This Zucchini Pasta with Chicken and Scallion Avocado Sauce is an easy and healthy dinner everyone will love! Fresh zucchini and summer squash pasta is tossed with chopped grilled chicken and an easy blender scallion sauce that can be enjoyed warm or cold. Paleo and Whole30 friendly and seriously delicious!
I was just saying to Amanda (Running with Spoons) that lately I have energy (or make time, or both) for one “creative” meal per week, and, the rest are just the usual autopilot parade of eggs, bacon, burgers, meatballs. You guys probably know what I’m talking about – you see what I eat!
Anyway, this week I was feeling like I “should” make zucchini pasta. Perhaps just another silly thing to add to the “to-do” list? Maybe. But, then again, it is summer, and zucchini pasta is just way too easy not to make.
I mean, if my handy spiralizer can take on butternut squash and sweet potatoes, summer squash sort of has to happen. The problem I always have, though, is what to do with those noodles after I make them?
This is a ridiculous problem to have, I know. But, since I needed to fulfill my one-creative-meal per week, I wanted it to be good. This one is different that usual, and inspired by a pre-paleo pasta salad I used to make with a scallion vinaigrette.
I really need to start going back in time more often for recipe inspiration. So many delicious things I used to eat that need to be made Paleo!
Now, a little bit about the recipe. It’s an easy one – as in yes, there are a few steps, but, no long cooking times, and, the sauce is made right in a blender or food processor.
In fact, if you spiralize the zucchini and cook the chicken ahead of time (which you can totally do!) this zucchini pasta dish will come together in minutes!
Another cool thing? You can enjoy this meal warm, room temperature or even cold, if you choose. Those are all the options we need for a summer dinner, right? Okay then! Let’s get started 🙂
Zucchini Pasta with Chicken and Scallion Avocado Sauce {Whole30}
Zucchini Pasta with Chicken and Scallion Avocado Sauce {Whole30}
Ingredients
For the Scallion Avocado Sauce:
- 1/4 cup chopped scallions use green part only for low FODMAP
- 2 tbsp raw apple cider vinegar
- 1 and 1/2 tsp coconut aminos
- 2 tsp fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 1/3 cup light flavored olive oil or avocado oil
- 1 med avocado
For the Chicken:
- 1 lb organic chicken tenderloins
- 1/4 tsp fine grain sea salt
- generous pinch crushed red pepper
- 1/2 tsp ground mustard
- 1 tbsp cooking fat of choice
For the Zucchini Pasta:
- 3 med zucchini or summer squash peeled and spiralized - I used 2 zucchini and one yellow summer squash*
- generous pinch pine grain sea salt
- Extra thinly sliced scallions for garnish
Instructions
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First, spiralize your zucchini and set it aside in a bowl lined with paper towel to absorb excess water. Then, sprinkle with a generous pinch of sea salt.
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Next, prepare your ingredients for the sauce (but don't make it yet) and cook the chicken:
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Heat a large grill pan (or an actual grill) over med-hi heat and brush generously with cooking fat. Sprinkle the chicken with the sea salt, crushed red pepper and ground mustard, then cook 3-4 minutes per side or until totally cooked through, then remove from pan or grill and set aside.
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Now, prepare the sauce. Add all the sauce ingredients EXCEPT for the avocado to a blender or food processor and process on high speed about 30-45 seconds or until fully combined. Then, cut open the avocado, dice it into small cubes, and stir the diced avocado into the sauce mixture.
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Now that your zucchini noodles have drained, you can soften them by cooking them for 1-2 minutes over medium-hi heat either in the same pan you cooked your chicken or another pan lightly coated with cooking fat. Don't overcook them, as they can get mushy and watery**
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Roughly chop your grilled chicken tenders and stir them into the sauce mixture, then serve tossed with the zucchini pasta.
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Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
*This is the spiralizer I used for this recipe.
**If you prefer fresh, uncooked zucchini noodles you can skip this step. At the most, cook them for 2 minutes while stirring to avoid overly mushy noodles.
Nutrition
What I Used to Make My Zucchini Pasta with Scallion Avocado Sauce
So, what’s something you just sort of need to make in the summer?
How often do you go all out and get creative with a meal?
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I’ve gotten so lazy about spiraling any foods. I haven’t made zucchini noodles in over a year!
There’s been zero creatively with meals lately around here. I am hoping to try at least one new recipe next week!
