These zucchini fritters are a fabulous summer recipe, with salty feta and mint for some Mediterranean flair. Serve them as a side dish, appetizer, or even a light dinner.
Easy Zucchini Fritters Recipe
If your garden is overflowing with zucchini, you probably have zucchini bread and zucchini boats on the menu a lot. But if you’re looking for something a little different (and especially if your garden is also overflowing with mint), these zucchini fritters are perfect. They pair well with grilled foods and I always serve them with some homemade Tzatziki sauce for dipping. Unlike traditional zucchini fritters, this version is inspired by Greek flavors, with salty feta, fresh mint, and cumin.
Why These Zucchini Fritters Are a Favorite
Every summer, I find myself making these zucchini fritters on repeat. The recipe is from Lisa Leake’s 100 Days of Real Food on a Budget. I love that the book is filled with simple tips and recipes to help cut out processed food without breaking the bank. These fritters, for example, cost about $1.66 per serving, and even less if you grow your own zucchini and mint!
- Perfect for zucchini season: This is the time of year when I’m always looking for ways to incorporate zucchini into our meals!
- Crispy without deep frying: Pan frying in just a small amount of oil yields golden, crispy fritters.
- Big Mediterranean-inspired flavor: Feta, mint, and cumin give these fritters so much flavor, you really don’t even need to pair them with a dipping sauce.
- Lots of serving options: Zucchini fritters work as an appetizer, side dish, or a main dish if you top them with tomato salad.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Below are the ingredients for these zucchini fritters. See the recipe card for exact measurements.
- Zucchini: Medium zucchini work best because they don’t have large seeds and have a mild flavor.
- Eggs work with the flour to bind the fritters together.
- Feta cheese adds salty, tangy flavor.
- Yellow onion gives the fritters a savory flavor.
- Fresh mint: I love the bright, fresh flavor that mint adds, but dill, basil, or parsley would also work.
- Seasonings: Ground cumin, kosher salt, and black pepper.
- Whole wheat flour: Or your favorite gluten-free flour blend.
- Extra-virgin olive oil for cooking the fritters.
How to Make Zucchini Fritters
The complete instructions are in the recipe card, but here’s a quick overview.
- Shred the zucchini: Grate the zucchini using the large holes of a box grater or a food processor fitted with the shredding attachment.
- Remove the moisture: Wrap the shredded zucchini in a clean kitchen towel and squeeze out as much liquid as possible.
- Mix the batter: In a large bowl, combine the zucchini with the eggs, feta, onion, mint, cumin, salt, and pepper. Stir in the flour until everything is evenly combined.
- Cook the fritters: Heat a teaspoon of olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Scoop about 1/4 cup of the mixture into the pan for each fritter and gently flatten with the back of the measuring cup.
- Flip and finish: Cook for 3 to 5 minutes per side, until golden brown and cooked through. Repeat with the remaining batter, adding more oil as needed.
Zucchini Fritters With Feta and Mint
Ingredients
- 3 medium zucchini, about 1½ pounds
- 2 large eggs, whisked
- ½ cup crumbled feta cheese
- ¼ cup diced yellow onion
- ⅓ cup fresh mint leaves, chopped
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Ground black pepper
- 1 cup whole wheat flour, use cup4cup for gluten-free
- 4 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Shred the zucchini using the largest holes on a cheese grater (or a food processor with a shredding disk).
- Use a clean kitchen towel to squeeze out as much liquid from the zucchini as you can (discard the liquid).
- Transfer to a large bowl and stir in the eggs, feta, mint, onion, cumin, salt, and pepper to taste.
- Stir in the flour.
- In a large nonstick skillet, heat 1 teaspoon olive oil over medium-low heat.
- Scoop out the zucchini mixture using a ¼-cup measure and drop it into the pan, repeating to make as many patties as will fit in the skillet, about 4 at a time.
- Gently flatten the patties with the back of the measuring cup and cook until golden brown on both sides and cooked all the way through, 3 to 5 minutes per side.
- Repeat to make the rest of the fritters.
Last Step:
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Tips from Gina’s Test Kitchen
- Don’t skip squeezing the zucchini: Zucchini holds a lot of water, and removing it is the secret to crisp fritters. I squeeze the shredded zucchini until it almost feels dry to the touch.
