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A golden cheesy crust seals in the fluffy, moist and creamy center of this zucchini casserole. This zucchini bake recipe is easy, irresistibly delicious and a great way to use up extra garden vegetables since it is loaded with 3 pounds of zucchini!
This recipe has simple ingredients and comes together quickly, making it ideal for busy weeknights. This is the best kind of comfort food – so satisfying but light being mostly vegetables, well technically fruit because zucchini is a fruit – seriously!
Every year, Mom grows enough zucchini in her yard to feed a small army so we are always on the lookout for new zucchini recipes! My Mother-in-law shared this recipe with my husband and it quickly became a new favorite. P.S. Have you tried our all-time favorite zucchini recipe?
Ingredients for Zucchini Casserole:
The ingredients in this zucchini rice casserole are so simple and basic but they are a winning combination of flavor and texture.
*To cook rice for this recipe, you will need 1 cup of uncooked rice. Here is an easy tutorial from Olga’s Flavor Factory on how to cook white rice.
How to Make Zucchini Casserole Recipe:
Prep: Preheat oven to 400˚F and butter a 9×13 baking casserole dish.
1. Grate zucchini on the large holes (the grating attachment on a food processor makes it so easy!). You should get 7 to 8 cups before squeezing dry. Transfer grated zucchini to a colander over the sink and stir in 1 tsp salt. Let stand for 10 min, stirring a couple of times then squeeze out the excess moisture with your hands. Transfer drained zucchini to a large mixing bowl.
2. Mix 2/3 cup of sour cream with 1/2 tsp baking powder and let it stand while zucchini drains (8-10 min).
3. Into the mixing bowl with drained zucchini, stir in 4 eggs and sour cream mixture.
4. Add cooked rice and 2 cups shredded cheese. Stir in 1/2 cup chives, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp Mrs. Dash seasoning.
5. Pour mixture into buttered casserole dish and lightly spread 1/3 cup sour cream over the top. Sprinkle remaining 1 cup of cheese over the surface and bake uncovered in the center of your oven at 400˚ for 40 min. Let it stand for 10 min before serving.
This zucchini bake was on the menu twice last week and it disappeared fast! It tastes like comfort food but in a light and feel good way. I love the light sweetness of the zucchini, the salty crust and moist creamy center. I find this dish completely irresistible and I hope you love it as much as we do!
Cheesy Zucchini Casserole
Ingredients
- 3 lbs green zucchini (6 medium)
- 1 1/2 tsp salt, divided (1 tsp for sprinkling and 1/2 tsp for casserole)
- 2 cups cooked white rice*
- 1 cup sour cream, (divided into 2/3 and 1/3)
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 4 eggs (large)
- 1/2 tsp Mrs Dash seasoning, or your favorite salt-free seasoning
- 8 oz Colby jack cheese, 3 cups shredded (or use Mexican cheese)
- 1/2 cup chives, chopped, plus more for garnish
Instructions
Prep: Preheat oven to 400˚F and butter a 9x13 casserole dish.
How to Make Zucchini Casserole:
- Grate zucchini on the large holes (or the grating attachment on a food processor). Transfer grated zucchini to a colander over the sink and stir in 1 tsp salt. Let stand 10 min, stirring a couple of times then squeeze out the excess moisture with your hands. Transfer drained zucchini to a large mixing bowl.
- Mix 2/3 cup sour cream with 1/2 tsp baking powder and let stand while zucchini drains (8-10 min).
- Into the mixing bowl with drained zucchini, stir in 4 eggs and sour cream mixture.
- Add cooked rice and 2 cups cheese. Stir in 1/2 cup chives, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp
- Mrs Dash seasoning.
- Pour mixture into buttered casserole dish and spread 1/3 cup sour cream over the top. Sprinkle remaining 1 cup cheese over the surface and bake uncovered on the center rack at 400˚ for 40 min. Let stand for 10 min before serving.
Notes
Nutrition Per Serving
If you make this recipe, I’d love to see pics of your creations on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Hashtag them #natashaskitchen
This zucchini casserole is the perfect way to use sweet summer zucchini and a great way to re-purpose leftover white rice.
Pretty tasty a d smells sooo good cooking.. a couple of tips , next time I’ll put the zucchini in the salad spinner to get out more water. Otherwise I had to add about 2 tablespoons of flour and a little more rice to soak up the liquid. Added some cayenne pepper and a spicy Mrs. Dash along with garlic powder and a little garlic salt instead of regular salt to flavor it up. This one is a keeper!
Hello Kim, thank you for your good comments and suggestion. That is so useful!
I don’t have a food scale, and my zucchini are giant (my garden got away from me). Can somebody convert the zucchini oz to cups for me?
Hi Mary, Oh now I wish I had measured it that way! I would guess 7 to 8 cups shredded before squeezing out the juice.
I made this recipe for a gathering of women friends and it was a big hit. Will make it for our next family gathering as it makes a good size dish. Thanks for posting this wonderful dish.
That’s just awesome! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review, Karen! I’m so glad it was a hit!
I usually love your recipes but not this one. I think it might have been the rice that turned me off.
Hi Irene, did you make sure to wring the zucchini dry to get out the excess water? Also, the rice is usually pretty mild and makes for a good filler, but shouldn’t distract from the dish. Did you possibly use a different kind of rice or not cook the rice long enough?
I’m just not a fan of rice, but I know it’s good for me so I gave it a try. I did wring out the zucchini. It wasn’t watery at all. Next time I will try quinoa instead of rice. I use your recipes all the time and you are always my first go to.
