5 Ingredient Southern Fried Zucchini Fritters

When the zucchini from your garden begins to outnumber the number of times you check your phone each day, it’s time to get frying some fritters!

This 5 ingredient southern fried zucchini fritter recipe makes great use of that bumper crop of zucchini. The fritters fry up very light, and are dusted with the tiniest pinch of Malden sea salt. These are hearty little snacks that go well with an ice cold Margarita, or my latest shaker libation, a Sloppy Rita with butter-griddled pineapple.

The last time I specified self-rising flour in a recipe, I received a bunch of emails asking me what exactly self-rising flour was. I am linking to several brands herein for easy online purchase. And to answer the original question, self-rising flour is flour that has a leavening agent already added. In my house, we thank the Lord for self-rising flour!

When I said I was not turning on my oven unless there was some large cash prize involved, I meant it. The stove top however, well for these 5 Ingredient Southern Fried Zucchini Fritters anyway, I will go that far. These are little yummy bombs of hidden and sneaky green vegetable…fried. With only 5 ingredients, you should be able to muster the wee bit of energy required to cook these up.

The pictures of the fritters shown here were never intended to be the ones I would upload to NEA. In fact, both the cocktail that I served these alongside as well as the fritters themselves were not blog-worthy recipes I didn’t think. But, I have been urged otherwise now that I have made and served them so many times.

So, they could be prettier, but I guess because it is 100+ degrees just now in Charleston, South Carolina, I am not caring too much how they look. 5 Ingredient Southern Fried Zucchini Fritters are just dang good!

This is the new fan favorite in my house for the best way to put the summer zucchini surplus to use…

Just one taste isn’t enough when it comes to hot and crispy zucchini fritters. They’re ADDICTIVE. Seriously ADDICTIVE. I made a batch tonight in fact to accompany a round of Sloppy Rita’s on the front porch. Most recipe methods I read through instruct you to form patties. The photos that accompany these recipes show perfectly shapen zucchini pancakes. Historically, American southern and westward pioneer cooking was rough and ready. Therefore, and to be true to form, I use two spoons to ‘pone’ or drop the batter. My fritters are the original ‘dodger,’ a regional term given to the fritter or the more widely known hushpuppy. What I end up with are unsophisticated croquette or Beignet-looking two-bite snacks. And, they are perfect despite looking imperfect. They may not be pretty, but damn these little things are good.

Gang, THESE ‘LIL FRITTERS SCREAM SUMMER…

Freshly grated garden zucchini forms a savory taste alliance with sliced scallions, flour, and eggs. I pan-fry in cast iron and serve luke-warm with a pinch of flakey Malden salt. Seriously, JUST A PINCH. They also go well with dollops of sour cream. The key to a perfect zucchini fritter is making sure the zucchini you grate fresh is essentially squeezed of almost all its water. Of course, we know we will never get grated zucchini void of all of its water, but we get close following my method below. Gang, these ‘lil fritters scream summer….

Everyone’s got their superheros…right now, mine is the humble zucchini.

Serve these two-bite southern fried fritters as appetizers, side dishes, or belly filling snacks with cocktails. They also work well atop a big tossed salad and therefor, as a light lunch or dinner entrée. I once served them tossed into table top bread baskets (35 baskets to be precise!) filled with an assortment of homemade corn bread, banana bread, and my homemade buttermilk bread for a shower. They are especially lovely during the hot summer months when fresh zucchini is at its peak. If you want to get creative, I could see adding corn or crumbled Feta cheese to the batter. These fry up light, airy, and crispy. Watcha waiting for?

All images and text ©Jenny DeRemer for Not Entirely Average, LLC

5 Ingredient Southern Fried Zucchini Fritters

Jenny from Not Entirely Average

When the zucchini from your garden begins to outnumber the number of times you check your phone each day, it's time to get frying some fritters! 

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Servings: 6 servings, 2 fritters per serving

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Prep Time 10 mins

Cook Time 20 mins

Total Time 30 mins

Course Appetizer, Main Course, Side Dish, Soup

Cuisine American

Servings 6 servings, 2 fritters per serving

Calories 177 kcal

Equipment

• grater
• sheet pan with cooling rack
• cast iron skillet

Ingredients

 

Ingredients for 5 Ingredient Southern Fried Zucchini Fritters

• 4 1/2 cups fresh grated zucchini, about 4 medium length zucchinis
• 3/4 cup self-rising flour I am using Old School brand because it performs consistently well for every recipe I make with it
• 2 extra large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 cup thinly sliced scallions, light and dark green parts only, about 4 scallions save scraps for homemade chicken or turkey stock by placing in a dedicated 'vegetable scrap bag' in your freezer
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup vegetable oil

** optional

• pinch Malden sea salt or other flakey sea salt

Instructions

 

The Method

• Place a rack over a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet. Place into a preheated 200°F oven.
• Place grated zucchini in a sieve over a bowl and let stand 10 minutes. Using a clean kitchen towel over the sink, transfer the semi-drained zucchini and twist the ends tightly to squeeze out as much liquid as possible from zucchini.
• In a medium sized bowl, add the flour and eggs. Use the tines of a fork to stir until combined. Batter will be very thick and difficult to stir. Thoroughly incorporate the drained zucchini and sliced scallions. The moisture left in the zucchini will loosen the batter.
• Warm the oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Working in batches, use two spoons to ‘pone’ or push the batter in heaping tablespoon-sized mounds to the hot skillet, spacing fritters so they do not touch. The fritters will rise to the top and float as they cook. Fry until golden brown and crisp, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Sprinkle with a tiny pinch of Malden sea salt and remove to rack on baking sheet in oven to keep warm.
• Repeat with remaining batter, adding more oil to skillet if necessary between batches.
• Serve warm in paper-lined appetizer boats. May be served simply with the flakey salt or also with a dollop of sour cream.

Nutrition

Serving: 1servingsCalories: 177kcalCarbohydrates: 16gProtein: 5gFat: 11gSaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 55mgSodium: 31mgPotassium: 325mgFiber: 2gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 431IUVitamin C: 20mgCalcium: 37mgIron: 1mg

Keyword 30 minutes, appetizer, Beignet, croquette, dodger, fritter, hushpuppy, salad topper, side dish, snack, vegetarian appetizer, zucchini

Tried this recipe?Let me know how it was!