Keto Bacon and Blue Cheese Zoodles
Published October 6, 2019 • Updated March 3, 2026
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I’ve made a lot of zoodle recipes over the years, and this one stays in regular rotation for a reason. The combination of crispy bacon and tangy blue cheese creates a creamy sauce without adding any cream at all. The residual bacon fat in the skillet does the heavy lifting, and when you toss in the cheese right at the end with the heat off, it melts into this rich, coating sauce that clings to every noodle.
I tested this dozens of times before I figured out the sweet spot. The key is cooking the zoodles for exactly 2 minutes, no more. Any longer and they release too much water, which thins out the sauce and turns everything soupy. Two minutes keeps them firm with just enough give, and the residual heat finishes them perfectly. If you’re using store-bought spiralized zucchini, pat them dry with paper towels first. I always do this step even when I spiralize my own, just to pull out any surface moisture.
The bacon needs to be genuinely crispy here, not just cooked through. I’m talking shatter-when-you-break-it crispy. That extra crunch is what makes each bite interesting against the soft zoodles and creamy cheese. I leave one tablespoon of bacon grease in the skillet and add olive oil on top of it. That layered fat is what carries the garlic flavor through the whole dish.
This is one of those keto dinners I come back to on busy weeknights because it’s legitimately ready in under 10 minutes from start to plate. I’ve timed it. The bacon takes about 5 minutes, and everything else happens fast once the skillet is hot. If you’re looking for more low carb skillet meals, my chicken noodle skillet uses the same fast approach with different flavors.
One thing I want to mention: turn off the heat before you add the cheese. If the skillet is still on, it melts too fast and turns grainy instead of creamy. Off-heat, it softens slowly and creates that smooth, tangy coating I’m after. I use a standard crumbled variety from the deli section, nothing fancy.
For meal prep, I keep the components separate. Cook the bacon ahead (I often make extra when I’m doing bacon wrapped chicken tenders), spiralize the zucchini, and store them in the fridge. When it’s time to eat, the actual assembly takes about 4 minutes. I don’t recommend assembling the full dish ahead of time because the zoodles release water as they sit.
If you like bold, savory keto pasta dishes, you might also love my garlic and olive alfredo or avocado pesto pasta. Both hit that same satisfying, creamy territory without the carbs. And if you want something completely different for dinner, my keto ramen and keto hamburger helper are two more of my go-to weeknight recipes.
Explore hundreds of keto recipe videos with step-by-step instructions, tips, and tricks to make keto easy.
Ingredients
6 bacon slices -
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
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2 garlic cloves, minced
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1 tomato, diced
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4 cups zucchini noodles
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1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
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2 basil leaves, sliced
Step by Step Instructions
Step by Step Instructions
Cook bacon
In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium high heat until crisp. Set aside. Cut into crumbles once cooled.
Sauté garlic
Remove all but one tablespoon of bacon grease from the skillet. Over medium heat, add olive oil and garlic cloves. Sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Add tomatoes
Add diced tomatoes and cook until softened, about 3 minutes.
Cook noodles
Add zoodles to the skillet and cook for 2 minutes until the sauce has incorporated into the zoodles and they’re heated through but still firm to the touch.
Finish the dish
Turn off the heat, add blue cheese crumbles and basil. Season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.
Nutrition disclaimer
The nutrition information provided is an estimate and is for informational purposes only. I am a Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.); however, this content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult your physician or other qualified health provider before making any lifestyle changes or beginning a new nutrition program.
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Get My Macros + Recipes →Frequently Asked Questions
Can I substitute the blue cheese with another cheese?
I've tried this with feta and goat cheese when cooking for friends who don't love the tangy stuff. Feta gives a similar bite but it's milder, and goat cheese melts creamier. I'd say feta is the closest match to what I was going for, but goat cheese makes the whole thing feel more indulgent.
What's the best way to keep zoodles from getting watery?
I pat my zucchini noodles dry with paper towels before they go anywhere near the skillet. That's the single biggest thing you can do. Then I cook them for exactly 2 minutes, toss once, and serve immediately. The longer zoodles sit in a warm pan, the more water they release. I've also found that thicker spirals hold up better than thin angel-hair style cuts.
How do I spiralize zucchini if I don't have pre-made zoodles?
I use a handheld spiralizer. It's about $12 and it lives in my utensil drawer. Just trim the ends off the zucchini, press it against the blade, and twist. I get about 2 cups of zoodles from one medium zucchini. If you don't want to buy a spiralizer, you can use a regular vegetable peeler to make flat ribbon noodles. They cook the same way, just look different.
Can I make this recipe ahead of time?
