Zucchini boats, a combination of just a few basic recipes is a tasty entrée that hubby and I had in an upscale restaurant and which I managed to reverse-engineer. Just assemble roasted zucchini, mashed potato, curried barley and top it off with some beet sauce. Et Voilà – you have a fancy dish for your next date night! Let’s get to building…

WHAT YOU WILL NEED

Note: 1 cup = 235 ml

Ingredients

For the base – zucchini boats

1. 3 large zucchinis, halved lengthwise
2. 1 Tbsp. avocado oil
3. 1 tsp. pepper powder
4. Salt to taste (½ tsp. salt)

For tier 1 – mashed potato

5. 2 large potatoes (russet or yukon gold), steamed 
6. 2 Tbsp. butter
7. ¼ tsp. pepper powder
8. Salt to taste (½ tsp. salt)
9. ½ cup heavy cream

For tier 2 – curried barley

10. 1 cup barley
11. 3 ¼ cups water
12. 2 tsp. avocado oil
13. 2 small garlic pods, minced
14. 2 Tbsp. onions, finely chopped
15. ½ cup tomatoes, de-seeded and finely chopped
16. 1 tsp. curry powder
17. ¼ tsp. cumin powder
18. ¼ tsp. paprika powder
19. Salt to taste (¾ tsp. salt)

For crispy cilantro topping

20. 2 Tbsp. avocado oil
21. ¼ cup cilantro leaves, roughly chopped

For beet sauce 

22. 1 cup beets, diced and steamed
23. 2 ¼ Tbsp. butter
24. 2 Tbsp. onions, finely chopped
25. 2 small garlic pods, roughly chopped
26. Salt to taste (¼ tsp. salt)

Kitchen Tools

1. Instant Pot / Pressure cooker / Vegetable Steamer / Large pot
2. Large saucepan
3. Large baking tray
4. Medium flat-bottom pan
5. Potato masher
6. Small jar and blender
7. Tempering pan
8. Flat ladle
9. Slotted spoon
10. Serving bowls and spoons
11. Small zip-lock bag and icing nozzle (optional)

PREPARATION (with step-by-step photos)

Step 1 – Steam cook beets (peeled and diced to fill 1 cup) and 2 large potatoes in two separate bowls by adding 1 Tbsp. water each to the bowls in the Instant Pot (using the pot-in-pot method) for 10 minutes with pressure valve in venting mode or any method that you typically use for steaming. Add a cup of water in the base pot for steam to build

Step 2 – Set a large saucepan on medium heat, wash and cook 1 cup barley with 3 cups water. When it comes to a boil, place a lid on the pan, simmer and cook until the barley is soft and mushy. This will take about 45 minutes. While the barley is cooking, proceed to the following steps but do check and stir the barley every 10 minutes to avoid water drying out or burning the bottom of the pan 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Step 3 – Cut 3 zucchinis in halves lengthwise and slice out the curved side to form a flat base for the boat 

• 

• 

• 

Step 4 – Preheat oven at 350° F 

Step 5 – In a large baking tray, arrange the sliced zucchinis, apply avocado oil with a brush or you can spray a generous amount of oil if you have cooking spray handy. Sprinkle 1 tsp. black pepper powder and ½ tsp. salt

• 

• 

• 

Step 6 – Set the tray in the preheated oven and bake for 25 – 30 minutes. While the zucchini is roasting in the oven, let’s get to making mashed potatoes and beet sauce

For mashed potato

Step 7 – Peel the steam cooked potato skin and roughly break the potatoes into small chunks with your hands

Step 8 – Set a medium flat-bottom pan on medium heat and add 2 Tbsp. butter. Add peeled and roughly mashed potatoes, ¼ tsp. black pepper powder, salt to taste (½ tsp. salt)

• 

• 

• 

• 

Step 9 – Mash and mix all ingredients with a potato masher until you get a smooth paste

Step 10 – Add ½ cup cream and mix until well combined for about a minute, turn off the heat and set aside in a bowl and set. This mashed potato will be slightly thicker in consistency than usual as we need it to sit on the zucchini and not drip out

