Pan Seared Zucchini

 

If you have a set of cast iron pans, what do you use them for? My 12" cast iron is for frying papio (fish) and making Dutch baby pancakes. The problem is that this is a very heavy pan and because my husband hoards kitchen equipment all over the house, and because the 12" is not a daily pan, it is stored on the living room cabinet. That cabinet in the corner of the front living room has a stash of paper goods, napkins and some large pots that have been passed down from various ancestors. 

The 10" cast iron, though is a little more user friendly and it was an ideal instrument for this experiment where I definitely wanted to char and carmelize the one leftover zucchini I had so that I did not waste it and I was able to concentrate all the yummy goodness into each slice. 

I read a lot of recipes that make it seem like zucchini is overabundant and super cheap, But in Hawaiʻi, zucchini is neither abundant nor cheap, so this one zucchini (all 4 slices of it, no waste) was $2 at the farmer's maket. Not even $2 a pound, just $2. If I have more than one zucchini, I will roast them with a little olive oil and Hawaiian salt, but when I just have one, this is the keeper recipe for using just one zucchini. The original recipe is from the NY Times Cooking "Pan-Seared Zucchini" by Lidey Heuck.

Ingredients:

• 1 zucchini
• 1 T. macadamia nut oil or vegetable oil
• fine sea salt and black pepper
• 1 garlic clove, peeled and smashed
• whatever other seasoning you want, including butter, rosemary, etc.

Directions: 

1. Trim any woody stem. My zucchini did not have a woody stem so I just sliced the zucchini lengthwise into 4 slabs without trimming the top or bottom. If they are washed, try to dry them with a towel before frying.
2. Heat cast-iron pan over medium-high heat. Add oil and wait until it gets shimmery. Add zucchini in pan and press with spatula so the planks do not start curling away from pan. Leave it be for about 3 minutes until it gets a nice char. While the first side is cooking, season other side. Could add more oil or butter if you need to, but you are not trying to deep fry them, nor are you trying to hide the taste of the zucchini
3. Flip the zucchini, season again and cook for 2-3 minutes until both sides are charred and the meat is soft.

This is a no recipe recipe and it looks burned but it is so yummy so I am linking this to my keeper project.