I prep the components separately but I don't assemble ahead. The bacon keeps in the fridge for 3-4 days (I usually cook a big batch on Sundays), and spiralized zucchini stays fresh for 2 days stored between paper towels. When I'm ready to eat, the actual cooking from prepped ingredients takes about 4 minutes. Fully assembled leftovers get watery within a few hours, so I always cook to order.
Can I turn this into a cold salad?
I've done this in the summer and it works. Toss raw zoodles with crumbled bacon, diced tomatoes, fresh basil, and blue cheese, then dress it with olive oil, red wine vinegar, and a pinch of salt. Skip the cooking entirely. The raw zucchini noodles stay crunchy and the flavors come together after about 10 minutes in the fridge. It's a completely different dish but just as good. If you want another protein-packed keto salad, my chef salad is one I come back to all summer.
What can I use instead of zucchini noodles?
My favorite low carb swap is spaghetti squash. I roast a whole squash on the weekend and use the strands all week. Hearts of palm noodles are another option I've been using lately. They come in a can, they're already cooked, and the texture is closer to actual pasta than any other substitute I've tried. For anyone not watching carbs, regular spaghetti works fine with this sauce.
How should I store leftovers of this dish?
I store leftover components separately when I can. If you've already mixed everything together, put it in an airtight container in the fridge and eat it within 2 days. Reheat in a dry skillet over medium-low heat for about 3 minutes. I don't use the microwave for this because it steams the zoodles and makes them mushy. The skillet method crisps up the bacon again too, which is a nice bonus.
I love quick and easy lunches I can throw together in a few minutes and this bacon and blue cheese zoodle recipe is one of them. It also makes an excellent main course for dinner or a great side dish.
Crispy bacon and creamy crumbled blue cheese are combined with Italian flavors of tomato, basil and olive oil to create a light and flavorful dish. This low carb pasta can be enjoyed any time of year, but it is especially delicious when the weather is warmer and tomatoes and basil are in season.
Zoodles, also known as zucchini noodles, are a popular noodle replacement on a keto diet. Zoodles can be purchased already spiralized in the produce section of the grocery store or in the freezer section with the frozen vegetables.
You can also spiralize the zucchini yourself using a spiralizer or cut the zucchini into thin julienne strips with a chef’s knife. Depending on the size of your whole zucchini, two zucchinis will usually yield 4 cups of zoodles. If you are in the market for a good spiralizer, the one by 
Made this twice, both times watery by the time I serve it. I cook them 2 minutes like you say. But now I'm wondering if I should be salting and squeezing first. Does that play nice with the bacon grease and blue cheese, or does it just create a salt problem you have to work around?
I'm still working out why it took me so long to make this, but it tastes like the wedge salads we had on birthdays at this steakhouse we always went to, blue cheese and bacon and cold tomatoes, except warm and the zucchini kind of soaks it all up in a way the iceberg never did. I've probably made it six times by now and I still get a little flash of that birthday table right when I scatter the basil in.
Sizzle of cold bacon drippings when the garlic hits the pan is what made this my standing weekday lunch. I batch a pound of bacon on prep day, save the drippings in a jar, and the rest of the week this is five minutes from cold. Flavor carries without changes. One storage thing: don't add the blue cheese to your container with the base. It goes grainy and oily after a day in the fridge, basil turns dark by day two. Both go in fresh right before serving and you get the same result on day four. Also, reheat the base in a dry pan at medium, 60 seconds max, or the zoodles release water and you lose the sauce.
Dry pan at 60 seconds is the ceiling. I've gone past it and the zoodles gave back every drop of water they had.
Didn't expect this to hit me, but blue cheese and bacon over zucchini noodles is exactly what my aunt made over pasta on July nights. Still smell the garlic in the skillet.
That garlic smell in the skillet is half the reason I keep making this one. Glad it brought something back.
already got the zucchini for this
Made this on a random weeknight and my son, who avoids blue cheese on literally everything, cleared his bowl and then I caught him eating the last of the zoodles straight from the pan. The bacon fat cooking down with the garlic and tomatoes must be doing something to mellow it because I'm still kind of amazed that worked.
The bacon fat rounds out the sharpness before the cheese ever hits the zoodles. Not surprised the pan got scraped clean.
Pasta with blue cheese sauce was the one thing I genuinely mourned going keto. This isn't pasta, but the crispy bacon and the way blue cheese melts into everything made me stop caring pretty fast. Four stars because I still miss linguine, but this earns its place.
Still missing linguine but earns its place is the most honest four stars I've gotten.
Third time making this and I finally switched to cherry tomatoes instead of diced (they hold up better in the skillet and give you these little bursts of juice through the zoodles). On a day this hot, 10 minutes to something this satisfying is the only thing standing between me and ordering pizza.
