About This Recipe

This salmon and zucchini gratin de ravioles is one of our absolute favorite dishes. It is simple to make and is always a crowd pleaser. It is a fresh, sophisticated, and a unique take on the usual baked pasta dish or casserole recipe.

I fell in love with this recipe the first time I tried it in France with my family. Now whenever we go back, we have it at least once. It is a home cooked meal that is hearty and comforting.

Back in the United States, we have served it at dinner parties and even brought it to potlucks. Everyone who has tried it has loved it and it is such a new and unique dish that many people have never heard of.

I think it is also a great recipe for sneaking in fish and vegetables for children.

We once served it to a friend who is known to be a great cook with a refined palate and he said, “I usually don’t go for seconds but this time I will!”.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

High in protein and omega-3s
A lighter twist on traditional gratins and casseroles
Easy to prep ahead and bake when ready
Delicious balance of creamy, comforting, and fresh flavors
Great way to get kids to eat fish and vegetables
Great Fish Friday dish for hosting guests

Ingredients

Cubed salmon pieces
Zucchini slices
1 packet of ravioles du dauphiné or 1 box of mini raviolis/ravioletti
Crème fraîche
Shredded gruyere cheese or other hard mild white cheese
Nutmeg, salt, and pepper

Ravioles du Dauphiné

Typically, we’d make this dish with ravioles du Dauphiné, a specialty from the Dauphiné region of southeastern France that’s similar to Italian ravioli, with a few key differences. Rather than individual pasta pockets, ravioles come in sheets of tiny connected ravioli.

Since it can be difficult to find in the U.S., I’ve swapped in boxed mini raviolis, which captures a similar texture and taste while keeping the recipe easy to make at home in the United States. Trader Joe’s used to sell dried mini ravioli years ago but no longer do. I’m hoping they will start again. However, we were able to find some on Amazon here.

A box of Pagani Ravioletti Formaggi cheese pasta with dried mini ravioli scattered on a clean white surface.

A hand holding a single piece of mini cheese ravioli over a small white bowl filled with uncooked micro ravioli pasta.

This is what the layer of mini ravioli will look like if you are going that route:

A layer of uncooked mini cheese ravioli scattered over sliced zucchini rounds in a white baking dish, showing the assembly process of a gratin. — Ravioli layer if using mini ravioli

Ravioles du Dauphiné on the other hand are thin perforated sheets made up of about a dozen small squares of ravioli so they are perfect for layering. They’re often made with mild and soft cheeses which adds to the creaminess of the dish. They come in a variety of creamy fillings such as goat cheese, mushroom, or herbs de provence. We like the emmental ones for its mild flavor.

The dough is thin and delicate so you don’t even have to cook them ahead of time if using ravioles du Dauphiné. You can easily find them in French grocery stores in the refrigerated aisle.

When we bring them back from France, we would freeze them and then thaw them overnight in the fridge whenever we were ready to use them.

Crème fraîche

Creme fraiche is a thick cultured cream from France and is a lot like sour cream except it is richer, creamier, and less sour.

They used to be a lot harder to find but in recent years we’ve easily found them at Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, and for the best price, Costco sometimes carries it in the cheese section.

Creme fraiche is a staple in French cuisine and is sold in many variations in France. The one our family often uses back in France comes in a bottle and is more liquid than what you’d find in the US. However, either works just as great.

With the creme fraiche, it is important that when layering, you put this on after the salmon layer. That way it keeps the salmon moist during the baking process. Creating dallops of it throughout the dish also makes it easier to spread for an even layer.

Another important tip to remember is to not overdo it with the creme fraiche since it can make the dish too rich.

Salmon Fillet

We like to use wild caught Alaskan salmon for its cleaner and better quality. We often buy the frozen filets from Costco and use 2-3 filets each time we make this dish. You are welcome to use more, if you prefer.

