Crispy and Delicious Zucchini Fritters Recipe

For a hearty snack that pairs with so many sides and toppings, give my zucchini fritters recipe a go. Each fritter is rich, crispy, delicately sweet, and really filling.

Zucchini Fritters Recipe

This dish is really deceiving, because while it looks like a snack or appetizer, those fritters can fill you up really quickly.

Paired with a sauce or creamy side, these zucchini fritters make for some truly wholesome home cooking.

They are loaded with flavor, too. Fried zucchini, on its own, delivers a lovely rich and mildly sweet flavor. Here, it’s combined with garlic, lemon, oil, herbs, and seasonings, and bound with yogurt, flour, and egg, for a fritter that has an initially crispy bite, followed by a melt-in-mouth softness, with so much flavor.

Ingredients

To make a batch of my zucchini fritters, you’ll first need to assemble the following ingredients:

These ingredients make about 16 zucchini fritters and 1/2 cup of yogurt-basil dip:

For the Zucchini Fritters:

• Zucchini – 4 zucchini/courgettes (2 lb or 900 grams)
• Cheddar – 3/4 cup shredded yellow or white cheddar (70 grams or 2.5 oz)
• Parmesan – 1/2 cup grated parmesan (40 grams or 1.4 oz), divided: 2 tbsp for the yogurt dip (below) and the remaining for the fritters
• Eggs – 3 medium eggs
• Flour – 3/4 cup all-purpose (plain) flour
• Baking Powder – 1 tsp
• Lemon Zest – 1 tsp
• Basil – 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh basil
• Garlic – 1/4 tsp garlic powder or 1 fresh garlic clove (minced)
• Salt – 1 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
• Black Pepper – 1/2 tsp ground black pepper

For Frying the Fritters:

• Olive Oil – 1/2 cup light olive oil

For the Yogurt Dip:

• Yogurt – 1/2 cup plain yogurt (full-fat)
• Garlic – 1 fresh garlic clove (minced)
• Parmesan – 2 tbsp grated parmesan
• Basil – 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh basil
• Salt – pinch of salt
• Black Pepper – pinch of ground black pepper

Ingredient Note & Instructions

Parmesan & Cheddar – If you can, always grate the parmesan and cheddar at home (rather than buying pre-grated cheese). You could also use other cheeses. Feta, for example, also pairs wonderfully with zucchini in this recipe.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Step 1 – Make the yogurt dip. Mix the yogurt with two tablespoons of finely chopped basil, two tablespoons of grated parmesan, one clove of garlic (minced), a pinch of salt, and a pinch of ground black pepper. Set it aside until it’s time to serve the fritters.

Step 2 – Wash and dry the zucchini and cut the ends off. Then, grate the zucchini.

I’m using the grating disc on a food processor as it’s much faster (it took me 30 seconds to grate all the zucchini). However, feel free to use a box grater (it will still be pretty fast – it should only take about 2-3 minutes).

Step 3 – Add 1 tsp of fine salt to the grated zucchini, give it a mix, and then transfer it to a sieve (over a large bowl), ideally covered with cheesecloth. The salt will help draw the moisture/water out of the zucchini. Let it sit for 10 minutes, and then squeeze the liquid out.

It’s easier to do that with a cheesecloth but don’t worry if you don’t have one! You can use the sieve (just press down on the zucchini over the sieve) or simply squeeze the zucchini with your hands (a smaller batch at a time).

Step 5 – Transfer the grated and drained zucchini to a large mixing bowl and add the remaining parmesan, the beaten eggs, cheddar cheese, finely chopped basil, lemon zest, 1/4 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp ground black pepper, and garlic powder or minced garlic clove.

Give everything a mix with a spatula until well-combined.

Step 6 – Add the flour and the baking powder and mix everything lightly with the spatula until the flour is incorporated.

Step 7 – Place a non-stick pan over medium heat on the stove, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and once the oil is shimmering/hot, add about 1/4 cup (or one ice cream scoop) of zucchini batter for each fritter to the pan.

Step 8 – Fry the zucchini fritters for about 4-5 minutes on the first side, then flip them and cover the pan with a lid and cook them for another 4-5 minutes. Adjust the heat as necessary to make sure they don’t burn and that you get the desired crispiness.

Repeat the process until you’ve cooked all the fritters, and for each round of 3-4 zucchini fritters, use about 2 tbsp of olive oil.

Each round of 4 fritters will take about 10 minutes, so if you have two pans, you could be done in 20 minutes. If using one pan, you’ll need about 40 minutes to cook them all.

Serving Suggestions

Because of their crispy, fried texture, a really good start is some type of sauce, such as our yogurt-basil dip or a sour cream and chive sauce, to dollop on top or dip into.

If you wanted to keep things simpler, you could even just serve them with a side of Greek yogurt or sour cream, with no additional ingredients.

I’ve also got a lemon basil aioli sauce recipe that would make for a great dipping sauce. You could also just drizzle some over the top of the fritters.

Some smoked salmon, along with chopped herbs and a creamy sauce, makes for a truly delicious combination.

Fresh salads, such as my tomato feta mind salad recipe, are also a really good pairing for these fritters. They add some greens and freshness to the plate.

And if you want to truly up your sides game, you could serve these fritters with my fried artichokes recipe, along with a few dipping sauces or sour cream.

You can enjoy these fritters in so many ways. Let me know below what you decide to serve them with, and I hope they bring plenty of smiles to the dinner table!

Zucchini Fritters Recipe Card

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Looking for filling and yummy snacks or side ideas? Keep my zucchini fritters recipe for safekeeping by saving it to one of your Pinterest boards.