Air-Fryer Zucchini Fritters are the perfect vegetarian appetizer or side dish, with such a crispy exterior and creamy interior that you may think they were pan-fried in a skillet. Making zucchini fritters in an air fryer is so simple, fast and nutritious you’ll want to add them to your weekly dinner rotation.
The air fryer is the perfect countertop appliance for making zucchini fritters as the zucchini pancakes cook up golden brown and crispy with minimal added oil. Here is why I love making fresh shredded zucchini patties in the air fryer:
- Simple grocery store (or garden fresh) ingredients
- Easily customizable with different herbs, cheeses and other flavorings
- Plenty of substitutions for dietary restrictions
- Kid-friendly and perfect for a weeknight dinner
- Meal-prep friendly and easy to make ahead
Jump to:
Ingredients that Matter
Zucchini fritters, whether made in a skillet, oven or air fryer, are made with basic ingredients available all year in most grocery stores. Here are the ingredients you’ll need for this recipe:
- Zucchini. Easy air fryer fritters starts with about 1 pound of fresh zucchini, which is about 2 medium or 1 large zucchini. Look for firm zucchini with minimal blemishes. you can also use yellow squash for a summer squash fritter, or any variety of zucchini you prefer.
- Egg. One large egg is enough to help bind the shredded fresh zucchini with the other ingredients. Below I’ll offer suggestions if you want to make this recipe vegan.
- All-Purpose Flour. A bit of flour, along with the egg, helps turn the shredded zucchini into more of a pancake or patty consistency.
- Breadcrumbs. While you can leave out the breadcrumbs, I like to add them as a binder and to provide a crunchy exterior.
- Spices. This recipe is fairly straightforward in terms of flavor, so I reach for Italian seasoning. Below I’ll give you suggestions for other flavor profiles.
- Herbs. Like the spices, you have plenty of options for added herbs, but I LOVE using fresh chives for their mild onion flavor.
- Parmesan. Grated parmesan cheese is mixed into the zucchini patties for a touch of umami, salt and cheesy flavor.
- Salt & Pepper. Just a pinch of salt and pepper provides a perfect backbone of flavor for these air fried zucchini patties.
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
Making homemade zucchini fritters in the air fryer is super easy. I’ll walk you through the process so you know just how to make them:
Start by grating the zucchini on a box grater or in a food processor fitted with a grating attachment.
Place the shredded zucchini in a clean kitchen towel then wring dry to extract as much liquid as possible.
Transfer the shredded and dried zucchini to a mixing bowl and add a lightly beaten egg, flour, parmesan cheese, breadcrumbs, chives, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Stir well until combined. As you combine the ingredients, you can gently squeeze the shredded zucchini if the mixture feels dry (this will release a bit of water from the squash).
Form the mixture into 8 3-inch patties and transfer to a clean plate. From here you can cook them right away or cover with plastic and refrigerate overnight.
When ready to cook, preheat an air fryer to 375F. Coat the air fryer basket with a bit of cooking spray and spray both sides of the zucchini patties with cooking spray. Place the patties in the preheated basket (work in batches, if needed) and cook for 14 minutes. Be sure to flip halfway through.
Halfway through cooking and they should look like this (the edges will be golden brown). Flip and continue cooking.
The fritters are done when they are golden brown and crispy. You can cook another minute if needed. Repeat with remaining fritters.
Transfer crispy zucchini fritters to a paper towel-lined plate and sprinkle with salt before serving.
Hint: If you needed to cook the fritters in two batches and you want them to all be hot when serving, simply place all the cooked fritters back in the air fryer basket and cook for 1 minute more.
Substitutions
These zucchini fritters are naturally vegetarian, but they are not vegan nor gluten-free. Below are recommendations on tweaks you can make to this recipe based on your dietary needs:
- Gluten-Free – To make this recipe gluten-free you should use a one-to-one gluten-free flour substitute, like this King Arthur Gluten Free Measure for Measure Flour, instead of all-purpose flour. You will also want to use gluten-free breadcrumbs.
- Dairy-Free – To keep this recipe dairy-free swap out the grated parmesan cheese for nutritional yeast. Or, cut the cheese out completely and add another 1 tablespoon of flour.
- Egg-Free or Vegan – If you don’t eat eggs (or if you are making this recipe vegan), you’ll want to make a flax or chia egg instead of a chicken egg. Use 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseeds or chia seeds mixed with 1 tablespoon of water and let it sit on the counter for a few minutes to thicken.
Crispy Zucchini Patty Flavor Additions
One of the best things about learning to make zucchini fritters (or any fritter, for that matter), is that once you get the basic method down you can easily make flavor tweaks. I love my fritters with simple Italian seasoning paired with the light onion flavor of chives, but there are plenty of options based on your preferences. Consider the following flavorings for these air fried squash fritters:
- Herbs – Don’t like chives? No problem! Instead, try using fresh parsley, dill, scallions, mint or tarragon.
- Spices – Instead of Italian seasoning try using dried oregano, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, ground cumin, coriander, chili powder or even our homemade chicken taco seasoning.
- Cheese – You can swap in just about any shredded or grated cheese for the parmesan. Try cheddar, jack, Swiss, pepper jack, Colby or provolone. You could even use crumbled goat cheese or feta cheese.
How to Serve Air Fried Zucchini Fritters
Try serving these fritters as a side for our:
- Lemon Caper Pasta
- Spaghetti Arrabiata
- Creamy Spinach Pasta
- Rigatoni Al Forno
- Sun-Dried Tomato and Artichoke Pasta
- Pesto Orzo Salad
- Smothered Skillet Chicken with Artichokes and Red Peppers
- Cast Iron BBQ Chicken
If you are looking for sauces to serve with these crispy zucchini patties, try our Buffalo Ranch Sauce, Creamy Chipotle Lime Sauce, Easy Sour Cream and Chive Dip or Homemade Basil Pesto.
What Air Fryer Should I Use?
I have tried a wide variety of air fryers in the various test kitchens I’ve worked in throughout my career. I made everything from air fryer beer battered fish to crispy French fries and even bacon. In my home test kitchen, a couple of my favorite air fryer recipe include Air Fryer Chicken Katsu with Homemade Tonkatsu Sauce and Air Fryer Steak Fries.
In all of these recipes I use my absolute favorite air fryer, the Instant Vortex Plus 6QT ClearCook Air Fryer. It has a lot of bells and whistles that make modern air fryers so accessible (like clear directions, a window with interior light so you can check your food without opening the basket, and simple presets). But my favorite part of this air fryer is the filter that helps reduce some of odors that come from frying! Yes, it works great!
Storage
You can store leftover air fried zucchini fritters in an airtight container for up to 4 days. They are tasty cold out of the refrigerator, but they will lose much of their crispy texture. You can reheat them in the air fryer or regular oven for a few minutes, but they will dry out if you cook them again.
Do you want to make these fritters ahead of time? You have a couple options.
- Make the zucchini and herb patties and store in an airtight container for up to 2 days ahead of time and cook in the air fryer when ready to eat.
- Par-cook the fritters for 10 minutes, until just starting to brown on all sides. Then store in the refrigerator and finish in the air fryer when ready to serve.
I don’t typically freeze fritters from the air fryer unless I par cook them (as instructed above).
Top tip
Depending on how much liquid you are able to squeeze out of the zucchini, you may need to adjust how much flour or breadcrumbs you add. As written, the added flour and breadcrumbs are enough for a very well squeezed zucchini, but you may need to add more if the patties feel damp. You should be able to form zucchini patties that hold together well and don’t crumble apart. Adjust with more flour, as needed.
