This keto zucchini lasagna gives you everything a real lasagna does without the noodles or the soggy pan, layers of beef, marinara, ricotta, and mozzarella over zucchini, at about 7 grams of net carbs a serving. The whole trick is drying the zucchini, and below are two ways to do it.
I have seen a ton of recipes for this on Pinterest lately. The idea of zucchini instead of noodles in lasagna sounded brilliant. The only thing I didn't like about the recipes that I found is that the majority of them said to leave the slices of zucchini in a colander covered in salt to remove some moister from the zucchini. This idea sounds good in theory, but this method also adds a ton of salt to the recipe. I decided to slice up the zucchini in the morning and then wrap them in many paper towels to remove the liquid. I think this trick works much better and leaves all the salt out of the recipe. This is a great way to enjoy this italian meal with all the flavor and low in carbs.
Two ways to dry the zucchini
A watery pan is the one thing that ruins a zucchini lasagna, and it comes down to how you handle the zucchini, which is most water by weight. There are two good methods. The classic one is to salt the slices and let them sweat in a colander for half an hour, then blot them dry; this pulls the most water but, as I found, it leaves the lasagna salty. My preference is to wrap the sliced zucchini in plenty of paper towels and press out the liquid with no salt at all, which dries them nearly as well and keeps the seasoning in your hands. A third option, if you have the oven on, is to pre-roast the slices for ten minutes to drive off moisture and add a little flavor. Whichever you use, the goal is the same: dry zucchini going in, and a 10-minute rest after baking so the layers set and slice clean.
Build it red or white
Lasagna runs in two Italian families, and a keto build works either way. The red style, the one here, layers a tomato-and-meat sauce with ricotta and mozzarella, the way southern Italy does it. The northern style, lasagne alla Bolognese, layers a meat ragu with a creamy white bechamel instead of tomato. To go white, swap the marinara for a simple sauce of cream and parmesan thickened with a little cream cheese, and you get a richer, milder lasagna at even fewer carbs. Both stack over zucchini in place of pasta sheets.
Net carbs and a clean slice
At about 7 grams of net carbs a serving, most of it from the marinara and ricotta rather than the zucchini, this is a real lasagna you can eat on plan. Cook the ground beef through to 160 degrees F, the USDA mark for ground meat. My marinara sauce is the one I layer in, and the same zucchini turns into a zucchini noodle bolognese on a faster night. Zucchini is just one of the carriers in my low carb pasta substitutes guide.
Sources
USDA FoodData Central, nutrient references for zucchini, ground beef, ricotta, and mozzarella; safe ground-meat temperature.
Sugarfreechic test kitchen, low-carb pasta notes.
