Beef and zucchini make a quick evening meal or a great meal prep solution. Full of flavor and fresh ingredients, it is ready in about 30 minutes.
This one-pan skillet meal is a quick dinner. It is full of protein, plus it’s gluten-free and paleo, and Whole30 friendly. It’s easy to turn this into four prepared lunches as well with meal prep instructions. I love meal prepping since it makes my weekday lunches so much easier. I’ve also been loving making this Meal Prep Recipe for Chicken and Vegetables, Low Carb Chicken Meal Prep Bowls, and Garlic Shrimp and Veggies Meal Prep Bowls. You can meal prep almost anything like this Whole30 Pot Roast Recipe by portioning it out into containers for the week!
This meal is also versatile. You can change up the seasoning for a different flavor. Add some cayenne for a kick or lemon pepper for a bright taste.
Ingredients you’ll need
- Olive oil – or use any neutral oil of your choice. Avocado oil is a great alternative.
- Baby potatoes – you can also use sweet potatoes.
- Salt and black pepper – to taste
- Beef stew meat – cut into bite-sized pieces. I recommend using high-quality beef that does not contain any antibiotics.
- Seasoning: I use onion powder and Italian seasoning to season the beef and zucchini.
- Butter – use unsalted butter so it’s not overly salty.
- Garlic cloves – minced
- Zucchini – try not to get zucchinis that are too large, as they tend to be watery.
- Fresh thyme – you can also swap fresh thyme for any herb of your choice.
What kind of potatoes are best for roasting?
Perfect oven-roasted potatoes have a crispy crust and a fluffy interior. Russet potatoes get a very crispy crust and are super fluffy and soft inside. Yukon gold potatoes have a lower starch content, so they aren’t quite as crisp. However, with their higher sugar content, they have more flavor.
Baby potatoes have been harvested before growing to their full size. This leaves them with a very thin skin and a sweet flavor. That makes them another great choice for roasting.
To achieve great-tasting roasted potatoes, follow these tips:
- Cut all the pieces to the same size.
- Line your baking sheet with parchment paper so the potatoes don’t stick
- Spread them out as much as possible. Anywhere the potatoes are touching will not get crispy.
- Use high heat. I cook mine at 400°F. You actually want the outside to get done faster than the inside.
What kind of meat do you use for beef and zucchini?
When you purchase a package labeled beef stew meat at the store, it could be nearly any cut of beef the butcher decided to include. Just ask if you want to know exactly what kind of cut it is.
Both the chuck and round cuts make great stew meat and will work for this recipe. These cuts are tough, but once you cut them into small pieces, they will cook nicely and become tender. These cuts have lots of connective tissue that breaks down as it cooks, leaving the meat tender and flavorful.
Don’t have any of those on hand? Try my Ground Beef Butternut Squash Meal Prep Bowls.
How to meal prep beef and zucchini
This is a great recipe to keep in mind for meal prep. It’s a simple meal, yet packed with protein, starches, and vegetables. It’s all cooked in one pan and can be stored together.
This recipe makes four servings. Once it is cooked and cooled, divide the meal into four portions and store. It will last in the refrigerator for four days. Your lunches will be ready to go when you are. Having these beef and zucchini bowls ready to go has taken so much stress off my plate. A few of my other favourites are my Ground Turkey Cauliflower Rice Veggie Bowls and Spicy Salmon Vegetable Meal-Prep Bowls.
The meal-prep container that I recommend:
In my opinion, glass containers are the best to store food because they don’t release toxic substances into your food like plastic does when used in a microwave. You are safe with glass containers. But, when you choose glass containers, please consider a few things like:
- Choose containers with leakproof lids to avoid spills.
- Buy a good-quality glass container that won’t break easily.
- Make sure it’s safe to use in the microwave and has freezer-safe tempered glass.
- And finally, buy different-sized containers because it helps to stack them easily and take up less space in the fridge.
Amazon.com has a huge variety of glass containers of different sizes, with or without compartments. Check them out here.
Recipe tips
- If your beef was frozen beforehand, make sure it is fully thawed before using so it doesn’t cook unevenly.
