Courgettes (also known as zucchinis in American recipes) are often mistakenly called a vegetable, but they are actually a fruit – much like tomatoes.
They are widely featured in Mediterranean cuisine as they prefer warmer climates. However, courgettes are a very common food in the UK and can be bought for a very reasonable price in season.
Out of season though, courgettes either skyrocket in price or are impossible to track down in local supermarkets. What can you use instead when courgettes are out of season?
Our 4 Substitutes for Courgettes
As they are technically a fruit, courgettes have a mild sweetness to them that only becomes more prominent when cooked.
They also have a just as mild bitterness, making courgettes a great addition to any dish.
Here are our top 4 substitutes for courgettes:
1) Aubergines
Aubergines (eggplants) and courgettes are practically interchangeable. They share a very similar texture and flavour palette though they just fall short of meeting each other perfectly.
While courgettes remain fairly firm when cooked, aubergines have a juicer centre. This juice makes the aubergines soften up much more when cooked.
Flavour-wise, aubergines strike the same sweet and bitter balance as courgettes but on a much milder level. You will want to use extra aubergine to make up for the lack of flavour.
Avoid Overly Wet Dishes
The main issue you will run into with aubergines is the amount of moisture they produce compared to courgettes. Simply fry off some of the juice before adding the aubergines to your dish to combat this.
2) Cucumbers
You should only use cucumber as a courgette substitute if the recipe calls for raw courgette. You can cook cucumber if you want, but it will lose all of its pleasantness.
Cucumber is even more common than courgette and is available all year round for a very low price.
It is as refreshing as it is sweet, with a hard outer skin but a crunchy and juicy core.
This does mean that you will have to account for the extra moisture of the cucumber, but you may find it to be an addition rather than a negative in a dry salad or sandwich.
Our Tip for Using Extra Cucumber
Cucumber is often used as a refreshing burst in summer drinks to add a unique kind of sweetness. If you have leftover cucumber in the middle of winter, just add a slice or two to your water bottle.
3) Yellow Squash
A few types of squash are as common as courgettes, but it is yellow squash that will be the best substitute for courgettes.
Once you cut open the hard outer skin of yellow squash, you will be able to use the soft flesh as a courgette replacement. This flesh is just as thick as courgette and tastes almost identical when cooked.
As yellow squash grows in a bulbous shape, it is a little harder to prepare. But so long as you have a stable surface to prepare it on, it shouldn’t be too much of an issue.
Can You Freeze Yellow Squash?
As a summer squash, yellow squash is available around the same time of year as courgette. However, you can prepare and freeze yellow squash for a few months so that you can use it as a substitute when the courgette is out of season.
4) Carrot
Okay, so based on looks alone, you wouldn’t think that carrots would be that good of a substitute for courgettes, but they are the perfect vegetable to use when you need a quick replacement for a courgette side dish.
If you replaced courgettes with carrots as the main feature of the dish, they would alter the dish’s flavours noticeably.
Carrots are sweeter than courgettes, so they would give your whole dish a sweeter flavour.
However, as a secondary ingredient, they can help balance out more prominent flavours rather than overpower them.
Soften Before Using
As they are a lot firmer than courgettes when raw, you will need to cook carrots for a little while before using them as a courgette substitute so that you can achieve the same texture.
Other Substitutes for Courgettes
If you only have a variety of herbs to hand but want to achieve the same flavour as courgettes, there are a few common herbs that you can use instead:
- Parsley – Like courgettes, parsley has a sweet and bitter balance, though it is mostly sweet. It is not overpowering but rather complementary to most dishes.
- Basil – For a sweeter taste, try sweet basil. But even dried basil will give your dish a similar flavour as courgettes.
Summary
Courgettes are a much-loved ingredient used in a range of cuisines, but can be hard to come by outside of its prime season.
However, plenty of other fruits and vegetables carry the same bitter-sweet flavour combination that makes courgettes so delicious.