• 

• 

• 

For beet sauce

Step 11 – Heat ¼ Tbsp. butter in a small flat bottom pan on medium heat and sauté 2 Tbsp. finely chopped onions and 2 roughly chopped small garlic pods. Cook just until the onions are translucent and the garlic starts to release a nice aroma. Do not brown them

• 

• 

• 

Step 12 – Transfer the sautéed onions and garlic to a small blender jar. Add 1 cup steam cooked beets, 2 Tbsp. butter and blend everything to a smooth paste

• 

• 

• 

• 

Step 13– Add salt to taste (¼ tsp.salt), give it a quick pulse and transfer to a serving bowl

• 

• 

For curried barley

Step 14 – Heat 1 tsp. avocado oil in a small flat-bottom pan on medium heat, mince and sauté 2 small garlic pods and 2 Tbsp. finely chopped onions. Cook just until the onions are translucent and the garlic starts to release a nice aroma. Do not brown them

• 

• 

• 

Step 15 –Add ½ cup de-seeded and finely chopped tomatoes, 1 tsp. curry powder, ¼ tsp. cumin powder, ¼ tsp. paprika powder, salt to taste (¾ tsp. salt) and give it a good mix. Cook for about a minute until the raw smell of the spices is gone. Remove this from heat

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Step 16 – Add the above cooked onion tomato spice blend to the cooked barley. Add ¼ cup water to the pan in which the spices were sautéed in the earlier step, swish to get all the spices and add the water to the pan with barley

• 

• 

Step 17 – Mix all the ingredients and cook for couple of minutes until the spices are infused in the barley. Set aside in a bowl for assembly

• 

• 

For crispy cilantro topping 

Step 18 – Heat 2 Tbsp. avocado oil in a tempering pan and when the oil is hot, add ¼ cup chopped cilantro and fry until crispy. Using a slotted spoon remove the fried cilantro and set aside for topping

• 

• 

• 

• 

Assembly and plating

Step 19 – Style your plate with beet sauce using a zip-lock bag and icing nozzle. Place the roasted zucchinis, layer a large spoonful of mashed potatoes, followed by another layer of a large spoonful of curried barley. Carefully place the fried cilantro on top with a tiny spoon or tweezers (I bought an extra pair for kitchen use)

• 

• 

Step 20 – You have created the magic of fine dining at home in just 90 minutes. Enjoy your sublime zucchini boats😋

---

I find fine dining a one of a kind experience that one should try out, whenever possible. It’s a treasured moment where I have a peaceful conversation with food and my date and cherish those memories for later. I can savor multiple courses which take my senses through a wonderful journey – delicate flavors, exquisite fragrances, and not to forget that each course is presented as a work of art to delight the visual senses as well. And among all these dishes, I am also fortunate to stumble upon the rare one that I have a remote hope of recreating at home. I am that person, who loves to reverse engineer recipes that I eat, especially the ones that touch my soul. Fine dining experiences aren’t exactly budget friendly for most of us, and are also not very kid-friendly. So another motivation for me to reverse engineer recipes is to share these dishes for special occasions at home. Anyone else like me? These Zucchini boats are one such creation that was inspired from a wedding anniversary dinner we recently had at Q Haute Cuisine, Calgary (which I highly recommend you try out). One bite and I felt this dish could be easily recreated at home with a few twists to suit our Indian palate. Apart from the kick-ass taste, this dish is also close to my heart for a couple of other reasons. My recipes are usually hot for my non-Indian friends but this recipe is both mild and wholesome. Also, when you plan a family party, the little ones can dig into the mashed potatoes while you can put out the boats as part of an exotic platter for adults to savor. It’s like a holiday cruise where every age group is happy with these sublime zucchini boats😍

---

---

Thank you for stopping by. If you’ve tried this recipe, I would love to hear from you. Please add your comments below and / or rate this recipe. Your feedback will help me improve and share better recipes with you.