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Mexican Zucchini and Beef Skillet

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This low carb Mexican zucchini and ground beef recipe is a simple dish made with low cost ingredients. It’s an easy low carb high fat dinner recipe perfect for summer.

Easy Ground Beef Zucchini Tomato Skillet Dish Cover

We had a really good zucchini crop this year. The last few years, our plants ended up getting powdery mildew so they didn’t produce but one or two fruit.

However, I think some of the issue was due to us overwatering the plants in the evening. This year, there was a lot of rainy days so we didn’t bothering adding any additional water and the plants did amazing.

Chopped zucchini pairs well with ground beef. I came up with this Mexican Zucchini and beef skillet dish recipe one night for an easy dinner.

I’ve made a similar dish in the past using leftover salsa. This time, I just added a whole can of diced tomatoes with green chilis.

Chopped zucchini

I added a few Mexican spices to give it a little more flavor to make up for the salsa seasonings. If you can’t find canned tomatoes with chilis, a can of regular diced tomatoes will do.

You can even add a few diced peppers if you have some. I typically just taste as I go and look around to see what ingredients I have on hand that would be great additions. My cooking is super simple as I don’t have a lot of time to fuss.

I like to slice up fresh zucchini into bite size pieces. My favorite cut is to cut each slice into quarters. You can cut them into smaller diced pieces, if you prefer.

Brown ground beef

It’s been a long time since I’ve bought actual ground beef. When I call for ground beef in a recipe, that means ground hamburger venison for me. We always have a freezer full of ground venison which seems like an endless supply.

Adding Mexican zucchini to beef in skillet

Zucchini tastes best when it’s cooked al dente. If you cook it too long it gets mushy which isn’t good. Cooking the zucchini for five to ten minutes in the covered skillet should warm it up and still keep it firm.

Ground Beef Zucchini Tomato Dish Skillet

This low carb Mexican zucchini and ground beef skillet dish is a simple recipe that uses inexpensive ingredients. It goes well with cauliflower rice. What’s your favorite way to eat zucchini?

Looking for more recipes that won’t take a lot of time? Check out this collection of easy low carb recipes at Community Table that I put together.

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Low Carb Mexican Zucchini Beef Skillet Recipe

Low Carb Mexican Zucchini Beef Skillet Recipe

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Ground Beef Zucchini Tomato Dish Skillet
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Mexican Zucchini and Beef

This low carb Mexican zucchini and ground beef recipe is a simple dish made with low cost ingredients. It's an easy LCHF dinner recipe perfect for summer.
Course Main Course
Cuisine Mexican
Keyword ground beef
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings 6 servings
Calories 272 kcal
Author Lisa | Low Carb Yum

Ingredients

  • 2 medium zucchini sliced and quartered
  • 1 1/2 pounds ground beef
  • 2 cloves garlic minced
  • 10 ounces Mexican style diced tomatoes with green chilis (salsa or diced tomatoes could be used), canned
  • 1 tablespoon chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  1. Brown ground beef with minced garlic, salt, and pepper.
  2. Cook over medium heat until meat is browned.
  3. Add tomatoes and remaining spices. Cover and simmer on low heat for another 10 minutes.
  4. Add the zucchini. Cover and cook for about 10 more minutes until zucchini is cooked, but still firm.

Recipe Notes

Nutrition per serving: 4.1g net carb

Nutrition Facts
Mexican Zucchini and Beef
Amount Per Serving
Calories 272 Calories from Fat 158
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 17.5g 27%
Total Carbohydrates 5.6g 2%
Dietary Fiber 1.5g 6%
Protein 22.1g 44%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Mexican Zucchini Beef Skillet

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This low carb Mexican zucchini and ground beef recipe is a simple dish made with low cost ingredients. It's an easy LCHF dinner recipe perfect for summer. | LowCarbYum.com
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Comments

  1. I browned the beef and combined all of the ingredients in my slow cooker. It took about 4 hours on low to cook. What a great recipe. I served this with mashed potatoes because we love them and aren’t on a low carb diet. Thank-you!

    Reply

  2. are we supposed to dump out the liquid from the meat or the canned tomatoes at any time because mine came out super liquidy?

