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Vegan chickpea flour zucchini fritters that are grain-free, gluten-free and so delicious! Make them in minutes and vary the flavors to suit your tastes.
Have you ever made vegetable fritters? “Fritters” bring to mind the gigantic, deep-fried apple and sugar bombs at donut shops, but they cover a wide range of delectable options.
Despite residing in the South, I am terrible–make that miserable–at deep-frying anything and everything, so fear not, the recipe I have for you avoids it altogether. Rather, I propose savory zucchini fritters that are ideal for the zucchini bounty this time of year.
These are really glorified pancakes, meaning that they are easy as can be to make. I have given them a high-protein, extra-savory twist by using chickpea flour.
I have written an entire book devoted to chickpea flour (Coming in early October this year!!!), so it is no exaggeration to say that I am obsessed with the stuff. It adds an extra savory, nutty flavor to these fritters that is undeniably scrumptious.
How to Make Chickpea Flour Fritters
Note that the complete directions are also in the recipe card below.
Making these fritters is super-simple.
The only task requiring a hint more effort than usual is draining the zucchini; it’s an essential step for the success of the recipe. Zucchini are mostly water, so if you don’t drain them before adding to the batter, your fritters will be a soggy mess.
But don’t worry, I’ve got you covered. If you have a clean dishtowel, some sort of sieve or strainer and a medium bowl, you are good to go.
Here is the method:
- Grate and measure the required amount of zucchini.
- Set the sieve over the large bowl (the bowl should be large enough that the bottom of the sieve does not touch the bottom of the bowl).
- Place a clean dish towel in the sieve and then fill with the grated zucchini; sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt.
- Let the zucchini stand for at least 30 minutes (you can place the set-up in the refrigerator overnight, if you like).
- Gather the ends of the dish towel together and squeeze, squeeze, squeeze as much liquid as you can from the zucchini into the bowl. Done!
All that’s left is a bit of mixing and some basic pancake flipping skills.
Sure these, are great as a side-dish, but I love them as a power snack (chickpea flour is high in protein and fiber), or as part of a light lunch.
Can I Store the Vegan Chickpea Zucchini Fritters?
Let the fritters cool completely on a wire rack and then store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week. I am fine munching these cold, or I’ll rewarm them in the microwave for 10 to 15 seconds.
Happy eating!
Related Recipes
Vegan Chickpea Flour Zucchini Fritters (Grain-Free)
Ingredients
- 2 lbs 907 g zucchini (about 4 medium), tried, coarsely grated
- 3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt, divided
- 3/4 cup 90 g chickpea flour
- 1 teaspoon 5 g baking powder
- 1/3 cup 75 mL plain nondairy milk
- 1 cup finely chopped green onions
- 2 teaspoons Sriracha
- 2 tablespoons cooking oil, e.g., olive oil, avocado oil
Instructions
- Set a mesh sieve or colander over the large bowl; line with a clean dish towel
- Place zucchini on top of towel and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon of the salt. Let stand for at least 30 minutes
- Gather the ends of the dish towel together and squeeze as much liquid as possible from the zucchini into the bowl; discard liquid and place zucchini in bowl.
- Add the milk, green onions, chickpea flour, baking powder, Sriracha, and remaining salt to bowl; mix with wooden spoon until well blended.
- Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Working in batches, drop 1/4 cupfuls of zucchini mixture into skillet, flattening slightly; cook until golden and crisp, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer fritters to a paper towel-lined plate. Repeat with remaining batter, adding remaining oil as needed.
Notes
*Feel free to vary these with your favorites herbs (e.g., basil, dill,cilantro) or a bit of nutritional yeast for a cheese-y flavor.
I tried these today, and found that the cooking time wasn’t accurate. On medium heat, after about 3 minutes per side, the outsides were nicely browned but the inside was still wet so nothing like either a pancake or a fritter. The total cooking time was more than double to get something that had the consistency of a fritter.
While I usually don’t measure ingredients, I was very careful to do so this time as it’s a new recipe, so I believe I measured everything correctly. For the zucchini, I grated it on the medium size of my grater, so much smaller than I would, say, grate a carrot for carrot salad. I did squeeze out as much water as I could from the zucchini, and the batter was very thick (much thicker than pancake batter), so I don’t think having too much water in the zucchini was the problem.
One potential issue is that, when I measured the chickpea flour, I poured it into the measuring cup instead of scooping out of the bag. So, possibly the problem is that I had too little flour. It would be helpful if you could provide weights for flours to help avoid any errors there.
If you have other advice, I’d love to hear it!
Hi Michael,
Thanks for all of the details! I think the most likely explanation is that the fritters were too thick. The same thing can happen with traditional pancakes. Once the fritters have browned on one side, and are then flipped over, use a spatula to flatten the fritter. Cheers.
If I make these without the Sriracha will they still be okay do you think? My toddler doesn’t handle much spice and I want to make these for him.
Hi Ara,
Yes, definitely! No need to add the sriracha ????
These were DELICIOUS! I will say I made a few substitutions based on what I had on hand, but the base recipe is perfect and I’ll make them again! My subs: I used whole milk instead of nondairy, one small finely diced cooking onion instead of green onion, and I added about 1/4 cup mozzarella cheese. I also accidentally mixed in the oil (whoops!) so I added a bit more flour, but it was a scrumptious mistake! I’ll try it without next time, but these were honestly amazing.
I can’t say enough good, NO GREAT, things about this recipe. So delicious and super easy! I’ve made them numerous times and love making the batter and frying only what I”ll eat at a time. That said, I’ve also fried the whole recipe and then refried and microwaved leftovers. Frying was definitely better but frying as needed was perfect. Thanks for an amazing recipe. I’m so excited about your blog and trying out more recipes.
Wowza, thank you April!!! So glad you like them!
yeA…can they? I’m going to try it like that now ..using apple sauce instead.
Do you make your own chickpea flour? If so, how? thanks.
Can these be made with another kind of flour?