I don’t know who said it, but I really like the quote “if cauliflower can be pizza, then you can be anything you want!”. It is pretty much the same story here with these fries. Of course, they do not taste like potatoes and this is also not a goal, but they sure are delicious and crunchy (well, for a while at least) and I like them much more than french fries.
I don’t know what it is like where you live, but here in Estonia at one point in the summer, we all have way too many zucchinis. This is one of the ways to eat them!
In the middle of the summer, I usually prepare this recipe when I have some overgrown zucchinis brought to me – if the same happens to you, just remove the seedy and spongy part and the outer layer of firm flesh works well. If I have an outside kitchen available, and this also usually happens in the middle of the summer, I panfry the zucchinis in quite a bit of oil. Panfrying also means that more fat is used (I’m not saying fat is bad, it is super necessary for us, and I am not avoiding it by any means, but too much of anything is never a good thing) and that the fat is splattering all over my kitchen, which results in more time spent on cleaning. I don’t like cleaning. Like at all. But I do like a clean house, so whenever I can, I just avoid making a mess in the first place.
So, here is when the oven comes into play and in cooperation with oil in a spray bottle, it does a fairly good job of cooking crispy little logs out of the zucchini. I am 99% sure that the air fryer would give good results too, but as I don’t have one, I can’t give you cooking time in there. From what I have heard about air fryers, the cooking time there is probably shorter. A question for all of you who have air fryers – does it make sense to get one?
Zucchini Fries
Cooking time: 40 minutes
Ingredients:
1 zucchini
1 oz (vegan) parmesan cheese, finely grated
1 oz panko breadcrumbs
1 tsp oregano
½ oz plain flour
1 egg OR vegan substitute
Salt + pepper, to taste
Oil in a spray bottle
Instructions:
Cut the zucchini lengthwise into 3, and all the pieces into 6-8 long slices. Salt the slices and set them aside for 15 minutes
Mix parmesan, breadcrumbs, oregano, salt, and pepper.
In another bowl beat the egg or add the egg substitute.
In a third bowl add the plain flour.
Preheat the oven to 400F with the fan on (alternatively air fryer would work well here) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Pat the zucchini logs dry with a kitchen towel and cover them all lightly with flour.
Then lift the zucchini slices into the egg and finally cover with bread crumb mixture. Of course, you can do this in batches.
Place the “fries” on the baking sheet, so they are not touching. Spray with a thin layer of oil.
Bake for 10 minutes, then turn them over and bake for 10 more minutes until they are nice and crispy.
Enjoy immediately as the crunch will turn into a soggy mess over time.
By Kadri Raig
Kadri is a food blogger and yoga teacher from Estonia. She loves to spend time in the kitchen, but most of her recipes are simple and don’t take more than 20 minutes of active cooking time. She thinks that everybody can find time to cook healthy food at home, it is just a question of planning. "I work in an office full time, teach yoga 7-8 hours a week and write a blog. So if I manage to cook most of my meals, then so do you!" Connect with Kadri and enjoy many more of her delicious healthy recipes on her website here: www.kahvliga.ee.