Zucchini Fritters
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These fritters are unbelievably easy to make, low calorie, and the perfect way to sneak in some veggies!
I’m always looking for new ways to use up my lingering zucchini. I’ve made zucchini crisps and zucchini sticks but I wanted to try something a little different this time – something “not fried” per se and a bit healthier. That’s when these fritters happened.
Now these fritters are unbelievably easy to whip up. Simply grate your zucchini, drain them completely using a dish cloth, and throw them in a bowl with all of your other ingredients. From there, scoop them right out onto a hot skillet, flattening them up to resemble a pancake. Flip, cook, serve. Easy enough, right?
These fritters are wonderfully nutritious, low in calories and the perfect way to sneak in some veggies for those picky eaters. The best part is, you can serve them as a snack, an appetizer, or even a light lunch!
Tools For This Recipe
Large cast iron skillet
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 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.
Zucchini Fritters
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds zucchini, grated (about 3 cups)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup 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.
Video
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Hello! Your recipe states that it yields 4 servings but there are a good 9 fritters in your image – how many fritters make up one serving, and is the nutritional info per quarter of the prepared mixture, or per individual fritter?
Sorry for the silly question; I’m trying to watch my calorie intake and I wanna make sure I get it right!
Kim, the images are strictly shot for photographic purposes and are not indicative to how many fritters this recipe yields. That being said, 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. The nutritional information listed is per serving, not for each individual fritter.
Did my first try adding an extra egg and replacing olive oil for coconut oil and it was heavenly delicious!
Now I’m going to try to do a baked version without the oil… Let’s see if it works!
Thank you so much this recipe is awesome!
These were delicious! Though, making sure the zucchini was dry enough was a challenge. I actually ended up taking my hair dryer to the grated zucchini on the lowest heat for about 5 minutes. As goofy as that sounds it seems to have worked – the fritters came out in one crispy piece.
I’m excited to try these again and experiment with adding some onions as others have suggested or maybe something spicy in the mix for an extra kick of flavor.
I will agree with another user who commented that there was a bit too much salt – I’ll probably add a pinch less next time. Other than that, these were great!
I made these last night and was so excited about them but they were way overstated. I would recommend at least half the salt or just a pinch and add your own to them after they’re cooked if needed.
How do I get the fritters to end up circular, and in the same size?
I recommend using a spatula.
I would love to make these but have a crazy question! Approximately how many cups of shredded zucchini should I use? I had a large zucchini that needed to be used so I shredded it but have no idea how much o( it I would use for this recipe. Thank you!
There is roughly about 3 cups grated zucchini in 1 1/2 pounds.
These are amazing!
I topped mine with ricotta, avocado, and sliced cherry tomatoes. Delicious!
I must admit, I had no idea how to dry the zucchini, and had to cook them longer because really weren’t dry after a couple mins of patting them dry.
Thanks for the recipe 🙂
Your fritters look so delicious but the outcome was less than spectacular for me. I found them pretty bland and wet. They took much longer to cook than the time listed here. Maybe I didn’t squeeze out enough water? Will try squeezing out more next time and I think I’d add some onion as well. Thanks for the recipe
I made these today, and they were so delicious! I do have to say, I made some changes though- I used gluten-free oat flour instead of white flour, and I used egg whites instead of whole eggs. I also did not use the cheese. They were soooo good! I could not stop eating them!! Thanks for this wonderful recipe!
This simply just is amazing! I’m making them right now, they’re so easy to make and such a good alternative! As my boyfriend likes some meat too, I fixed the recipe up with some diced ham for him, once I’m done with mine! Love it!
Can you pack these in kids school lunch? I know you said eat immediately in the recipe. Thanks
Yes, absolutely.
I actually let these drain for close to an hour before making and I took the additional step of wringing out the rest of the moisture by wringing the drained, shredded zucchini in a tea towel before adding the rest of the ingredients. By doing this, the consistency of the pancake was perfect! They held together nice and tightly; however, I only used one clove of garlic and found it to be way too overpowering. Maybe next time try a teaspoon of grated onion instead. These would also be good with a dash of hot sauce or red pepper in the batter. I would make these again with a few tweaks.
Epic Fail! First very watery; I added more flour hoping it would make it tight, but did nothing. When I fried, I had to keep them frying at least 10 minutes per side. If I was lucky they browned, but most when in the garbage because they fell apart.
Jennifer, I’m sorry that this did not turn out the way you had imagined. But it sounds like there was too much excess water from the zucchini. Did you squeeze out as much water as possible as directed in the recipe?
made these with what is called yellow zucchini around here, probably just yellow squash. anyway they were wonderful, followed your recipe and used my non stick simply celphalon pan and loved them. will maybe add some chives or grated onion next time. Have lots of zucchini still in garden to use up so can do some experimenting
How many zucchinis are equivalent to 1 1/2 lbs grated?
1 pound zucchini is equivalent to about 3 medium zucchini.
I see that you said the recipe yields 4 servings but I can’t see the amount per serving. Is this because it could vary on how heavy handed you are? I am wondering about how many fritters it would make approximately. Maybe I missed where you said it! If so, I am sorry! I am excited to try this recipe! My husband doesn’t eat MANY veggies and that used to be none! I have finally gotten him to eat veggies that aren’t canned or fried and that he actually enjoys! We are talking about having a child one day and I know, from how my husband has grown up, that we need to spring yummy veggies on them early! Working on our healthy life style! Thanks again!
You are so welcome! But 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.
LOVE LOVE LOVE this recipe! I made these last year for a brunch thing with my roomies and now I make them almost every week on Sundays and then eat them throughout the week for breakfast! Definitely one of my favorites! The only thing I do differently is I actually put my zucchini in a food processor, too lazy to grate a pound and half of zucchini haha anyways thank you so much for posting this! It’s fantastic!
I have only one zucchini how do I adapt this recipe to accommodate only one zucchini?? Would love to try these,please help
Angie, depending on the size of your zucchini, you may have to half or quarter the recipe as needed.
Can these be frozen?
Robin, you can freeze these in individual servings and reheat as necessary.
How do you get them to stay together?? I subbed coconut flour for regular flour, could that be why??
Could it also be they weren’t drained enough?? I used paper towels to draw out the initial moisture then let them sit in a dish cloth for more draining. How long should I let them drain? ?
Devin, I am not entirely sure if the coconut flour is the culprit here (as I have never used this ingredient before) but it is best to drain as much excess water as possible.