I adapted this a bit and used riced cauliflower in place of rice and plain Greek yogurt instead of sour cream. This was delicious! Next time I may substitute some of the grated cheese with parmesan and feta and see how that comes out.
Thank you so much for sharing that with me. I hope you love it!
It was very tasty, but tasted like a breakfast casserole lol 😂
Thank you so much for sharing that with me, Lindsey! I bet this would be good for breakfast too!
It’s delicious! Can you freeze this?
Thank you for sharing your recipe.
Hi Rebecca, I haven’t tried freezing leftovers only because it didn’t last that long :). I would not suggest freezing and then cooking since after potatoes and zucchini are salted, they start to get juicy if not baked right away. Maybe someone else has experimented with freezing? Let us know if you have any insights into this! Thanks in advance
I’m going to try it without rice.
I love your recipes because I love watching your blog. Easy, informative and funny! Thanks for sharing your amazing recipes.
You’re so welcome, Lina. Thank you for always checking out my videos and recipes on my website. Really appreciate it!
Do you recommend using cold leftover white rice, or freshly cooked warm rice? I imagine the texture could be quite different depending? Thank you!
Hi Debra, using leftover rice may work, I would make sure it’s not hard and cooked to package instructions. I hope you love this recipe!
This is my third time making this recipe. I follow the instructions exactly and it turns out amazing everytime. Great dish when I am inviting people over. My aunt and mother are addicted to this one ! They keep asking for the recipe. So delicious and wonderful. Thank you for the wonderful recipes.
That is fantastic! So great to know to your family loved this recipe. I hope they also love all the other recipes that you will try from us.
Hi Natasha I want to try this but I’m a bit confused by the cheese measurements. It says 8 ozs then it says 3 cups but 8 ozs is only one cup. Thank you
Hi Clea, 8 oz is the weight measurement. If you were to fill measuring cups with shredded cheese, you would have 3 cups.
Yes, but your recipe calls for 8 ounces and then 3 cups. Which is it?
You will need 8 oz of cheese (weigh measurement), equal to 3 cups of shredded cheese. You can choose to measure it by weight or by the cup.
Loved this casserole! A great way to use up that zucchini this time of year. Question- does this freeze well?
So glad to hear that, Julie. I haven’t tried freezing leftovers only because it didn’t last that long :). I would not suggest freezing and then cooking since after potatoes and zucchini are salted, they start to get juicy if not baked right away. Maybe someone else has experimented with freezing? Let us know if you have any insights into this! Thanks in advance
absolutely delicious! I didn’t have enough sour cream so I added plain greek yogurt, tasted fine. I also have plenty of crookneck squash from the garden so I mixed it in with the zucchini and it was great. so far it’s a big hit! I had some pre grated zucchini that I used for another recipe so it had been well drained and I didn’t have any liquid on the bottom of the casserole, it was very light and fluffy, thanks for the great recipe!
Hi Dorothy, I’m so glad you enjoyed the zucchini casserole!
absolutely delicious didnt have sour cream used whip cream btw i bought by mistake i couda ate the whole thing by myself and of course u could add meat or shrimps or whatever to have a complete dinner. loved this now trying some of your other recipes you rock
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us!
This was delicious! I did, however, substitute riced cauliflower for the white rice. It turned out great and lower in calories. Loved it and will make it again.
I’m so happy to hear that Patricia! Thank you for that wonderful review!
I was wondering how riced cauliflower would work as I am following a WW (Weight Watchers) lifestyle. I frequently use half regular rice and half cauliflower rice in recipes.
Hi Beth, one of my readers mentioned the following: “I made with cauliflower rice and it worked great.” I hope this helps!
This recipe is meticulously crafted and all of the quantities and timing are spot on. Based on personal preference, we added two medium onions, two shallots, and two cloves of garlic, sauteed until transluscent, and stirred them into the mix. We also added 1/2 tsp of white pepper and 1/4 tsp of nutmeg. We make this at least once a week during peak zucchini season.
Thank you so much for sharing that with me Susanna! I’m so happy you enjoyed this!
Delicious! I used greek yogurt instead of sour cream and it came out great. Also, I mixed in some extra mushrooms and corn we had in the fridge. There was a little water in the bottom of the pan but did not effect the structural integrity of a slice. Am definitely making this again
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us!
I just tried this recipe yesterday for Sunday brunch. I wish I could upload the pictures to my comment here rather than Instagram.
I didn’t have zucchini on hand, so I used about 2.5 lbs of frozen broccoli and .05 lbs of cauliflower rice. I swapped sour cream for plain Greek yogurt, and didn’t have chives. I used my own salt seasoning vs. the salt + nonsalt seasoning. Despite all of my changes, it came out very good! It made more than a 13×9 dish, which is great for meal prep purposes. Thank you for the recipe!
I’m happy to hear you enjoyed that Sara. Thank you for sharing that with us!
this comment is for Sara Y: how can you give this recipe 4 stars when you did not follow the recipe?
Agreed! Make the recipe as written
I made this last night and it was a HIT!! Everyone loved it!! I improvised a little and added fried mushrooms and 1 can (12.5oz) of drained (7oz) premium chunk chicken breast. It came out delicious!!
Thank you, Natasha for helping so many of us in our every day life of cooking..
That’s so great! Thank you for that wonderful feedback.
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That’s so awesome! Thank you so much for sharing that with us.