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When your zucchini harvest arrives, it comes in hot and heavy. You’ll need to find different ways to preserve zucchini if you don’t want it to go to waste.

You don’t have to drive your family nuts with zucchini recipes all summer long either. Zucchini can be preserved, but most people don’t think of the various preservation methods for their excess zucchini.

One thing to note is that zucchini is not safe to can by itself. You need to pickle it or add it to a recipe that is canning safe, boosting the acidity level.

Some home canners argue that zucchini is safe to can using a pressure canner, but I like to avoid any potential canning mistakes. While it is safe to add zucchini to other canning recipes, we cannot be sure how long is needed in the pressure canner to safely can zucchini at home.

So, I avoid it, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t delicious, safe ways to can zucchini – there are several.

Zucchini is quite versatile, so you can find dozens of ways to cook it and preserve it. One of our favorite dinners is zucchini shrimp pasta, but after several meals, my kids and husband are screaming for mercy.

Here are some of the best ways to preserve zucchini for the fall and winter months.

6+ Way to Preserve Zucchini for the Fall & Winter

1. Make Zucchini Salsa

My absolute favorite way to preserve zucchini is to make zucchini salsa. It uses up a ton of zucchini – around 10 cups – and it’s a showstopper at parties. My friends ask for zucchini salsa when we have parties – and I happily oblige them.

If you’ve yet to try it, you have to do so. Put it on your list of things you need to can this year. Trust me, it’s worth it.

2. Cook Up Some Zucchini Pickles & Relish

Not a salsa fan? Okay – weirdo – those things happen. Instead, try turning your zucchini in some pickles or relish. Both of those are huge hits.

I made zucchini bread & butter pickles, and those were a simple canning recipe that also tastes great on hamburgers or just by themselves.

I also made a huge batch of zucchini relish, the perfect topping for hamburgers or hot dogs in the summer.

I haven’t made these yet, but I found a great recipe for Sweet & Sour Zucchini Pickles. These sound delicious, and since I have several zucchini ready to be used up, it’s on my to-do list.

I do recommend that you use pickle crisp when making pickles from zucchini. In my experience, they won’t be crispy and crunchy otherwise. The texture of zucchini isn’t, in general, crunchy. It’s worth the addition!

3. Freeze It For Later

One of the easiest ways to preserve zucchini is by stocking up your freezer. That makes it easy to grab and use when you feel like baking zucchini muffins or some of your favorite dinner meals.

There is more than one way to freeze zucchini. Here are a few ideas to try.

• Slices or Pieces: Many dinners use slices or cubes, so you can freeze them like this until you’re ready to use them. Zucchini slices or cubes can be used in casseroles, soups, stir-fry, or sauteed dishes.
• Shredded: My favorite way to freezer zucchini is by shredding it. That’s how I make homemade zucchini muffins and bread – one of my kids’ favorite snacks. Shredded zucchini can also be used in quiche and frittatas.
• Zoodles: These are zucchini noodles – the basis of my zucchini shrimp pasta. You’ll need a spiralizer to make these, but if you’re looking for a low-carb pasta alternative, zoodles are all the rage.
• Puree: This sounds strange, but if you’re like me, adding veggies to your child’s food can be tricky. Add some zucchini puree to soups or pasta sauce – sometimes, we have to be a bit tricky!
• Halves: I personally don’t find that zucchini halves freeze as well, but some people have success. The goal is to be able to use them a zucchini boat for recipes, but I find that they’re too mushy once thawed. I suggest you give them a try and see your results!

4. Dehydrate into Chips

One of the great benefits to dehydration is that food takes up very little space, and it stores for quite awhile. You can find pounds of fresh zucchini into glass jars that you can keep in your pantry.

Adding a dehydrator to your kitchen is a worthy tool.

So, how can you use dehydrated zucchini? Try adding them to your favorite soup or pasta dishes; dehydrated veggies plump back up when exposed to liquid. By the time your dish is done cooking, the dehydrated zucchini will be re-hydrated and delicious.

Looking for a sweet dehydrated treat? Try this recipe for strawberry zucchini fruit leather. The recipe is to die for – so yummy!

5. Ferment Zucchini Sticks

Fermentation feels intimidating to many home preservers, but I promise – it’s actually one of the easiest food preservation methods that you can learn. I like fermentation because it doesn’t involve crazy steps to prepare the food. They go in raw, so no cooking that’s going to heat up the kitchen.

If you want to learn more about fermenting at home, check out my simple guide on fermenting.

These lacto-fermented zucchini sticks are delicious and have the added bonus of being great for your digestive health.

6. Shredded Zucchini Kraut

Instead of typical cabbage sauerkraut, why not make some kraut out of zucchini? Making sauerkraut is another form of fermentation, so make sure you have a basic understanding of fermenting before making this recipe.

All you need is a few large zucchinis; save your oversized ones for this – the ones that you missed while harvesting – and some sea salt! That’s it! Zucchini kraut is a healthy alternative with a twist on a classic.

Final Thoughts

Don’t let those extra zucchinis go to waste! Try one or a few of these different way to preserve zucchini at home instead of forcing your family to eat dozens of zucchini dinner recipes.

What is your favorite way to preserve zucchini?