Zucchini Fritters
by Chungah
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Use up extra zucchini to make perfectly crispy zucchini fritters! Serve as an appetizer, side dish, snack or light meal. Picky-eater approved!
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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?
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Better than expected with large zucchini from the garden. Teenager approved!
These are so easy and so good! I will add a little more cheese, maybe some shrimp, chipoltle and scallions. Honestly they’re terrific the way they are and took minutes to make.
I made these and added 3/4 cup crab(I used king crab) and some green onions. So good!
Delicious! I made this last week and wasn’t sure if I was using the right ratio of zucchini though, the patties didn’t stay firm after frying – as leftovers I stuck them in the oven and they were better the next day after baking to reheat. Could you specify how many cups of grated zucchini to use? Someone else suggested 2 1/2 cups but wasn’t sure if that was correct? Thank you!
I assumed that the recipe was to say 1 1/2 CUPS rather than pounds! That’s how I made them. Delicious!!!!
These are great and thanks for your sharing. I will try to make it tomorrow
We loved the zucchini fritters. They were delicious and easy to make. I put some pesto sauce on top and it was so yummy.
This one is a keeper!
Easy and tasty-ate with homemade tsadziki. I grated the zucchini with a food processor-peeling, seeds and all, and it was delicious!
This is genius. I’m using the food processor next time.
Just made these for lunch….excellent….thank you.
These are damn delicious made them for my wife and now they are a staple recipe
Very good, and tasty! Pretty simple to make, and a good use of the zuchinni that get large…just scrape out the seeds. I made a bunch of the fritters and froze them, but haven’t reheated them yet. We love them served with Salsa!
I have tried a dozen or so different recipes for zucchini fritters and this one is by far the best. I made them exactly as the recipe states and they came out crispy and super flavorful. They went very well with our baked salmon. Thanks for the new go-to recipe!
I had some ginormous zucchini from the garden with thick skins and made these fritters using just the skin peelings from those zucchini. It was a great way to use up the waste, and as a bonus I didn’t have to worry about moisture content at all. Just took the peels and cut them into kind of a chiffonade. Ate the fritters with tzatziki and kalamatas – delicious! Thanks for the idea!
Love these tasty bites! A little more garlic and a few shakes of pepper– bare minimum salt to draw water out of grated zucchini-pairs well with yum yum sauce and chilled chardonnay!– cheers!
Really delicious ..wanted to know can these be frozen ?
These are delicious. ty
This sounds really good! I was looking for recipes for my left over zucchini and stumbled on this one! I cannot wait to try it!
Quite nice although a little bland.
Good consistancy
Added onion, mint & nutmeg to 2nd batch, bit better still needed to add more.
Like the nibblies idea. Cold delicious as well Looking forward to making again with ppre spices.
Great way to use overgrown zucchini from home garden. Tough skin cooked beautifully Thanx..
Very simple and tasty, I also mixed together Greek Yogurt and Fennel and served the fritters with a dollop of the Yogurt mix, was delicious.
Can I blend the zucchinis a bit into small pieces instead of grating them ? Or will they get too liquid ?
I made them with leftover grated zucchini and it was delicious! I topped it with tzatziki sauce and kimchi. Amazing!
Yummy. I was dying to try wasabi dressing so I di and everything is delish!!! And I drizzled a bit more wasabi on top ..lovely!!
Damn Delicious indeed!