- Use medium-low heat: Just like with pancakes, cooking zucchini fritters at a higher heat will give you fritters that are dark on the outside, but still raw in the center.
- Flatten the fritters: I like to use the bottom of a measuring cup to flatten the fritters after I add the batter to the skillet, which helps the center cook through.
- Cook in batches: If you crowd the skillet, the fritters will be hard to flip and they’re also likely to steam and be soft, instead of getting crispy.
Serving Suggestions
If you’re serving these zucchini fritters as a side, they’d pair well with any of these dishes.
Storage and Reheating
- Refrigerator: Store leftover zucchini fritters in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
- Freezer: Freeze cooked fritters in a single layer, then transfer to a freezer-safe bag for up to 2 months.
- To reheat: Warm in a skillet, air fryer, or 375°F oven until heated through and crispy again. The microwave works too, but they won’t be crispy.
More Zucchini Recipes You’ll Love
Check out my collection of zucchini recipes or try one of these popular recipes:
Try apricot preserves,sour cream,and/or a tart apple sauce on top.
How can you cook fritters with 1 tsp of oil?
Can grated Parmesan be substituted for the Feta?
Absolutely delicious!!
I love this recipe!
I made them with dill, green onions and uncooked instant oats. Then, I baked them after spraying the tops with EVOO so they would brown.
Was delicious with a nice chewy mouth feel.
Perfect!
I added a grated carrot and sunflower seeds.Lovely.
OH MY GOODNESS! These were absolutely divine! While I substituted all purpose flour for the wheat flour and reduced the cumin by half, these were just perfect. My husband is Turkish, and it can be a struggle to make something resembling a Turkish dish that he will enjoy. I confess it was so delicious that by my 2nd helping I no longer cared if he liked it. I’d be happy to eat all of them myself. Turned out I had to share after all, because he loved them too!
Family favorite.
Easy and delicious. I added parsley and garlic instead of mint (market was out) and added some oregano.
My teens have already requested these fritters again.
Awesome!!
I love these! Although I should call mine “kitchen sink fritters” because I add to the zucchini whatever I feel like. Today I used shallots, fresh parsley, cheddar, cumin, paprika, a few red pepper flakes and a bit of hot sauce. To get a lot of moisture out of the zucchini I sprinkle a bit of salt on it and put it in a sieve. I let it sit for a while and then squeeze the heck out of it. I needed only 1/4 cup flour after getting so much moisture out. Thank you for this yummy recipe inspiration!
These were so easy and delicious. I was able to freeze them and take them out as I needed to make them.
I was just wondering that as I’m already making Gina’s bread. And have too much zucchini. Thanks for noting that
What should the texture be? they seem uncooked even after 3x longer than recommended. Super crispy on the outside but batter like on inside. I used GF flour. I made them very very thin, and they still turned out mushy inside.
Hi. These were absolutely delicious. I had to omit the onions became my husband can’t eat them. I instead grated 3 cloves of garlic, added a little salt and some baking powder. The turned out very light and fluffy. I didn’t over mix them. It was like the texture of zucchini muffins batter. Fried them with vegetable and grape seed oil.
Oh my word…..these are delicious and very easy . They freeze well also. For a change up I tried garlic instead of onion and just as delicious!
Could you put these in the oven?
Can these be baked in an air fryer instead? If so, what would you recommend?
They look amazing!!!
I would definitely use the air fryer. Just not sure how hot or how long to fry them. Have to experiment in small batches.
I realize your comment and question is a few years old, but I did do these in the air fryer and they came out so well. If you Google zucchini fritters in air fryer and use this recipe, I’m sure they will be great!
This was OK, but I wouldn’t make it again. It was really bland.
Whoops. Def did not get enough water out. Also used rye flour which just made for a wet mess. Sorta saved it by finishing it in the over….still gloopy but Ill figure something out. I may actually try to dry the zucchini out in the over before I try this again.
I like the recipes very easy and healthy
Can I freeze a batch of cooked fritters? If yes, how long would they last in the freezer?
Thank you! 🙂
Joanna
These are incredible! I’m used to making the zucchini meatballs, which my husband loves, but yesterday I tried this instead and he said that now he has a new favorite zucchini recipe! I follow the recipe, but I added Kalamata olives to the batter and it really brought the flavor. I think this would probably freeze very well too
These were awesome! My picky husband said “i think i would’ve even liked these as a kid!”
