These crispy breaded vegan zucchini fries are easy to make and simply delicious. Make these restaurant-quality appetizers easily at home in minutes. Deep-fried, air-fried, or baked, these cook up crunchy and golden brown. This fried zucchini is super flavorful dipped in marinara sauce, pizza sauce, vegan chipotle mayo, or vegan sriracha mayo.
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❤️ This recipe is
- quick and easy to make.
- egg and dairy-free.
- easy to make gluten-free.
- a healthier alternative to french fries.
🧾 Ingredients and substitutions
- Zucchini - about 1 medium zucchini or 2 small ones. They need to be small enough that they don't have large seeds forming in them yet or you will need to cut around the seeded section.
- Flour - to make the batter. You can swap this out for whole wheat, or any type of grain-based gluten-free flour. I don't recommend almond flour.
- Corn Starch - to make the zucchini fries extra crispy. You can use potato starch instead as well.
- Garlic Powder - for flavor.
- Onion Powder - for flavor.
- Salt - for flavor. Feel free to reduce the amount to suit your taste or dietary needs.
- Plain Plant-Based Milk - to mix with the batter. You can use any type that you have or simply use water instead.
- Panko Bread Crumbs - or any type of vegan bread crumb. You can also crush up the vegan stuffing and use it as bread crumbs too. You can use gluten-free bread crumbs or even corn flakes to make them gluten-free.
- Nutritional Yeast - optional for a slightly cheesy flavor. This replaces the parmesan cheese in many traditional recipes. You can also use my homemade vegan parmesan instead.
- Italian Seasoning - for flavor. You can use any type of dried herbs that you wish in its place like, basil, oregano, or parsley.
- Oil - for deep frying or spray oil if you choose to bake them instead. Any neutral flavored oil will work.
- Sauces - for dipping. Choose your favorite dipping sauce like marinara, pizza sauce, vegan ranch, vegan chipotle mayo, or vegan sriracha mayo.
🔪 Helpful tools
- Deep Fryer - or you can use a pan with about 1 inch of oil in the bottom.
- Tongs - for getting the zucchini in and out of the hot oil.
🥄 How to make vegan zucchini fries
Step 1 - Preheat your frying oil to 350° F. (If you are baking them preheat the oven to 425° F.)
Step 2 - Wash a medium-sized zucchini and cut both ends off. Then cut it into long thin French fry-shaped pieces.
Step 4 - Prepare the batter by mixing 1/2 cup flour, 1 tablespoon corn starch, 1/2 teaspoon onion powder, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a bowl. Then add 1/2 cup of plain plant-based milk and stir well until you have a smooth thick batter.
Step 5 - In a separate bowl mix 2 cups of bread crumbs, 1 tablespoon of nutritional yeast, 1 tablespoon of Italian seasoning, and 1/4 teaspoon of salt.
Step 6 - Dip each piece of cut zucchini in the batter and coat it well, then dip it into the bread crumb mixture and coat it with a layer of the bread crumb mixture.
🥘 Cooking Methods
DEEP FRY
Step 1 - Set your deep fryer to 350° F (182° C) or heat a pot of oil with at least 1 inch in the bottom.
Step 2 - Fry in batches of about 5-6 fries at a time, so they have enough room to cook evenly.
Step 3 - Deep fry for about 3 minutes until they are golden brown. Then pour it onto a paper towel-lined plate before arranging it on a plate with dipping sauce.
BAKE
Step 1 - Preheat the oven to 425° F (218° C).
Step 2 - Spray a baking sheet with a spray oil before placing the breaded fries on it, then spray the zucchini with another coating of oil before baking.
Step 3 - Bake the breaded zucchini for 10 minutes, then take them out of the oven and flip them to the other side. Put them back in the oven for 10-12 more minutes until they are golden brown for a total cook time of 20-22 minutes.
AIR FRY
Step 1 - Set the temperature to 375° F (190° C).
Step 2 - Place the zucchini fries in the air fryer so that they are separate and air can get around each piece.
Step 3 - Spray them with oil.
Step 4 - Cook for a total of 15 minutes (flipping the pieces after five minutes of cooking).
👩🏻🍳 Pro tips
- Try to cut the fries into equal-sized pieces so they cook in the same amount of time.
- Use small or medium zucchini that don't have large seeds forming in them yet.
- Serve hot, they tend to get soggy after about 1/2 hour.
- If you want another creative alternative to fries, try my recipe for tofu fries!
🍞 How to make gluten-free vegan zucchini fries
To make the vegan zucchini fries gluten-free as well, simply swap out the flour with any grain-based gluten-free flour or chickpea flour. You will also need to use a gluten-free bread crumb or crushed-up cornflakes instead of traditional breadcrumbs.
🥡 How to store and reheat zucchini fries
Refrigerate: Fried zucchini is best served hot and fresh, but it will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days in a sealed container.
Freeze: You can also store the fries in an airtight bag in the freezer for up to 3 months. You can reheat them directly from the freezer, they will just need about 5 extra minutes of baking time.
Reheating: Reheat the vegan zucchini fries on a cookie sheet in the oven at 375° F for about 10 - 15 minutes until warm.
📌 Be sure to follow me on Pinterest for new vegan recipes!
📋 Vegan zucchini fries recipe
Vegan Zucchini Fries
Ingredients
- oil for deep frying (or spray oil for baking)
- 1 medium zucchini
Batter
- 1/3 cup flour
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 cup plain plant-based milk or water
Bread crumb mixture
- 2 cups bread crumbs
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast (optional)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat your frying oil to 350° F. (If you are baking them preheat the oven to 425° F.)
- Wash a medium-sized zucchini and cut both ends off. Then cut it into long thin French fry-shaped pieces.
- Prepare the batter by mixing 1/2 cup flour, 1 tablespoon corn starch, 1/2 teaspoon onion powder, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a bowl. Then add 1/2 cup of plain plant-based milk and stir well until you have a smooth thick batter.
- In a separate bowl mix 2 cups of bread crumbs, 1 tablespoon of nutritional yeast, 1 tablespoon of Italian seasoning, and 1/4 teaspoon of salt.
- Dip each piece of cut zucchini in the batter and coat it well, then dip it into the bread crumb mixture and coat it with a layer of the bread crumb mixture.
DEEP FRY
- Set your deep fryer to 350° F (182° C) or heat a pot of oil with at least 1 inch in the bottom.
- Add about 5-6 fries to the basket at a time, so they have enough room to cook evenly.
- Deep fry for about 3 minutes until they are golden brown. Then pour it onto a paper towel-lined plate before arranging it on a plate with dipping sauce.
BAKE
- Preheat the oven to 425° F (218° C).
- Spray a cookie sheet with a spray oil before placing the breaded fries on it, then spray the zucchini with another coating of oil before baking.
- Bake the breaded zucchini for 10 minutes, then take them out of the oven and flip them to the other side. Put them back in the oven for 10-12 more minutes until they are golden brown for a total cook time of 20-22 minutes.
AIR FRY
- Set the temperature to 375° F (190° C).
- Place the zucchini fries in the air fryer so that they are separate and air can get around each piece.
- Spray them with oil.
- Cook for a total of 15 minutes (flipping the pieces after five minutes of cooking).
Notes
- Try to cut the fries into equal-sized pieces so they cook in the same amount of time.
- Use small or medium zucchini that don't have large seeds forming in them yet.
- Serve hot, they tend to get soggy after about 1/2 hour.
Nutrition
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Click the stars above or leave a comment! I'd love to hear from you!
Hi there!
I made these and they were delicious! I decided to bake them on a rack that I placed on my large sheet pan. This alleviated my need to turn them halfway through the 20-minute cooking time. Thanks so much for the recipe. I will definitely be making these again!
I'm so happy that you enjoyed the recipe, Vicki!
This recipe makes very crispy zucchini fries in the air fryer. We are very impressed by how tasty and crunchy they are.
Glad that you liked the recipe, Kristi! 🙂
These are delicious!! (I baked mine.) I wonder if you could use this batter/coating technique to make onion rings.
I'm so happy that you like them, Cheryl! Yes, you can use the same batter for onion rings too! Enjoy! 🙂
I love this. Thank you for the recipe. I dont know if you know this helpful hint but if you put your fried food on a cooling rack over the kitchen sink your fried goodies will stay crispy and not become soft from being on a paper towel lined plate. It Works 😊 blessings!
You're welcome! I'm glad that you like it! That sounds like a cool trick to try. Thanks! 🙂
If you want to prepare and freeze them for another day, would you do that before or after frying/baking?
I have not tested it, but I think that I would freeze them before frying.
Not sure how you get 8 servings out of one medium zucchini. Just how big are your zukes? I'm getting ready to make these, and I know they will be delicious. But I'm cooking up 4 of them.
Yum 🙏🏽☺️
🙂