    Reply

  4. So delicious! I just want to thank you for posting this recipe as it is so hard to find a dish that everyone in my family will eat. This accomplished it though! Made exactly as specified – although I dropped and broke my scale so I had to approximate the amount of ground beef – so flavorful and very versatile. Thanks!

    Reply

  5. So good! My system can’t handle chilis so I made it with chipotle seasoning and extra cumin and topped it with shredded cheddar. Yum!

    Reply

  6. Sounds great !! I will add cilantro. (is 1 bunch too much?) Could (Ortega) taco spice be used?
    Do you have a recipe for making your own taco spice?

    Reply

  7. This was sooo good and so easy!! My neighbors gave us loads of zucchini from their garden. I added black beans and we topped with some guacamole. A great recipe on it’s own or to add your own favorites to. Thank you!

    Reply

  8. My 17yr old daughter and I just started trying to lose weight about two weeks ago. We are trying to eat healthier. She found this to try. We made it together about an hour ago. OMG so delicious! One thing we did that made us like it more, was use lettuce leaves like a taco shell. Warmness of the meat and the cool crunchiness of the lettuce was a great combo. Thanks for sharing the recipe.

    Reply

  9. I made this last evening. It was super easy and delicious. Can’t wait to have the leftovers as the seasonings will be even better.

    Reply

      • Tried this quick and easy recipe last night. The only thing I changed was that I chopped 1/2 medium onion instead of onion powder. I cooked the onion until translucent (5 minutes), then added the ground beef.
        It was REALLY good, and next time, (soon, I hope) I want to use Pallie’s idea from 2 days ago, to wrap it in lettuce.
        Thanks to you and Pallie!

        Reply

  10. I have made this several times, my husband and I love it. Thanks for a great recipe. Easy to throw together on a busy weeknight.

    Reply

  11. Thank you so much for this recipe. I love this!!! It’s super easy after a busy day at work. I added canned corn, a small onion, a sprinkle Monterrey cheese when served, and some lemon to balance out the spices. Before I served it, I also put it over a little bit of rice since it “needed a carb” as my boyfriend said. It got him to eat his veggies! We will definitely be making this yummy recipe again soon!!

    Reply

  14. I have been making this weekly for the past few months. Depending on what I have the spices and add-ins change but I stick to the ground beef to zucchini ratio, always add the chili powder, garlic and onion (not a huge fan of cumin) and I follow the cooking instructions. I’ve never used the canned mexican tomatoes with chili, I add a can of chopped tomatoes with or without the juice depending on my mood. I’ve added freshly made salsa, chipotle in adobo sauce, cilantro, fresh onion, leftover green beans, etc etc. If I have avocado, I’ll add that to my bowl right before eating or sometimes I’ll top it off with a sunny side egg, or both.

    I’m actually eating this right now. This batch I did ground beef, zucchini, fresh garlic, dried onion flakes, canned tomatoes sans juice and Frontier Co-op’s chipotle powder (the best chili powder for mexican dishes!!) and it is pretty damn good, might just use this combo from now on since it’s so easy. This dish is a lifesaver!! Thank you for sharing!! 🙂

    Reply

  15. I use fire roasted canned tomatoes, I add fresh spinach and cilantro. Then I top it with sour cream. It’s so easy, yummy and healthy, I make it regularly!

    Reply

  16. I’m going to try this with zoodles, fresh tomatoes, green chilies and low sodium v8 to reduce the sodium from canned tomatoes.

    Reply

  17. I was wondering its says 272 kcal which is 272000 calories so then how big of a serving would that be if I needed to stay under my intake of 2478 calories.

    Reply

  18. I made the recipe with ground beef and used the habenaro and jalapeños tomatoes. We like spicy it was delicious. Loved it will definitely make it again.

    Reply

  19. I make this over and over for my meal prep but replace with ground turkey, I add onions, jalapeño, fresh tomatoes instead of can. it’s delicious!

    Reply

  24. I tried it without the diced tomatoes with chilies and the red pepper flakes. I added a red bell pepper diced and added it to the mix with the zucchini. It was excellent. Many thanks

    Reply

  25. Served over rice, substituted a can of green beans for 1 of the zucchini and added cheese on top. Served with corn, although I think that could be added in the recipe too! This was delicious!