That’s awesome!!!
These were good, but I didn’t love. The flavours were there but not the texture, so maybe that’s on me. I substituted the mint for parsley since I saw recommendations in the reviews, and I also added a few more spices like chilly powder and this elote seasoning. It made about 14 fritters.
This was a great appetizer before serving the Skinnytaste Greek Mac and Cheese.
this was awesome! I did decrease the flour and substituted with Italian Bread crumbs…. Delish!!
I used leftover ingredients from meals I prepared last week for an absolutely delicious and last minute/quick side dish! It ended up being the star of the show. Thanks for another great recipe!
My husband and I liked these but I must have done something wrong. I did halve the recipes since there are only of us. The batter was extremely thick, and when I measured the 1/4 cup in the skillet we ended up with only 4 fritters instead of 8. Maybe I squeezed out too much water from the zucchini(?) If anyone has any suggestions I’d appreciate reading them.
Next time, and there will be one, I will add more seasonings – maybe a little cayenne pepper or Cajun seasoning.
I have saved recipes but can’t find where they go!
How do I retrieve them?
Thanks
Really good and easy. Nice Greek flare to them, would be good with tzatziki! Great for breakfast, lunch and dinner
Yes! https://www.skinnytaste.com/skinny-tzatziki/
Another winner! I did substitute the mint for chives and parsley because that’s what I had on hand. My husband absolutely loved these.
These are delicious I didn’t make the sauce to go with them, just had them with the Greek salad for my lunches last week, but if salt and cracked pepper on top was great. I will make these again, would like a version without flour to reduce carbs though not sure what to exchange it with.
Loved these. Used dill because it’s my fav. Also, used the leftover zucchini from the veggie lasagna zucchini boats. Yummo.
Just made these and tried the sour cream with applesauce suggestion from RH above – weirdly good! Thank you for suggesting that because these needing something on top and that did it!
I feel like an outlier on this one – I didn’t rate these fritters at all. They’re a little too bland, all I could taste was the mint. After the first round of fritters, I tried to improve their flavour by upping the amount of fetta and add some spices but it’s like these things were utterly resistant to tasting half decent.
If making these, I’d suggest pairing with a different sauce (probably something with a bit of kick) as I felt like tzatziki is a bit too much ‘more of the same’, flavour-wise, Also, make sure your batter is as thin as possible in the skillet or else they won’t cook through.
I totally agree with you! We have never tried a skinny taste recipe we didn’t like until now. They were super bland and I don’t think the middles were cooked fully. The mint and cumin combo didn’t work for me – maybe chive and parsley with garlic would be better. The crustless zucchini pie though was amazing! Next time I have zucchini to use up I will do that instead
I am another outlier. We found them bland and didn’t like the texture. Served it with a basil yogurt sauce which helped some.
Should I make the patties and freeze them uncooked, or cook all the way and freeze?
P.S. I love your cookbooks and website. Thank you!!
Have you ever tried these with eggplant instead of zucchini?
These fritters look absolutely amazing! Thank you so much for this recipe, I can’t wait to try it!
Delicious! Used an ice cream scoop for measuring. Added a 0 point sauce that made all the difference. Fritter Sauce: 3T Fat-free Greek Yogurt, 1/2 tsp dill weed, 2 tsp capers, 1 tsp caper juice, 1 tsp lemon juice.
I made these and they came out well. A sprinkle of feta makes it super yummy! These were also good as left-overs.
These are delish and easy to make. I added the dill and we had them with tzatziki on the side. I followed the recipe exactly as written. Next time I would probably use less than 1/4 cup and flatten them out way more (like 3 in a pan instead of 4) to make them more fritter like and less cake like. Using the 1/4 cup yielded about 11 thicker consistency fritters. That’s just a personal preference though!
These were so good. Like other commentors, I left out the mint. We ate them like latkes—with sour cream and applesauce. Sounds gross, but it’s delicious! Thank you for another great one.
made these tonight,,, delicious and easy
Delicious! I didn’t have feta so I substituted Parmesan cheese. I also used basil instead of mint.
Absolutely delicious! Made them on the non-stick griddle with just a spritz of oil! Froze the leftovers, can’t wait to pull them out and have more! Definitely a go to recipe! Thanks!
Could you use the air-fryer to make this instead of all that oil?
Even my husband who doesn’t like zucchini and my 3 year old ate these. Yum.
