure that comes from having me (the parent) plan and make meals for them. Since they have asynchronous learning on Mondays, I’m going to experiment with them making their own lunches on Mondays and I’ll take care of lunches the rest of the week.

I initially thought I might actually pack their lunches even though school is virtual. I haven’t done that yet, but we’re only just into the third week of school. There’s time to adapt if needed!

If you’re looking for simple lunch ideas and tips to make planning and making lunches easier, you can purchase our Lunch E-Book by clicking here. We also have some previous posts with simple lunch-packing tips and ideas: