Baked Zucchini Fritters Recipe: A Crispy, Healthy Delight for Every Meal
Crispy baked zucchini fritters with parmesan, green onion and garlic, served with a lemon-dill yogurt dip. Easy, healthy and no deep frying.
By Dora Ortiz
Golden outside, tender inside, and baked instead of fried. These zucchini fritters are packed with parmesan, green onion and garlic, and they turn one of summer’s most abundant vegetables into something everyone actually wants to eat. Serve them as a side, a light lunch, or an appetizer with the cool lemon-dill dip.
Why You’ll Love Them
- Crispy without deep frying.
- Kid-friendly way to eat vegetables.
- Great for meal prep: they reheat and freeze well.
The Secret to Crispy Fritters
Zucchini is about 95% water. If you skip the salting and squeezing, that water steams the fritters from the inside and they turn mushy. Squeeze until almost no more liquid comes out. You’ll lose about half the volume, and that’s exactly right.
Ways to Serve Them
- As a side with grilled chicken or fish
- Topped with a fried egg for breakfast
- Stacked in a pita with tzatziki and tomato
- As a party appetizer with the yogurt dip
Storage
Refrigerate up to 3 days. Reheat in a 400°F (200°C) oven or air fryer for 5 to 7 minutes. The microwave makes them soft.
Recipe
Baked Zucchini Fritters Recipe: A Crispy, Healthy Delight for Every Meal
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 22 min
- Total
- 42 min
- Servings
- 4
- Calories
- 190
Ingredients
Fritters
Lemon-dill yogurt dip
Instructions
- Salt the zucchini. Grate the zucchini on the large holes of a box grater. Toss with the salt in a colander and let it sit for 10 minutes to release water.
- Heat the oven. Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment and brush it with 1 tablespoon olive oil.
- Squeeze it dry. Wrap the zucchini in a clean kitchen towel and squeeze out as much liquid as you can. This is the most important step for crispy fritters.
- Mix the batter. In a bowl, combine the zucchini, egg, panko, parmesan, flour, green onions, garlic and pepper until it holds together.
- Shape. Scoop 2 heaping tablespoons per fritter onto the baking sheet and flatten each into a 1/2-inch-thick patty. You should get about 12. Brush the tops with the remaining oil.
- Bake. Bake for 12 minutes, flip carefully, then bake another 8 to 10 minutes until both sides are golden and crisp.
- Make the dip and serve. Stir together the yogurt, lemon juice, dill and salt. Serve the fritters warm with the dip.
Notes
- Prefer them pan-fried? Cook in a skillet with 2 tablespoons oil over medium heat for 3 to 4 minutes per side.
- Add 1/4 cup crumbled feta or 1/2 cup corn kernels to the batter for variety.
- Gluten-free: use gluten-free panko and replace the flour with almond flour or cornstarch.
Nutrition is an estimate per serving: about 190 calories.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why are my zucchini fritters soggy?
There's too much water left in the zucchini. Salt it, wait, and squeeze it really hard in a towel before mixing.
Can I freeze zucchini fritters?
Yes. Freeze baked fritters in a single layer, then move them to a bag. Reheat from frozen at 400°F (200°C) for 10 to 12 minutes.
Can I make them ahead?
Bake them up to 2 days ahead and re-crisp in the oven or an air fryer before serving.