If there’s one thing to spiralize it’s zucchini or summer squash since it’s just so easy! Despite several steps this recipe is really easy! Honestly you can even make it without the noodles and eat it over a salad 🙂
It looks so good! I may need to break my no warm food in the summer rule haha I really wanted to try spiralizing but I had no idea which one to buy. Thanks for the link, will order for sure. I do get creative on the week-end but lately it’s been mostly summer salads and BBQ recipes…I My kitchen stove is getting a vacation…except for baking muffins of course! 😉
You’re in luck because this is good cold, too! I actually ate it cold twice out of the three times I had it 🙂 I wish I was a bit more creative with bbq recipes.
I have become a lazy meal preparer for sure! I am hoping that my recipe challenge with laura keeps me accountable because so far, it has been more fun again to cook something different.
I love your recipe challenge idea and it totally goes with what I was thinking writing this pos! Old favorites are good but sometimes we need to discover new favorites too.
O I like the sauce! That sounds yummy!
You know what I need to make this summer…zucchini BREAD! I mean..I never have, yet I eat a zucchini a day and put it in everything…but I’ve never put it in bread :O
For some reason I’ve never made zucchini bread either! I think chocolate might be in order 🙂
I love zucchini bread it is really delicious, but have not made it recently as we are grain free these days, I wish there was a awesome recipe for coconut/tapioca/almond flour zucchini bread…. just sayin…
One day I will have to!
This looks amazing and you’ve read my mind on needing a recipe for spiralized zucchini and summer squash! No joke this was my thought on my afternoon walk yesterday 🙂
Thanks very much for the recipe! I’m going to try it out with 2 edits (just on the sauce ) – leaving out the vinegar and coconut aminos. Will add extra lemon juice ( trying to keep with paleoista’s view on vinegar ) and I’m LOVING lemon juice (with lots of oil) on my salads. I also like to control my salt ( i know it’s not bad i just really like to add my own) so that is why I’ll leave out the aminos. Otherwise I’m going with your directions exactly as-is! I’ll let you know how it goes!
It’s that time of year! I think extra lemon would work well 🙂
BLTs. All the time. I use the lettuce as a wrap. And it’s not complete without a nice big smush of avocado. Summer tomatoes are my favorite. I’m always less creative with my meals in the summer. Simple is so tasty with all the summer fruits and veg. Mm mm. Tomatoes.
Ooh that sounds so yummy!
That’s a really good idea. I need to do something like that, so it keeps me flexible and creative in the kitchen. I would love to get into the kitchen with you or Amanda and watch you cook and create!
Yum! I don’t own a spiralizer (grad student with small apartment and tiny kitchen), but I always see people making the most beautiful recipes with them! I seem to be pretty sensitive to avocado, but 1/4 of a medium one might not bother me too much. So hard to know sometimes.
I know what you mean about avocado. I feel like a moderate amount of a good ripe one doesn’t bother me but I don’t go overboard. This would even be delicious without the avocado!
I’m new to Michele’s website and this was the first recipe that I’ve tried, and it was a home run. My husband and I loved it. I added sliced mushrooms to the zucchini pasta. I think the avocado sauce would work well on fish too. Loving your blog and look forward to cooking my way through your recipes. THANKS!
Awesome! Very glad you liked it. I also think the sauce is very versatile and would be delicious on so many things 🙂
I made the mistake of using unrefined coconut oil (all i had otherwise was extra virgin olive oil, which i believe leaves an after taste in sauces)… well, the coconut oil made it sweet. Not too sweet for me, but my non AIP hubby dint like it. Oh well. Time to bite the bullet & buy avocado oil :/
Easy to make though & I appreciate that! I had leftover chicken breast from another night I was able to use which saved even more time.
Avocado oil is great! Light olive oil avoids that bitter taste that evoo can have. I can see where coconut oil would have an odd flavor.
I like the chicken too much. Now i will make this dish at my home. Thank you so much for share this amazing recipe with us.
I love pasta but Zucchini Pasta name I have listened the first time. Now I will try my home the first time. I am very excited to make this recipe. Thank you so much for the share this post.
Easy to make. Awesome to eat!
Made this last night for my family – so, so good. This will become one of my go-to recipes. Creamy, delicious and satisfying.
Made this tonight for day #29 Whole30 dinner (and day #30 lunch tomorrow) — it was awesome!! Absolutely loved the sauce. Thank you!