Zucchini Fritters
by Chungah
This post may contain affiliate links. Please see our privacy policy for details.
Use up extra zucchini to make perfectly crispy zucchini fritters! Serve as an appetizer, side dish, snack or light meal. Picky-eater approved!
Featured Comment
why you’ll love zucchini fritters
- Great way to repurpose all the summer zucchini. Have you made way too much zucchini bread this season? Don’t worry – you can still use up all that summer zucchini bounty with these crowd-pleasing crisp-fluffy zucchini fritters!
- So great for picky eaters. These fritters are wonderfully nutritious, low in calories, and the perfect way to sneak in some extra veggies and greens for those picky eaters.
- Ridiculously easy to whip up. Zucchini fritters are so easy to make, perfectly crispy and golden brown on the outside, light and airy on the inside.
- Can be served in so many ways. Serve them as an afterschool snack, an appetizer, a side dish, or even a light lunch with a side of tzatziki sauce.
- Freezer-friendly. Fritters are so great to make ahead of time, and can keep in the freezer for up to 3 months, reheating very well in the oven or air fryer.
What are zucchini fritters?
Zucchini fritters are a popular summer appetizer, side dish, or vegetarian meal, made with shredded zucchini, flour and eggs, and then pan-fried to yield crispy, savory pancakes. The fritters are typically served with sour cream or tzatziki sauce for dipping.
how to make zucchini fritters
- Prep the zucchini. Using the large holes of a box grater, shred the zucchini first, then transfer to a colander over the sink. Stir in 1 teaspoon salt and let it rest for 10 minutes to draw out the excess moisture.
- Squeeze dry. Transfer the zucchini to a clean dish towel or cheese cloth and wring out as much liquid as possible.
- Make the batter. Combine the squeezed zucchini, flour, Parmesan, garlic, egg, salt and pepper.
- Cook. Scoop and drop 3-4 tablespoons of batter for each fritter into a large cast iron skillet over medium high heat, flattening with the back of a spatula. Work in batches if needed to avoid an overcrowded pan.
- Make it crispy. Cook for 2 minutes, then flip and cook an additional 1-2 minutes until golden brown and crispy.
- Keep warm. Keep warm in a low oven (250°F) between batches and serve with sour cream or tzatziki sauce.
Storing, freezing and reheating
Storage
Leftover fritters can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Reheating
Reheat in the oven at 350°F until warmed through, about 5-10 minutes.
Freezing
Place the fritters on a baking sheet lined with wax paper or parchment paper, freezing for 1 hour until solid. Transfer the fritters to an airtight, resealable freezer bag. Label, date, and freeze up to 3 months.
Reheating after freezing
Thaw the fritters overnight in the fridge and reheat in the oven at 350°F until warmed through and crispy, about 10-15 minutes, or in the air fryer at 350°F for 4-5 minutes.
what to serve with zucchini fritters
Tools For This Recipe
Zucchini Fritters: Frequently Asked Questions
Zucchini is very high in water! So to avoid soggy fritters, we want to squeeze out as much water as possible. That way, we can get those favorited crisp, golden brown edges.
A box grater will work beautifully here!
The possibilities are endless! You can serve them with a dollop of sour cream, tzatziki sauce, or as a side dish to my favorite lemon herb roasted chicken.
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days, reheating in the oven at 350°F until warmed through.
Yes! Zucchini fritters freeze very well, and can keep in the freezer for 2-3 months. For best results, freeze without any toppings or sauces until thawed and reheated.
Zucchini Fritters
Video
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds zucchini, grated, about 3 cups
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 large egg
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
Instructions
- Place grated zucchini in a colander over the sink. Add 1 teaspoon salt and gently toss to combine; let sit for 10 minutes. Using a clean dish towel or cheese cloth, drain zucchini completely.
- In a large bowl, combine zucchini, flour, Parmesan, garlic and egg; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Heat olive oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Working in batches, scoop 3-4 tablespoons of batter for each fritter, flattening with a spatula, and cook until the underside is nicely golden brown, about 2 minutes. Flip and cook on the other side, about 1-2 minutes longer.
- Serve immediately.
Equipment
Notes
- Squeeze dry the zucchini. This is a key step to avoid soggy fritters! Grate the zucchini and add 1 teaspoon salt. The salt not only seasons the zucchini beforehand but also draws out the excess moisture. Wrap the grated zucchini in a clean dish towel or cheese cloth and squeeze out as much liquid as possible.
- Cook in batches. Work in batches to properly cook the fritters for maximum crispness. An overcrowded pan will unfortunately steam the fritters instead.
- Mix it up. Use a different kind of cheese (ex. feta or cotija), add fresh herbs (thyme, rosemary, oregano or dill) or fresh lemon zest to brighten up some of the savory flavors.
- Keep warm. The fritters can be kept warm in a low oven at 250°F.
