Zucchini is one of my favorite summer vegetables. It’s cheap (especially if you have a friend or neighbor who is growing it), versatile, and totally delicious. So if you’re looking for extra ways to use up your summer zucchini, you’ve got to give these Baked Zucchini Fries a try. They’re crispy on the outside but creamy and delicious on the inside! Eat them plain or dip them into your favorite pizza sauce or marinara sauce.
Originally posted 7-28-2012, updated 8-12-2022.
Are Zucchini Fries Crispy?
Zucchini is a high water content vegetable, so it tends to get very soft when cooked. To counteract that, we’ve cut the zucchini into smaller pieces to allow for more evaporation and coated the fries in a crispy combination of panko breadcrumbs and Parmesan. The result is a zucchini fry that is crispy and tasty on the outside, but soft and creamy on the inside.
Do I Have to Use Panko?
I highly suggest sticking with panko breadcrumbs here instead of regular breadcrumbs because their light texture and larger pieces help make the zucchini fries extra crispy. Regular breadcrumbs tend to be smaller pieces and a bit more dense, which will produce a harder shell rather than a light, crispy coating.
Make Them Gluten-Free
To make these zucchini fries gluten-free you’ll need to make two swaps. Use a 1:1 gluten-free flour, potato flour, or arrowroot flour to dredge the zucchini before the eggwash, then use gluten-free panko crumbs for the final coating. I do not suggest using almond flour or coconut flour in place of the all-purpose flour because they will not absorb moisture as well as the all-purpose flour.
How Are the Leftovers?
The one caveat with these Baked Zucchini Fries is that they’re definitely best right when they come out of the oven. After they’re stored in the refrigerator the breading will absorb moisture and become soft. That’s not to say that I wouldn’t still totally gobble them up after reheating, but you definitely won’t get the same texture experience.
Baked Zucchini Fries
Servings 4Ingredients
- 1 lb. zucchini ($1.69)
- 2 large eggs ($0.39)
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs ($0.50)
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan ($0.36)
- 1 Tbsp Italian seasoning ($0.30)
- 1/2 tsp salt, divided ($0.03)
- 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour ($0.04)
- 1/2 cup pizza sauce (for serving) ($0.50)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425ºF. Slice the zucchini into matchsticks that are ½-inch wide and 3-inches long. Set the zucchini aside.
- Whisk the eggs in a bowl. In a separate bowl, stir together the panko, Parmesan, Italian seasoning, and ¼ tsp salt.
- Add the sliced zucchini to a large bowl. Sprinkle the all-purpose flour and remaining ¼ tsp salt over the zucchini. Toss the zucchini until they are evenly coated in flour.
- Place wire cooling racks over a large baking sheet to lift the zucchini pieces and allow airflow underneath. Bread the zucchini slices by briefly dipping them in the whisked egg, letting the excess run off, then coating them in the panko-Parmesan mixture.
- Place the breaded zucchini on the wire racks with a small amount of space between each piece to allow for airflow.
- Bake the breaded zucchini fries for 20 minutes, or until they are golden brown and crispy.
- Serve immediately with pizza sauce for dipping.
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Nutrition
How to Make Zucchini Fries – Step By Step Photos
Preheat the oven to 425ºF. Slice about one pound of zucchini into ½-inch thick matchsticks (about 3-inches long).
Whisk two eggs in a bowl. In a separate bowl, stir together 1 cup panko breadcrumbs, ¼ cup grated Parmesan, 1 Tbsp Italian seasoning, and ¼ tsp salt.
Place the sliced zucchini in a large bowl and sprinkle with ¼ tsp salt and 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour. Toss the zucchini until they are evenly coated in flour.
Place two wire cooling racks over a large baking sheet. Begin to bread the zucchini fries by first briefly dipping them in whisked egg, allowing the excess to drip off, then coating them in the panko-Parmesan mixture. To make this process faster, I usually dip 2-3 at a time into the eggwash.
Place the breaded zucchini on the wire racks with a little space between each piece.
Bake the zucchini fries for about 20 minutes in the fully preheated 425ºF oven or until they are golden brown and crispy. Allow the fries to cool for a couple of minutes before wiggling them loose from the rack. If any of the fries are stuck, use a fork to scoop under the fry and lift it up off the rack.
Serve the zucchini fries with pizza sauce or marinara for dipping!
Hi Beth
I work with Microplane and we are interested in using the recipe and your photos in some marketing materials.
Would you care to contact me if you’re interested?
Thank you!
Fantastic recipe and step by step images! We love it so much that we included it in a recipe roundup of our favourites. It links back to this page so that others can come and visit. Great job.
http://cookerynation.com/crunchy-breaded-recipe-roundup/
Could you prep a ton of these and freeze them before baking so they are ready to just toss in the oven?
I’m not sure if the breading will hold up to freezing without getting soggy or falling off the fries.
Perfeito
I haven’t tried your recipe yet for these, but I have tried several of your recipes now, and absolutely love them all. I have tried other recipes for these, and I prefer them, over French fries any day. Have also made them with parsnips, very good.
These are great done in an air fryer. Put them in at 400 for 15-20 minutes and they come out nice and crispy. They can also be reheated in the air fryer and keep their crispyness!
I made these tonight for the first time. Absolutely delicious and easy. The cookie drying rack is genius!
I made these last night for dinner. They were excellent. I baked them for 20 minutes rather than 15. I’ll do it for 25 next time as I like the cheese to get brown. I was surprised how well the cheese and crumbs held on.
I made these a few hours ago, had a nap, and woke up to my husband eating these fries from the pan:
Me: Please don’t eat all of those.
Him: I already did.
Me: You’re lying, I see you eating them from the pan.
Him: Those are just the crumbs.
Me: Oh my goodness you poophead!
Him: They were a hit!
Hahahaha I guess that’s a good thing? :)
I made these with dinner tonight and they’re so good! Nice and crunchy, plenty of flavor and the breading stays on great. My pan wasn’t big enough though or I had too much zucchini because I had a lot left over, enough to do another batch. Not a bad thing!
These were great. A total hit with everyone in my house (including children) I substituted breadcrumbs for panko and served them warm. They were crunchy and so yummy. Will definitely make these again. Thanks for sharing
Love this recipe! I ended up cutting some of mine into about 1/4 inch rounds instead of strips and it made them even more like crunchy fries!
I made a double batch last night because I have a ton of zucchini in my garden right now. The leftovers were of course limp and squishy coming out of the fridge but they crisped up nicely after a few minutes in the toaster oven set to grill.
Do you think you could freeze these before you bake them off? I’d like to make a big batch and just pull out the ones I will then bake and eat. Has anyone tried this?
I don’t think that would work out well with this recipe because zucchini are a high moisture vegetable and high moisture vegetables tend to get mushy upon thawing. The plant cells burst when the water in them freezes, then it seeps out once thawed. So you’d probably end up with watery, mushy fries. :(
Yum, Yum, YUM!!! Like you, these have been on my “to cook” list for a long time and finally was inspired to try them last night. The whole family enjoyed them – my 7 y/o daughter asked for seconds! I cut the “fries” in half for the kids’ sake. I am slow in nature (plus I cut them in half), so the dipping in egg and bread crumb step added more a few minutes to prep time. Easy to follow recipe, THANK YOU for sharing!