The trick to easily remove salmon skin is to remove it when the salmon filet is still slightly frozen. If you’re using fresh unfrozen salmon filets, just pop them in the freezer for about 20-30 minutes before removing the skin.

Fresh, bright orange cubed salmon pieces in a white bowl with a bowl of sliced green zucchini rounds blurred in the background.

Close-up action shot of a person using a sharp chef's knife to carefully skin a fresh salmon fillet on a wooden cutting board.

This helps the skin come off cleaner and is more easily separated from the fish meat. If it is too thawed, a lot of the fish meat comes off with the skin and it easily tears as you’re removing it.

Another trick I’ve learned to help with the slippery skin is to use a paper towel to hold onto the skin portion with. It adds friction so your hand isn’t constantly slipping off from the skin during the removal process.

Once the skin is removed, cut the salmon into 1 inch cubes and set aside for layering.

How to Serve

This dish is a main entrée that can be prepped ahead of time or the day of. Just prepare it as usual and then put it into the refrigerator until you are ready to bake it just before serving.

This salmon and zucchini recipe is great on its own as a main course. However, some great side dishes to go with this are a light green salad or carrot rappée.

Serve it all with some fresh baguette and a nice glass of white wine and you have yourself a simple and delicious homemade French meal.

Freshly baked salmon and zucchini gratin casserole featuring a bubbly, golden-brown melted cheese crust.

Baking Vessel

Anything that is oven safe would work. I’ve used a 10 inch cast iron pan and 9×13 inch glass/ceramic baking dishes and all have worked just fine.

How to Make the Salmon Zucchini Gratin

A single layer of sliced zucchini rounds in a white rectangle ceramic baking dish — **Step 1:** Put a single layer of zucchini slices evenly across the baking dish.

Top-down view of raviole pasta sheets layered flat over a base of fresh zucchini slices inside a ceramic baking pan. — **Step 2: Layer on the raviole sheets or spread an even layer of mini ravioli depending on what you’re using.**

Adding a generous layer of raw cubed salmon pieces over the ravioli pasta during the assembly of a seafood gratin. — **Step 3:** Add half of the cubed salmon and create an even layer before moving onto the creme fraiche.

Crème fraîche cream spread smoothly over a layer of fresh salmon cubes and seasoned with cracked black pepper. — **Step 4:** Dallop creme fraiche across the salmon layer and then gently spread it across the salmon pieces ensuring most of it is covered. Sprinkle a pinch of salt, pepper, and nutmeg on top of this layer.

A thick, final layer of shredded Gruyère cheese completely covering the assembled salmon and zucchini gratin before baking. — Repeat steps 1-4. Add one additional layer of zucchini slices on top of the last creme fraiche layer until you’ve used it up and top with a generous layer of shredded gruyere.

Top-down view of a golden-brown salmon zucchini gratin casserole cooked to a crisp perfection in a baking pan. — **Final Step:** Bake the entire dish in the oven at 400°F for 40 – 45 minutes. The dish should come out browned on its own but if you’d like more browning put it under the broiler on high for 2-3 minutes.

Tips & Variations

Prep ahead: Assemble up to 24 hours in advance. Refrigerate and bake right before serving.
When removing skin from salmon, we find it is easiest when the salmon is slightly frozen.
- For frozen salmon filets: Remove it from your freezer and let it thaw on the countertop for about an hour before prepping.
- For fresh salmon filets: Put it in the freezer for about 20-30 minutes before removing skin.
Make sure the creme fraiche is always layered on right after the salmon cubes. This ensures the salmon remains moist.
When it comes to the layer of creme fraiche, dallop the creme fraiche throughout the dish before spreading. This makes it easier to spread an even layer throughout.
You can replace gruyère with more mild cheeses such as sharp cheddar, emmental, or parmesan cheese if you have pickier eaters.
The zucchini slices should be cooked through and soft. If it comes out too firm, just put it back in to bake a bit more.
Make sure you leave enough time before serving to let it cool at least 20 minutes before serving.

Recipe

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