Yeah cherry tomatoes are better here. The skins keep them together in the heat and that little pop of juice through the zoodles is hard to give up once you've had it.
Brought this to a little spring dinner last weekend and I was second-guessing the blue cheese the whole drive over (I'm still getting comfortable with bolder flavors as a newer cook). Set it on the table and it went faster than dishes people had been making for years. Everyone kept saying the bacon and blue cheese together tasted like something that had been simmering for hours, not a 10-minute skillet. My friend Kate, who eats everything and isn't on any kind of diet, kept picking at the zoodles after her bowl was empty. The basil sounds like a small thing but it cut right through all the richness. Making a bigger batch next time.
Kate picking at the zoodles after her bowl was empty is better feedback than anything I could say. Non-keto people don't fake it. Double your batch next time, that's what I do whenever I know it's leaving the house.
Salt your zoodles and let them sit about 5 minutes before cooking, then squeeze the water out with a kitchen towel before they go into the skillet. First time I made this they released so much liquid during that 2-minute cook that everything steamed instead of sauteed and the blue cheese just kind of floated around rather than coating anything. Squeezed them out first the second time and the whole dish changed, the garlic and tomato flavors concentrated the way they should and the cheese actually clung to the noodles.nnOne more thing I figured out: pulling the pan fully off the heat before you add the blue cheese crumbles makes them go creamy instead of that slightly grainy texture you get when the pan is still hot. Also, the one tablespoon of bacon grease the recipe calls for is actually the right amount. I tried two tablespoons once thinking more fat would be better. Just felt heavy.nnI almost gave up after that first watery batch. Would've been a mistake, because this is a regular spring weeknight dinner for me now.
The off-heat thing for the blue cheese took me a while to figure out too. Hot pan and it goes grainy, no coming back from that.
Zucchini noodles can water-log the whole skillet if you're not careful, so I started salting mine and letting them sit for 5 minutes before adding them, then patting dry with paper towels. Made a noticeable difference on my second attempt as the sauce actually clung to the noodles instead of pooling at the bottom. I also left a little more bacon grease in the pan than the recipe calls for, which gave the garlic and tomatoes more to work with. Knocked off a star because my blue cheese was pretty salty and it overwhelmed everything, but that's on me for not tasting as I went.
The salting method works too - I usually just pat dry and skip to the pan, but pulling extra moisture before it even gets there is smart. For the blue cheese, try starting with 1/4 cup and taste before adding more. Some brands are way saltier than others and 1/2 cup is a lot if you got a salty one.
My wife has been skeptical about zoodles since the first time I made them (they came out watery and sad), so I wasn't expecting much when I tried this on a Tuesday after work. The whole thing was done in like 12 minutes and I kept tasting it thinking something was off, because it actually tasted like real food. When she tried it she stopped mid-bite and said 'wait, what's in this?' She was genuinely confused, trying to figure out what she was eating. She thought there was cream in the sauce. There isn't. It's the blue cheese melting into everything with the bacon grease. We've already made it twice more and she's the one asking for it now.
That's the blue cheese melting into the bacon fat. It does something to the sauce that reads as way creamier than it is. Glad she came around.
I've made probably every zoodle recipe on the internet at this point and most of them are just watery noodles with stuff thrown on top. This one is completely different. The bacon grease staying in the pan when you cook down the garlic and tomatoes, it actually builds into something saucy instead of just pooling at the bottom. And the blue cheese was the thing I was most skeptical about (kept thinking it would bulldoze everything) but it melts in just enough that you get that funky richness without it taking over the whole dish. I've been sending this to every friend who asks me for a "good keto dinner" because this is finally one I can actually stand behind. Nothing else in my rotation comes close.
Yeah the bacon grease cooking the garlic and tomatoes down is doing the actual work. Most zoodle recipes drain all that off. I keep every bit of it, that's the whole sauce.
Made this three times in the last two weeks. Added red pepper flakes on the second batch and freaking can't imagine it without them now. Would give 5 stars but the zoodles got soggy on me once and I still have no idea what I did different.
Red pepper flakes in mine too now. Can't go back.
For the soggy batch - were they patted dry before hitting the skillet? That's usually it. Skip that step and the whole thing turns watery fast.
I've been avoiding zoodles for months because I figured they'd just be sad, soggy noodles. Made this last night and the texture held up way better than I expected, especially with the blue cheese added off the heat at the end. Going on the weeknight list.
Yeah the texture only holds if you keep it moving fast. 2 minutes and out. Most recipes cook them way too long and that's when they turn.