Zucchini and Fresh Corn Succotash
on Aug 27, 2012, Updated May 17, 2024
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Zucchini and fresh corn succotash is a light and bright side dish that comes together easily and quickly with onion, zucchini, corn, and lima beans (plus a little hot sauce, if you like it)!
I love, love, love using zucchini in all kinds of savory and sweet dishes—I’m looking at you, taco zucchini boats and double chocolate zucchini bread! And let’s not overlook succotash…I love the stuff. Traditional Southern succotash has fresh corn and lima beans, but let’s include zucchini and take it over the top.
The sweetness of the corn pairs perfectly with mild zucchini and savory onions, and I also love to add a dash of hot sauce to mine. The beans, corn, and vegetables are so filling that I can make a meal of this alone!
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- I adore this zucchini and fresh corn succotash recipe because it’s fresh, flavorful, and doesn’t require much time or ingredients!
- This is a very filling meatless meal or use it as a summer side dish. It’s great served with chicken legs, hot biscuits, and a side of watermelon.
- A great way to use up summer garden produce!
Recipe Ingredients
- Butter – or use olive oil or another light oil
- Onion
- Zucchini
- Corn – fresh corn cut off the cob is fabulous, but you can also use frozen corn
- Beans – either lima beans or black-eyed peas, frozen, canned, or cooked from dried if you have time
- Seasonings – salt and pepper and hot sauce if you like spicier flavors
See the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to Make Zucchini and Fresh Corn Succotash
- Cook the onion until softened.
- Then add the zucchini and cook until crisp-tender.
- Add the corn and beans and cook just a couple more minutes.
- Remove from heat, season, and serve!
Recipe FAQs
I wouldn’t recommend freezing this succotash. The beans and zucchini are likely to get mushy between freezing, thawing, and reheating them. If you do have leftovers, store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Succotash is a Native American word meaning “broken corn kernels” and often contains corn, lima beans, and some type of squash.
Zucchini and fresh corn succotash comes together in a flash. There’s minimal chopping and prep, and the total recipe time is 25 minutes or less! It’s an easy side that you’re going to love to make.
Expert Tips
- Zucchini grows like weeds if you ever plant some in your garden, so you must learn to get creative with the green veggie. Try these amazing zucchini recipes next time you have a big stash: Zucchini Side Dish, Healthy Whole Grain Zucchini Muffins, and Chocolate Zucchini Cake (it’s SO good!).
- Just be sure not to overcook the onion and zucchini—there’s nothing worse than mushy veggies. The zucchini should have a light crunch when you bite into it, and it adds great texture and color to the dish. It shouldn’t cook for more than 5 or 6 minutes to prevent it from getting too soft!
- Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
More Delicious Side Dish Recipes to Consider
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Zucchini and Fresh Corn Succotash
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons butter or olive oil
- 1 medium onion, diced, about 1 cup
- 1 medium zucchini, about 2.5 inches in diameter
- 4 to 5 ears fresh corn on the cob, cooked
- 2 cups lima beans or black-eyed peas, (or one can), drained and rinsed
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Hot sauce, optional
Instructions
- In a large skillet, heat the butter over medium to medium-high heat until melted.
- Add the onion, and saute until the onion starts to get clear on the edges, about 5 minutes. While the onion is cooking, cut the ends off of the zucchini, and then cut it in to fourths long-ways. Slice each spear into 1/4- to 1/2-inch slices.
- When the onion is starting to go clear on the edges, add the chopped zucchini.
- While the zucchini is cooking, cut the cooked corn from the cob. Use your knife to scrape the cob once the corn has been cut to get off any remaining kernel pieces and the extra juice (called corn milk).
- After the zucchini has cooked for about 5 minutes and is still tender crisp, add the cut corn and lima beans.
- Heat through, about 2 minutes.
- Remove from the heat, and add plenty of salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve right away. Add a dash of Tabasco to individual servings to taste.
Notes
- If using 1 medium or 2 small zucchinis, there is no need to peel or remove seeds. If you are trying to use up a large zucchini, I would peel off the outside and remove the big seeds after quartering it.
- Feel free to use a good quality olive oil instead of some or all of the butter.
- There is a lot of onion in this dish. If you aren’t an onion lover, feel free to reduce the amount. For flavor, though, I wouldn’t go less than 1/3 cup of chopped onion.
- Don’t love lima beans or black-eyed peas? You can use frozen peas in their place.
I just want to say thank you so much for this recipe. I struggle so much to find vegetable recipes my husband will eat. This was a hit he even had seconds. I love so many of your recipes and I am so excited to make more of them
I make a similar succotash from “Eating Well” Three Sisters. It is green beans, fresh corn off the cob and zucchini. Very good. All of these recipes sound good!
Your Printable link is to Zucchini as a side. It looks good too! however I did want your Zucchini and Fresh Corn Succotash. Thanks! Donna
Doh! If you highlight the text and copy and paste it into a word processor that would work, but I’ll put it on my list to fix. THANK YOU for taking the time to let me know! M.