    Reply

  26. I made this recipe with rote tomatoes and green chilies. Way too spicy!! The next time, I used Del Monte Fire Roasted tomatoes. Much better. I love the ease and speed of this meal. Thank you for a great meal idea. I’m diabetic and always looking for ways to incorporate more veggies. Next time I will add fresh spinach and cilantro!

    Reply

  27. I only had regular diced tomatoes, reduced the red pepper flakes and added cilantro. I liked it! My kids, not so much 😉

    Reply

  28. Making this right now! I only had stewed tomatoes, though, and I’ve added in some Velveeta and Jack cheese. Waiting for those to melt, and it’ll be done. Putting it on top of lettuce and topping with sour cream and salsa, more like a taco salad. BTW, today is National Taco Day!

    Reply

  29. I making this tonight, and I’m sure it’s going to be excellent, but I want to pass along that the ads on this page are seriously ridiculous. Doing this on my mobile device, it’s very difficult to navigate through the ads, and there are so very many of them. Most of them are a full-screen, and it takes several times trying to swipe to get the ad on the screen to move . I know you have to make money, but I just wanted to give you some feedback .

    Reply

  30. I made this for dinner tonight. Yum Yum. I did double the red pepper flakes just because I like it. I even sprinkle some on my eggs when I fry them. Lol. My son who normally is not a fan of zucchini ate 3 helpings. My 4 yr. old granddaughter was helping me and she just had to try a bite of raw zucchini as I was cutting it. She loved it. This was a hit for me! Added bonus of clearing my sinuses lol.

    Reply

  31. I had a half of an enormous home grown (someone else’s garden) zucchini and didnt’ want it to go to waste–i had some ground beef (which i only buy once a month) i just bought yesterday for something else, but decided to try this instead–a very easy and tasty meal–I loved it! Thanks, Lisa, I’ve bookmarked your website. I wasn’t looking for low carb, but I’ve discovered recently I have reactive hypoglycemia and so have to cut down on carbs–so I’m glad I found your website. Thanks, Lisa!
    p.s. i added cumin

    Reply

    • Thanks for the note on cumin. A little extra spice always enhances the taste. I made this one yesterday too with one huge zucchini from our garden. Cutting carbs should definitely help with your condition. I’m glad you stopped by!

      Reply

  32. I made this tonight for a friend and she even had seconds. She thought it was so good. I did add salsa and cheese. Put in oven to melt cheese. It was great. Will make again.

    Reply

  33. Added a small diced onion when I browned the meat and omitted the onion powder. Added cauliflower florets since I had some on hand that were getting ready to go bad. I thought the cauliflower added a nice texture. Had a serving with cheese and one without. In a rare change of pace, I didn’t feel like the cheese added anything. A good quick meal full of flavor

    Reply

  34. I added diced onion,bell pepper, green onion and Roma tomatoes. Drained the grease and water off of the meat and added shredded cheddar and baked in 350 for 20. Very good!

    Reply

  36. Hi Lisa I came across of your Mexican Zucchini Beef Skillet Recipe and I had to make it. I didn’t change anything on your recipe. I have to say it’s really good. Of course my hubby has to put shredded cheese on top of the skillet. Men need their cheese. Lol. Thank you again for sharing your recipe. I will be making this again.

    Reply

  38. I made this last night. I cut up two boneless skinless chicken breasts to use in place of the ground beef. I also left out the red pepper flakes and sprinkled just a tine bit of shredded cheese on my serving before eating. It was SOOOOO yummy! Thank you!

    Reply

  39. Love this recipe. Make it every other week, it’s quick and easy. I call it Calabasitas like what my mom use to make but with corn. I’m making this tomorrow. Thank you

    Reply

  41. Ive made it and it tastes great even though i didnt have the diced tomatoes with green chiles i just used some cherry tomatoes but i still love the recipe i just have one question how much is the serving size?

    Reply

  43. I made this but subbed out a 15 ounce can of diced petite tomatoes, juice included, and a 7 ounce can of diced green chilies, it was delightful. We also did the exact same thing but instead of ground beef we used diced chicken breast and my teenager love that version the best.

    Reply

  46. Oh and adding chopped avocado gives more fat (healthier than sour cream) and the creamy texture and mild flavor are so delightful.