- Reheat in the oven. Leftover fritters can be soggy when reheated. For best results with leftovers, reheat in the oven at 350°F until warmed through, about 5-10 minutes.
- Freeze leftovers. Flash-freeze the fritters first, then transfer to an airtight, resealable freezer bag, freezing up to 3 months.
Did you make this recipe?
Tag @damn_delicious on Instagram and hashtag it #damndelicious!
Hello,
Could the zucchini be replaced with courgette??
Thanks
Unfortunately, without further recipe testing, I cannot answer with certainty. As always, please use your best judgment regarding substitutions and modifications.
You do know that a courgette is a zucchini right? One is a French word and the other is an Italian word for the SAME thing. Hope that helps.
I just used the remains of our zucchini with this amazing recipe! I think next year when we have more zucchini, I will try these for breakfast…and lunch…and dinner. Excellent taste! Easy! Healthy! The only change I made was frying them in coconut oil. Thank you for posting this!
I tried this recipe and they came out GREAT! I’m looking forward in trying more recipes from this website.
Hi there!
Can I substitute another cheese for the Parmesan? I keep other varieties in my fridge, just not Parmesan.
Unfortunately, without further recipe testing, I cannot answer with certainty. As always, please use your best judgment regarding substitutions and modifications.
How many cups of grated zucchini do you estimate are in this recipe? I don’t have a kitchen scale to weigh stuff on.
There is roughly about 3 cups grated zucchini in 1 1/2 pounds.
This is very similar to my Mom’s recipe. I found I can cook hers in a waffle iron and top with cooked apples slices (or warmed apple sauce) for a delicious breakfast.
I’ll try this to compare. It sounds wonderful.
2 eggs…perfect! Didn’t use salt, but did wrap in clean kitchen towel.
Great!
Chungah – I am impressed with the numbers of responses to this great recipe for Zucchini Fritters.
I noticed that so many mentioned how hard to get the water out. You kept referring them back to the recipe. I wonder if they added the salt when putting them out to drain. I recently heard a chef on TV say that, “the salt helped draw out more water.” You have it in your recipe but I wonder if they skipped that salt. Thank You for posting so many good healthy recipes. I keep coming back to your site. You are helping people eat better.
Quick and easy to make. Maybe I dried mine out too much, because I needed to use 3 eggs instead of the one the recipe called for, but other than that it worked great
O…M…G…!!!
Very delicious and very good for you. Yes, they are easy to make, just make sure you add the salt to the zucchini first. The salt draws out a lot of water from the shredded zucchini. I doubled the recipe so I could save some for another day. Just took out 5 lbs of it from my garden yesterday and made a bunh of bread and fritters. Family and friends are about to be real happy with these treats.
Will it work with whole wheat flour instead of all purpose white flour? Thanks
Yes.
Just had these as my lunch today! Thank-God these aren’t fattening! I had to force myself to stop eating them, I had these w/some white fish and I can’t remember having a better lunch. These are a far cry from soup & salad. Thanks for the recipe
I experimented with this recipe all afternoon. The first fritter I cooked seemed too raw in the middle and too brown on the outside. I made sure I cooked the next one slower and kept it cooking for a full two minutes on each side. It still seems to wet inside. I added more flour and cheese to the batter and and tried again. Still to wet in the middle. It must have been that I didn’t drain the zucchini well enough. I had drained it in a salad spinner and got a lot of water out, but I guess not enough. The recipe is really good and I ate all 5 of my experiments 🙂 but I have yet to get them cooked like a pancake. I will keep trying, but for now I’m full!
It may make a difference what elevation you are at while cooking. I’m in Indiana and I had to add 1/2 cup flour. Also, to help avoid a soggy center, after putting a spoonful in the pan, flatten them very thin. This worked great for me.
I made fritters tonight. I did not have scallions so I used onion, and I also added shredded carrot. They were very tastey
I have been making these for a long time. I don’t drain my zucchini and it comes out great. I also use some oregano in mine good stuff.
I have made these alot and i don’t drain my zucchini and they turn out great. I all so sprinkle some oregano in the batter. good stuff.
Wow! Just put these into permanent 5 star rotation in my family cookbook. I also dredged the patties in seasoned panko crumbs for extra crunch. BEST USE OF ZUCCHINI EVER!
Love these, with the expansion of a tablespoon of Old Bay Seasoning.Bring them to life. thanks you for sharring.
sorry also meant to ask, how many actual fritters does this recepie make.
Unfortunately, it is so difficult to say how many fritters are made with this recipe as there is much room for variation – thick fritters, wide fritters, mini fritters, etc.
I once read a comment somewhere about someone cooking fritters in muffin tins so that they are a neat shape.
I haven’t tried it, thou wondering how they would go? or is it best to allways cook them in a fry pan rather than oven.
I actually have not tried cooking them in muffin tins – but it sounds like a genius idea!