My whole family enjoyed these fritters, even my child with an aversion to green vegetables.
They are light and not greasy.
Great combination of flavors.
Loved this recipe. Zucchini are 50 cents a kilo in Greece and they fed five of us! So good with tzatziki! X
Great flavour. Leftovers were even better.
So delicious! I highly recommend this recipe.
How do you feel about baking these instead of pan frying?
Just made these and they are a huge hit in my house. Super easy and delicious.
These were delicious! I didn’t have Feta so I used low-fat mozzarella, and they were wonderful! I also reheated them in my air fryer and they crisped up even better! Will definitely be making these again. Kudos, Gina!
About how many cups of shredded zucchini does it take. I have some frozen. Thanks!
These were good. I like mint, however I did not like it in this recipe. Next time I’ll do basil or leave herbs out altogether.
Want to make these but don’t know if the family will like. How Ds they reheated? Will the batter last in fridge?
Hi Gina –
Please forgive my impertinence but may I suggest something re: your site, not only your site but other food/cooking sites:
A place to keep notes for “that” recipe.
A site specific “Recipe Box”.
You are one of the few cooking sites that I even bother with because I like your intelligence & your talent. I also have 2 of your cookbooks. Your recipes are excellent & bloody yummy!. Hard to say of others when they “try” to make their healthy food tasty falling far short of your creativity. It’s either you or Martha Stewart that I continually go to because I know that the recipes will be brilliant & beautiful.
Also, is there any chance that you may be related to the 40ies Austrian film & theater actor Oscar Homolka?
Thanks & regards.
I made these for dinner last night, along with your homemade tzatziki sauce. They were so yummy! The sauce was awesome too! Great way to use up fresh zucchini, especially the ones that grow a little too large before harvesting them! Thanks for the recipe. I love so many of your recipes. Thanks for helping my household eat healthy!
I made these tonight and loved them.. Didn’t have feta and so left out the cheese – still delicious. Thanks!
These were good. I like meant in general but did not particularly care for it in this recipe. I think I would use basil or leave it without an herb.
Just finished making these and substituted mint for parsley. Parsley is subtle that it allows you to taste all the other ingredients. They they were a bit doughy in the middle so make sure to flatten them. Despite that, they were deliscious – I loved the flavours!!!
Is this a fat free feta in your points calculation, or regular feta?
Regular.
This looks fab. I was going to make them to bring to a party on Friday. Do you think I could make them at home and then re-warm them in the oven at the party?
Sure
Any advice to make these dairy free?
I would just leave out the Feta.
Thank you so much for a recipe that includes the weight for the zucchini. They vary so much in size, it is hard when only a quantity is given. That said, i must remember to make these again in the winter, when zucchini are in season in FL.
Peggy, making these tonight using yellow zucchini and basil (not a mint fan in savory foods). Will let you all know how they turn out. I find, besides the skin color, there is no difference between yellow and green zucchini.
Yes, I was thinking of trying basil as well! Please post your outcome.
I would say zucchini or yellow squash would work the same in this recipe. Totally making this tonight
for dinner. I have a glut of dill growing so I’ll be using that in place of mint. Yum!
When do we add the mint??
Oops, that’s in step 3.
Would gold/yellow zucchini work in the recipe? Can’t wait to try these!
Can I replace the mint with anything else? Would it make a huge difference in taste if I leave it out?
You can use fresh dill instead.
I must say I have purchased too many cookbooks to count but I rate yours as the absolute best. I am loving your site, your cookbooks and your recipes. I am tweaking your meal plans to fit my needs a little and they are perfect. Thank you so much!!!
Trying these tonight with the Greek Turkey Meatballs! About how many fritter does the recipe make?
About 16 fritters.
4 cups of gluten free? That sounds like way too much?
Its a brand of flour
Can you use bisquick or regular flour in place of whole wheat?.
Can I use almond flour?
I have not tried, but it may be fine!
Gina, I haven’t been getting your daily emails for the past couple of weeks? Am not sure what has changed. Should I just subscribe again?
If you have a different email, try that and see if you get them.
Hi Mary, I was having the same problem. I checked my junk mailbox and my computer was throwing them in there where I would never see them! If you haven’t changed your email address, check your junk email box.
Would these work in the air fryer?
No, the batter is too loose.
I reheat in the airfryer and they are delicious!