FAQ
If your fritters aren’t crispy or feel mushy it’s because there wasn’t enough moisture squeezed out of the zucchini. when forming the patties, they should hold together without crumbling apart, but they shouldn’t feel overly damp. If you notice the fritters are not crispy after air frying, try cranking the fryer to 400F and cook for 1 minute more.
If your zucchini fritters are too dry it’s because you added too much flour or breadcrumbs. You can correct this by spraying them with a bit of cooking spray and cook another 1 minute in the air fryer.
More Sides
Looking for other side dish recipes like this? Try these:
Dinner Ideas
Do you need some inspiration for dinner tonight? Try out these recipes:
PrintRecipe
Air-Fryer Zucchini Fritters
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 8 fritters 1x
Description
Air-Fryer Zucchini Fritters are the perfect vegetarian appetizer or side dish, with such a crispy exterior and creamy interior that you may think they were pan-fried in a skillet. Making zucchini fritters in an air fryer is so simple, fast and nutritious you’ll want to add them to your weekly dinner rotation.
Ingredients
- 1 lb. zucchini (about 2 medium or 1 large)
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
- â…“ cup grated parmesan cheese
- â…“ cup breadcrumbs (Italian, fresh or Panko)
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 Tbsp. finely chopped chives, plus more for serving
- 1 tsp. Italian seasoning
- ¼ tsp. table salt, plus more for serving
- ¼ tsp. black pepper
- Lemon wedges, for serving (optional)
- cooking spray
Instructions
- Preheat an air fryer to 375F.
- While the air fryer preheats, grate the zucchini with a box grater (or use a shredder attachment on a food processor). Place the shredded zucchini in a clean kitchen towel and squeeze out as much water as possible.
- Transfer the shredded zucchini to a mixing bowl and add the egg. Gently toss to coat then add the parmesan, breadcrumbs, flour, chives, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper and stir well to combine. If the mixture feels too try, try gently squeezing the squash to release some of the water. If the mixture is too damp, add a bit more flour (1 tablespoon at a time). Form the mixture into 8 (3-inch wide and ½-inch thick) patties on a clean plate.
- When ready to cook, spray the air fryer basket and both sides of the zucchini patties with cooking spray. Carefully place the fritters in the hot air fryer basket, working in two batches if needed. Cook until golden brown on all sides and crispy, about 14 minutes, and be sure to flip the fritters halfway through cooking. Transfer the golden brown fritters to a paper-towel lined plate and sprinkle with a bit more salt, if desired. Repeat with remaining fritters. Serve the fritters garnished with more chives and lemon wedges, if desired.
Notes
- Serve air fried zucchini fritters with our Homemade Basil Pesto, Easy Sour Cream and Chive Dip, Creamy Chipotle Lime Sauce, Buffalo Ranch Sauce or Tahini Yogurt Sauce.
- Store leftover fritters in an airtight container for up to 4 days in the refrigerator. Serve them cold out of the fridge, or reheat in an oven or air fryer. Note that once reheated they may dry out.Â
- To make this recipe ahead of time, try cooking the fritters for only 10 minutes then refrigerate. When ready to eat, air fry the par-cooked zucchini fritters until golden brown, another 6 minutes.
- You can make this recipe gluten-free by using a one-to-one gluten-free flour and gluten-free breadcrumbs. To make this recipe vegan, swap in nutritional yeast for the parmesan cheese and 1 flaxseed or chia seed egg.
- If you don’t want to use chives, you can also use fresh parsley, scallions, parsley, mint or tarragon.
- Try adding garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, chili powder or dried oregano instead of (or in addition to) Italian seasoning. You can even use our Homemade Chicken Taco Seasoning.Â
- Do you want to pan-fry these instead of using the air fryer? Heat ¼ cup olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat and, working in two batches, add the patties and cook until golden brown on each side, about 2-3 minutes per side. Repeat with remaining zucchini patties, adding a bit more oil as needed.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: sides
- Method: air fryer
- Cuisine: American/Italian
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