    Reply

  48. Made the mexican zucchini and beef for dinner last night and I added srirracha sauce to it. My family loved it and I will be making this again.
    Thanks for the recipe.

    Reply

  50. Made this for dinner tonight using can tomatoes and it was a hit! Will be adding this to my Low Carb recipe file 🙂 Ty so much for sharing !

    Reply

  51. My family really likes this recipe, including my picky 9 & 12 year olds. I make it with a can of fire roasted tomatoes in place of the tomatoes with green chilies or salsa and I leave out the red pepper flakes so the kids will eat it. It’s a great quick meal. Thanks for the recipe.

    Reply

  52. Loved the mexican zucchini and beef. I put my own twist on it by adding 2 tblsp of butter and 2 tblsp of sour cream to add more fat to it for my low carb high fat diet.

    Reply

  54. I just started a low-carb diet and found your recipe on Pinterest. I made a single serving for myself, so I didn’t really measure the ingredients, but it still turned out delicious! Will definitely be making this again! Love some of the comments about adding cheese and sour cream. I’ll try that next time!

    Reply

  55. Served it over rice with cheese and sour cream on top. Cut the spice nicely for my spice-phobic husband. 🙂

    Reply

  56. Soo good. We addd some cheese and some sour cream and I added some fresh cilantro I have popping up!

    Reply

  59. Tasty & simple. The second time I made it, I went Italian. Change out the spices and use plain tomato sauce. Voila! Oh, wait, that’s a French word….

    Reply

  60. I am so glad I found your blog! This recipe was fantastic. I had a ton of zucchini and hamburger to use up so I simply did a layered dish after I cooked the ingredients topped with cheese and pop it in the oven for a bit . I can’t wait to share this with my low-carb friends on Facebook . Thanks!

    Reply

  61. Holy cow was this spicy! My dear hubby was unable to eat it! Recommend the”mild” Rotel tomatoes and perhaps cutting back on the red pepper flakes? However, the flavor was great. It would be good with corn added, sour cream or cottage cheese, tortilla chips on the side. Loved it — just be prepared for the heat!

    Reply

  62. Hi Lisa! I meal prepped this today to have for lunches this week! It smelled wonderful while cooking and I’m so excited to eat this for lunch this week. Thanks for sharing such a simple yet tasty recipe! I actually shared your recipe on my blog as well and would love for you to check it out some time. Thanks again!

    Reply

  63. Our family loved this. I diced up a medium onion and used that in place of the onion powder. I also used 2 lbs of ground beef and 3 medium zucchini. My daughter complained about the spiciness of it, so we spooned some cottage cheese over the top of our serving, and it was OMG great! Thank you so much for sharing!

    Reply

  64. I love this recipe. So convenient and delicious. I’ve made this recipe twice, the second time I substituted lean ground turkey and added corn. Thank you for sharing!

    Reply

  65. This is a VERY old recipe…. Actually a recipe from New Mexico but its called calabacitas. My Parents always made this and I made it for my family growing up. Always served with fresh homemade tortillas. Although I never added tomatoes, and corn was used instead.

    Reply

  71. I made this last night. It was beyond delicious! I also added a little brown rice. Oh and my husband even liked it and he’s the one who usually doesn’t want to try my healthy dishes! Yummy, I will defiantly be making this dish again!

    Reply

  72. Made this last night it was a huge hit! We used mexican chili poweder and added a little pablano pepper for some heat. I ate it with brown rice and hubby had soft tacos.

    Reply

  75. This looks and sounds delicious! I’m loving zucchini right now and love that you paired it up with beef. My family would dig this 🙂

    Reply

  76. You say to add jarred salsa to this recipe but is not mentioned in the ingredients…do you mean just the other spices mentioned?

    Reply

    • Fixed. I’ve used both Rotel and jarred salsa in this recipe. In the one pictured, I used Rotel, but any kind of diced tomatoes can be used. Thanks for catching that. Fixed!

      Reply

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Lisa at Low Carb Yum
Hi! I’m Lisa, a retired engineer, and mother of three. I’ve been low carbing since 2001 and love to try new recipes. This blog started in 2010 as a way to save and share my recipes with others. Read more….
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