Last week, when I made my Lasagna Roll Ups, I had a tough time deciding what sides to go with them. A salad is classic, but I also needed something with more substance. I definitely wanted a vegetable so I looked at my little sticky-note full of “want to cook” items and saw Zucchini Fritters – BINGO.
After looking at countless recipes for zucchini fritters, I noticed that many of them had Greek or Mediterranean style seasonings. Since I was going with an Italian theme, I just changed up the herbs to fit. The rest of the recipe is almost always the same: shredded zucchini, flour and egg (as binders). My fritters were free form but if you prefer something more stiff that you can actually shape into a patty, just add more flour.
I served my fritters with homemade marinara to dip in but they are certainly delicious by themselves as well. Since they’re fried, they will only be crispy on the first day. I’ve been eating the left overs all week and despite being soft and mushy (especially after reheating in the microwave), they were still very flavorful and satisfying.
Zucchini Fritters
Zucchini Fritters
Servings 6Ingredients
- 2 cups shredded zucchini (2 small or ¾ lbs. total) ($1.15)
- 1/2 tsp minced garlic (1 small clove) ($0.07)
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano ($0.05)
- 1/2 tsp dried basil ($0.05)
- 1 handful fresh parsley ($0.12)
- 1 pinch salt and pepper ($0.05)
- 1 large egg ($0.16)
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour ($0.11)
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil (for frying) ($0.32)
Instructions
- Wash the zucchini and cut the ends off. Using the large holes on a cheese grater, grate the zucchini. You will need about 2 cups total which was 2 small zucchini or about .75 lbs.
- Combine the garlic, oregano, basil, salt and pepper in a bowl (start with 1/4 tsp of salt and about 10 cranks of the pepper mill). Stir to combine. Taste the zucchini and adjust the salt and pepper to your liking. It should be stronger than you want the finished product to be because once you add the flour and egg, the flavor and saltiness will be diluted.
- Whisk an egg and add it to the zucchini along with 3/4 cups of flour. Stir until everything is evenly combined. The texture should be similar to cake batter.
- Heat 1/2 cup oil in a small skillet until very hot. To test the temperature, drop a SMALL piece of the batter into the oil, it should bubble heavily. The oil should not be smoking, if it is, lower the heat immediately. Drop the batter into the oil, one spoonful at a time. Fry the fritters on each side until deep golden brown. Let the fritters drain on a paper towel covered plate.
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Nutrition
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How to Make Zucchini Fritters – Step By Step Photos
I bought four small zucchini expecting it to be 2 cups once shredded. Each zucchini yielded one cup shredded so the other two got chopped and added to my salads. Wash the zucchini well, cut off the ends then shred into a bowl.
Add the chopped parsley, minced garlic, oregano, basil, salt and pepper to the bowl. Stir it up and adjust the salt and pepper to your liking. Make sure it is more heavily seasoned than you want the finished product to be because the flour and egg will dilute and mellow it out. I added about 1/4 tsp of salt and 15 cranks of the pepper mill.
Once the seasoning is adjusted, add the flour and egg. Stir it all up until it is an even consistency. It should look like cake batter with shredded zucchini bits.
Heat about 1/2 cup of vegetable oil in a small skillet until very hot. I like to use a small skillet so that I can use less oil. I cooked the fritters in batches of three. Drop a spoonful into the hot oil and pat it down into a circle if necessary. Fry until you see the edges turn deep golden brown then flip and cook the second side until deep golden brown as well.
If the first side isn’t quite as dark as you’d like, you can just flip ’em over again and cook until they’re dark enough.
Look how beautiful and bright green the insides are!! It might be a good idea to fry one, taste it and then see if you need to adjust the seasoning before you cook the rest.
Yummers.
Although this was delicious the amount of oil was way way too much an made my kitchen so messy. Next time I will only use 1/4 cup of oil an add a little more as needed.
I used the concept of these as a jumping-off point– I salted the zucchini and let it sit for 10 minutes before squeezing it out a bit, then continued with the recipe. Changes I made included using Bob’s Red Mill’s vegan egg replacer as a binder in lieu of the egg, adding onion powder and garlic powder, and skipping the parsley because I didn’t have any handy. Turned out great! If you need a vegan modification, I’d recommend this.
These are fun to make although I rarely fry anything. We ate the whole batch and no sauce was needed. Thanks for another dependable, clearly written recipe.