Zucchini fritters made with freshly grated zucchini, cheese, and garlic are an easy side dish recipe. Serve them hot and crispy with your favorite dipping sauce along with grilled steak, chicken, fish, or pork. I’m sharing lots of tips for making the best fritters that are crispy and easy to make.

Stack of zucchini fritters on a plate surrounded by circled zucchinis

Zucchini fritters are a really great way to use up all of the fresh zucchini available during the summer. We usually grow it ourselves and always end up with so much that it can be challenging to use it all up. These fritters are a great way to use them because you need several zucchinis for one batch. Plus, they’re delicious.

Zucchini Fritters Recipe

This is a great zucchini side dish, or you can serve them as a main dish for a light dinner or as a snack or appetizer. They’re easy to make, and when you have a plate of homemade crispy fritters, it’s hard just to have one.

Table of Contents
  1. Zucchini Fritters Recipe
  2. Ingredients
  3. How to Make Zucchini Fritters
  4. What to Serve with Zucchini Fritters
  5. Recipe Tips
  6. Other Healthy Side Dishes
  7. Zucchini Fritters Recipe Recipe

Ingredients

  • Grated zucchini
  • Large eggs
  • All-purpose flour
  • Cornstarch
  • Grated Parmesan cheese
  • Minced garlic
  • Olive oil
  • Salt and pepper

How to Make Zucchini Fritters

For the best fritters, you should extract the extra moisture from the grated zucchini. Doing this will make it easier to form and cook the fritters without them falling apart. They will also be so much crispier and not soggy. Getting rid of the liquid is easy to do with a colander.

Place the grated zucchini in the colander and sprinkle salt over the top. Leave it to sit for 10 to 15 minutes. The salt will draw out the liquid – once the time is up, place the zucchini on a clean kitchen towel, wrap it up, and squeeze to remove all of the liquid.

After you’ve wrung out the zucchini, place it in a large bowl and combine it with the egg, flour, cornstarch, cheese, salt, and pepper. 

Heat the olive in a large skillet over medium heat. Scoop ¼ cup of the zucchini mixture and drop it in the hot skillet. Use the measuring cup to press the mixture into a round shape.

Cook the fritters for two to four minutes and then flip them over and cook them on the other side for two to four minutes. I can usually cook three to four fritters at a time in the skillet.

Once they are golden brown and crispy, take them out of the skillet and drain them on a plate lined with paper towels. I also use a paper towel to pat them dry before serving them.

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Close up shot of stacked zucchini fritters

What to Serve with Zucchini Fritters

You can serve these fritters as a side dish, main dish, or appetizer. They pair with lots of flavors, and there are quite a few things you can serve them with.

Side Dish: They go great as a side for steak, chicken fish, salmon, or pork. The flavors pair with lots of sauces and flavors.

Main Dish: If you serve them as a main dish, add a salad on the side with your favorite dressing. They are also delicious topped with some sour cream and served alongside a bowl of tomato soup. Or serve them with some French fries on the side.

Appetizer: You can also make a batch for a snack or appetizer. We love to serve them with a dipping sauce like Ranch dip, tzatziki sauce, plain yogurt dip, or blue cheese dressing.

Recipe Tips

Zucchini at the grocery store don’t usually have as much liquid as fresh ones from the garden or the farmer’s market. So, the amount of liquid you can squeeze from them will vary depending on what you use. Even if you use grocery store ones, I don’t recommend skipping the salting and draining step. It’s good to squeeze as much water out as you can.

For the crispiest fritters, I recommend serving them hot from the pan. You can make them ahead and keep them in the refrigerator, but they won’t stay crispy. Leftover fritters will keep for up to four days in the refrigerator.

Feel free to add some extra herbs or seasonings to the zucchini mixture. Fresh herbs like chopped basil, parsley, thyme, or chives are good. Or you can also add some dried seasonings like oregano, Italian seasoning, or another dried herb that you like.

We make this zucchini fritter recipe a lot during the summer when all the fresh zucchini is available, but it’s great all year, too. They’re versatile, can be served in a variety of ways, and so delicious. Make a batch, and I know you will enjoy them!

Overhead shot of zucchini fritters on a plate surrounded by zucchini pieces

Other Healthy Side Dishes

Stack of zucchini fritters on a plate surrounded by circled zucchinis

Zucchini Fritters Recipe

5 from 1 vote
Zucchini Fritters are made with freshly grated zucchini, cheese and garlic! Such an easy side dish recipe that’s perfect for summer cookouts.
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Yield 4 servings
Serving Size 1 serving

Ingredients
 

  • 3 medium size zucchinis grated
  • 2 large eggs
  • ¼ cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • ¼ cup parmesan cheese grated
  • 2 cloves garlic minced
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  • Place grated zucchini in a colander in the sink and sprinkle ½ tablespoon of salt. Let sit for 10-15 minutes. Place a clean kitchen towel on the counter and place the zucchini on it. Cover the zucchini with the towel and squeeze the water out.
  • Add the zucchini to a large bowl. Mix in egg, flour, cornstarch, parmesan cheese, salt and pepper.
  • Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Using a ¼ cup measuring scoop add zucchini mixture to the skillet then use the bottom of the scoop to flatten the fritter into a round shape. You can probably fit 3 or 4 fritters per batch. Cook 2-4 minutes per side flipping once. They should be golden brown and crispy. Put them on a plate covered with paper towel and gently cover and pat them dry. Serve with your favorite dipping sauce and add salt and pepper as needed.

Recipe Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 212kcal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 86mg | Sodium: 144mg | Potassium: 434mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 462IU | Vitamin C: 27mg | Calcium: 114mg | Iron: 1mg
Nutritional information not guaranteed to be accurate
Course Appetizer, Side Dish, Snack
Cuisine American
Keyword Easy side dish, fritters, grated zucchini, healthy fritters, healthy snack, light snack, summer side dish, zucchini, zucchini fritters
Stack of zucchini fritters on a plate surrounded by circled zucchinis with recipe title on bottom of photo

These Zucchini Fritters are so versatile, delicious and can be served in a variety of ways. I hope you make a batch!

5 from 1 vote (1 rating without comment)

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