If you are a big fan of fried zucchini, you’ll love this lightened up recipe for Air Fryer Zucchini Fries. All the taste and crispiness you love, without the oil and mess!
Contains affiliate links
When I was a teenager I worked in an authentic Italian restaurant. We served the most amazing fried zucchini. It was long and thin zucchini strips deep fried with a light and crispy breading, served with homemade marinara sauce.
Divine! But it was definitely an indulgence, fried in all that oil.
I often think of that deliciously crispy zucchini, so when I have a craving I make this lightened up version in my air fryer.
It’s just as crispy and super easy to make without the mess of frying oil. I know you’ll love it too!
Find more air fryer recipes HERE!
What you’ll need
- Air Fryer- I love my Cosori TurboBlaze Air Fryer! It’s so user friendly and the basket is dishwasher safe for easy clean up
- 1 large zucchini or 2 medium- this really depends on how many zucchini fries you want, so feel free to use as many as you want
- Panko breadcrumbs- I prefer panko breadcrumbs because they are result in a crispier breading, but you can substitute regular breadcrumbs
- Grated Parmesan cheese- to mix in with the panko breadcrumbs for the breading
- Almond flour- I love the nutty taste of almond flour on the fries, but you can use all purpose flour or whole wheat. Use whatever you have on hand.
- Seasonings to mix with the flour- Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder
- Eggs- helps the breading stick
- Neutral oil for spraying, such as canola or avocado or use nonstick cooking spray- this makes the fries extra crispy!
- Marinara sauce for dipping
How to make it
Cut zucchini into 3 inch sticks. Try to cut the stick into a medium thickness; not too thin or they will fall apart, but not too thick or they will take longer to cook.
Next, set up a dredging station with 3 shallow bowls.
In the first bowl, add the flour, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder. Mix together.
In the second bowl, add the eggs and whisk until frothy.
In the third bowl, add the breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese. Mix together.
Prepare the zucchini sticks. Dip each zucchini stick into the flour mixture, then the eggs, finish with the breadcrumbs, coating well on all sides in each bowl. Be sure to press the breadcrumbs into the zucchini so they stick.
Add the stick in to the air fryer basket in a single layer.
Repeat with the remaining zucchini sticks. Do not crowd the basket. (work in batches) Spray the zucchini with oil or nonstick cooking spray on top.
Air fry at 400°F for 10 minutes, flipping halfway at 5 minutes, or until crispy on the outside and tender on the inside.
Repeat with the remaining zucchini fries.
Sprinkle the hot zucchini fries with more parmesan cheese and serve with marinara sauce for dipping. Enjoy!
Did you enjoy this recipe?
Take a picture and tag me @StephGigliotti on social media and
#StephRealLife. I would absolutely love to see your finished dish!
Please leave a 5-star rating in the recipe card below and/or a review in the comment section.
How to reheat
If you have any leftovers, store in an airtight container in the fridge up to 3 days.
When you are ready to enjoy your zucchini fries, place them in the air fryer, spray with a touch of oil and air fry at 400 degrees F for 2-4 minutes until crispy and heated through.
Try these air fryer recipes
- Chili Lime Shrimp
- Reuben Egg Rolls
- Chicken and Veggies
- Hoisin Glazed Salmon
- Buffalo Wings
- Crispy Chickpeas
Sign up for our newsletter to get new recipes sent right to your inbox! Follow along with me on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube , Pinterest, and TikTok.
Air Fryer Zucchini Fries
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 large zucchini or 2 medium
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 cup almond flour or all purpose flour
- 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 3 eggs
- Neutral oil for spraying such as canola or avocado or use nonstick cooking spray
- Marinara sauce for dipping
Instructions
- Cut zucchini into 3 inch sticks. Try to cut the stick into a medium thickness; not too thin or they will fall apart, but not too thick or they will take longer to cook.
- Next, set up a dredging station with 3 shallow bowls.
- In the first bowl, add the flour, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder. Mix together.
- In the second bowl, add the eggs and whisk until frothy.
- In the third bowl, add the breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese. Mix together.
- Prepare the zucchini sticks. Dip each zucchini stick into the flour mixture, then the eggs, finish with the breadcrumbs, coating well on all sides in each bowl. Be sure to press the breadcrumbs into the zucchini so they stick.
- Add the stick in to the air fryer basket in a single layer.
- Repeat with the remaining zucchini sticks. Do not crowd the basket. (work in batches) Spray the zucchini with oil or nonstick cooking spray on top.
- Air fry at 400°F for 10 minutes, flipping halfway at 5 minutes, or until crispy on the outside and tender on the inside.
- Repeat with the remaining zucchini fries.
- Sprinkle the hot zucchini fries with more parmesan cheese and serve with marinara sauce for dipping. Enjoy!
Tried this Zucchini recipe and loved it! Unfortunately, the print function isn’t working and I’d like to save the recipe to my cookbook.
HI Linda, click the “print recipe” option at the top of the post and then on the page that pops up click the gray “pint recipe” button at the top of the page, don’t click the green one in the middle of the page and you should be able to print with no issues. 🙂 Hope that helps!
Forgot to rate recipe!
Thank you!