Baking dish with giant zucchini, potatoes and crushed herbs with garlic
What about overgrown zucchini? This is the eternal problem of every grower. Sticking it in the oven is a good solution, especially if you sprinkle it with crushed herbs and garlic – a trick borrowed from Georgian cuisine, where they season stews with this.
Ingredients · Servings For 4 people
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil
- 3 pcs shallots
- 400 g potatoes
- 400 g cuketa
- 1 clove garlic
- 2 tbsp basil
- 2 tbsp dill
- 2 tbsp fresh coriander
- 150 ml white yogurt
- coriander seeds
Method · 55 min
- Preheat the oven to 180°C, fan to 160°C. Pour the oil into a baking dish and let it heat up in the oven. Then add the shallots to the oil, season with salt and pepper and return to the oven for 5 minutes until the shallots soften and start to turn golden.
- Add the potatoes to the baking dish and season the courgettes with salt and pepper. Increase the oven temperature to 200°C (180°C fan-forced) and bake for about 20–30 minutes. The goal is for the potatoes to soften and the courgettes to start to colour. If the potatoes are soft and the courgettes are still pale, turn on the grill for 5 minutes but keep an eye on them.
- Mash the garlic with a little salt in a mortar and pestle until it becomes a paste. Then add the chopped herbs and continue grinding without any fear – forget the adage that fragile herbs like basil should never be crushed. In Georgia, herbs and garlic have been crushed this way for thousands of years, so don’t be afraid!
- Add the crushed herbs and garlic to the zucchini and potatoes. Then turn off the oven but leave the baking dish in for a few more minutes.
- Mix the yogurt with crushed coriander seeds and a pinch of salt. If the yogurt is too thick, thin it with a few drops of water. Mix the vegetables and herbs in a baking dish and serve with the yogurt and a crusty baguette.