- Zucchini doesn’t take long to cook, so try not to cut them too small or they’ll overcook.
- Try to cut the beef into similar-sized pieces so they cook evenly.
- Want to add more vegetables? Throw in a handful of spinach or broccoli! Mushrooms are also a great addition to this meal prep as well, like my Chicken and Mushroom Recipe.
- Want to make this spicy? Try adding some cayenne pepper or hot paprika instead.
More meal-prep ideas for you:
- Tuna Salad Meal Prep Bowls
- Meal Prep Recipe for Chicken and Vegetables
- Garlic Shrimp and Veggies Meal Prep Bowls
- Shrimp Vegetable Skillet (Meal Prep)
- Salmon Patties with Coleslaw Meal-Prep Bowls
- Easy Roasted Veggies Meal-Prep Bowls
- Low-Carb Shrimp Fajita Meal-Prep Bowls
- Spicy Chicken Meal-Prep Bowls
Quick Beef and Zucchini Skillet (Meal-Prep)
Video
Ingredients
For the potatoes
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 cups baby potatoes diced
- salt and black pepper
For the beef and zucchini
- 1 lb beef stew meat cut into bite-sized pieces
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 medium zucchini diced
- Fresh thyme
Instructions
For the potatoes
- Preheat oven to 400 F degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside. In a large bowl, add potatoes, olive oil, salt and black pepper. Mix everything very well to combine.
- Place the potatoes in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes or until browned and tender. Turn potatoes after 20 minutes.
- While potatoes are in the oven, cook the beef and zucchini by placing steak bites, onion powder, Italian seasoning, salt and black pepper in a bowl. Mix everything together well.
- Add olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once the pan is hot, place the steak bites in the skillet in a single layer. Cook for 3-4 minutes and don’t forget to stir. Add butter and garlic to the skillet. Cook for about 1 minutes or until the butter is totally melted and the garlic is cooked.
- Add zucchini and cook for more 3 minutes or until zucchini is tender.
- Remove potatoes from the oven and add to the beef and zucchini skillet. Mix everything well and garnish with fresh thyme.
Meal-prepping
- Place an even amount of beef, zucchini and potatoes into 4 different medium glass containers. Cover with the lid and place in the fridge for up to 4 days. Heat in the microwave for about 1.5 or 2 minutes. Enjoy!
Notes
- Click HERE to watch the web story.
- You can use sweet potatoes instead of regular potatoes.
- Make sure the beef is fully thawed and pay dry so you get a nice sear on it.
- Cut the beef as uniformly as possible so the beef cooks evenly.
- To store: Store the beef and zucchini in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
- To reheat: Reheat the meal prep in the microwave until hot.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Did You Make This?
Follow @primaverakitchen on Instagram, snap a photo, and tag it #primaverakitchen. We'd love to see your recreation.
I made this and it was so good! I substituted chicken breast in place of the beef! Thanks for the recipe!
You’re very welcome!
Delicious except meat was tough.
The flavor was great but, the meat was soooo chewy, you really can’t cook beef stew meat quickly I guess?? :/
“Bite-sized” is suggestive; your bite might be bigger or smaller than mine. For best results, meat should be no bigger than about 1/2″ pieces.
I love the simplicity of the recipe. I added baby Bella mushrooms to have more veggies in the mix, and like you suggested, it was great. Overall, it is an easy and tasty recipe! Thank you so much for sharing!
That sounds delicious! Adding baby Bella mushrooms is a fantastic idea for that extra veggie boost. So glad to hear you found the recipe easy and tasty—thanks for giving it a try and sharing your experience!
Love this recipe my boyfriend cooked and it took only 35min
🙂
Glad to hear that!
These recipes are all great but the website and amount of scrolling is ridiculous, you can get to point sooner.
You can use the “jump to the recipe” bottom on the top of the post.
This was very tasty but the beef was tough. Next time I will either use tender steak or cook beef slow and low.
This recipe is one of my regular favorites. I use flank steak and it always turns out so good!
Amazing! So happy to hear that 😉
I have made this dish many times. it’s easy and very good.
So happy you liked it 😉