With a crunchy Panko-Parmesan coating, these Baked Zucchini Fries served with a tasty marinara sauce make a healthy and delicious side dish or snack. Hitting all the crowd-pleasing notes, it’s a great way to put a dent in your zucchini supply.
Crispy Baked Zucchini Fries
It seems that as soon as mid-summer rolls around everyone starts panicking about how they’re going to consume their endless supply of zucchini from the garden. Or from the market, if like me, you can’t resist bringing loads of it home with you. But before you go counting the minutes till tomato and corn season arrives, you can rest assured I got you covered. I will be sharing lots of recipes here featuring zucchini in the next few weeks that will make you more than appreciate your abundant supply.
Let’s kick off with this insanely good and easy recipe for crispy baked zucchini fries. Tender and evenly cooked on the inside with a super crunchy and tasty exterior, even zucchini-haters will love these. Dipped into a simple marinara sauce, you could almost (almost) fool yourself into believing you’re eating a mozzarella stick. Yes, they’re that good.
The Technique
To achieve the super crispy exterior on these baked zucchini fries, the technique used here is the familiar flour-egg-breadcrumb coating assembly line. A tiny bit time consuming but the pay-off is huge. A quick dip in flour and egg whites provides the glue for the panko-parmesan mixture to adhere. From there, the breaded sticks are baked in the oven making the rest of the preparation pretty hands-off.
I eat them scolding hot straight out of the oven because who can resist a stick of anything that is meltingly tender on the inside with a cheesy, crunchy, salty exterior? Not me.
Ingredients And Notes
These are the ingredients you’ll need to make crispy baked zucchini fries:
- Zucchini: Try to find medium-sized zucchini that are about the same size. This makes it easier to cut the sticks into more even-sized pieces. Avoid very large zucchinis which hold a lot more moisture than smaller ones.
- Panko breadcrumbs: Japanese Panko breadcrumbs will provide the crunchiest coating for these zucchini fries. Fresh breadcrumbs will also work but I find they tend to get a little soggier while cooking. You can also find gluten-free panko online.
- Parmesan: Grated Parmesan in the panko mixture adds a bit of salty-umami flavour and makes the coating irresistibly cheesy.
- Seasoning: I keep the seasoning pretty simple and only add garlic powder, salt, and pepper. You can add other spices if you wish, such as oregano, thyme, or rosemary.
- Rice flour: You can get away without the flour coating to make these zucchini fries. However, I find the flour really helps the egg whites, and in turn the breadcrumbs, adhere better to the sticks. The flour also helps absorb any moisture the zucchini releases when cooked. I like to use rice flour because it clumps less and it makes for a lighter coating, but all-purpose flour is fine too.
- Egg whites: You can use the whole egg if you prefer but I find whisked egg whites to be almost gluey-er and they also get crispy when baked in a hot oven.
- Marinara Sauce: To serve these delightful zucchini fries, you will need a delicious sauce. A quick homemade, or store-bought, Marinara is my favourite for dipping. To make it at home you will just need olive oil, canned crushed tomatoes, garlic, salt and fresh basil (optional) – instructions are included in the recipe card. My favourite store-bought marinara sauce is Rao’s – clean ingredients and tastes fantastic. The zucchini fries would also be delicious dipped in an aioli sauce, or even plain ketchup.
- Non-stick cooking spray: I’m not a huge fan of oil sprays but they come in really handy for recipes such as this one. My favourite is this one which has no additives.
How To Cut Zucchini For Fries
Baked zucchini fries need to be cooked in a very hot oven so the exterior can get crispy pretty quickly, without the interior becoming overcooked and soggy. Because of this, the size of your zucchini baton matters: too thick, they won’t have time to cook, too thin and you will have sad soggy fries.
Here’s how you cut the zucchini for perfectly baked zucchini fries:
- Slice off the top and bottom ends of the zucchini. Cut the zucchini in half, crosswise.
- Cut each half into two halves, lengthwise. Then cut each half into 3 or 4 strips, lengthwise. If your zucchini is thick, you may need to cut into more strips, just make sure you cut them as uniform as possible and not too thin.
How To Make Baked Zucchini Fries Step-By-Step
You can use a wire rack to bake the zucchini fries but I find they get crispy enough placed directly on the sheet pan. Either method will work here.
- Preheat oven to 425ºF. Spray two large sheet pans, or wire rack placed on sheet pan, with cooking spray. Alternatively, use your hand to lightly coat the bottom of the sheet pan with oil.
- Place the flour in a large mixing bowl. In a shallow bowl, combine the Panko breadcrumbs, Parmesan and seasonings. In another shallow bowl, whisk the egg whites until foamy.
- Toss all the zucchini sticks in the flour bowl until evenly coated.
- Shaking off any excess flour, dip two or three at a time into the egg whites. Allow some of the egg white to drip off, then coat in the panko mixture, pressing lightly to ensure the crumbs are sticking.
- Transfer to prepared sheet pan(s) and repeat until all the zucchini sticks are coated. Bake for 20 to 22 minutes, or until lightly golden and crispy.
- While the fries are baking, prepare a Marinara sauce (instructions included in recipe card) or heat a jarred marinara, or make your favourite aioli. Serve the fries warm with sauce of your choice. Enjoy!
Tips For Very Crispy Baked Zucchini Fries
- Pat dry the sliced zucchini. Some zucchini, particularly larger ones, hold a lot of moisture. If your sliced zucchini batons seem to seeping moisture, make sure to pat them dry with a paper towel. Skip this step if you don’t see any moisture.
- Hot oven equals crispy fries. As mentioned above, these zucchini fries will be crispier if baked in a really hot oven. I cook them in a preheated 425ºF oven for about 20-22 minutes, or until golden.
- Bake soon after the zucchini is breaded. Work as quickly as possible breading all the zucchini sticks then get them in the oven right away. Otherwise the breadcrumbs will Strat to become soggy.
- Use cooking spray. If you can spray the baking sheet and the top of the zucchini fries, they will get crispy without having to flip them. If you don’t have cooking spray, coat the baking sheet with oil, and flip the fries half-way through baking. I use this cooking spray which has no additives.
- Don’t overcrowd the zucchini fries. Give the sticks plenty of space on the pan to allow the hot air to get them nice and crispy all around.
Serving Suggestions
- We love these baked zucchini fries with burgers, or grilled chicken or fish. For a complete plant-based meal, these baked zucchini fries are wonderful served alongside a veggie burger.
- Paired with a summery soup for lunch or a light dinner.
Best Way To Store And Reheat Baked Zucchini Fries
To be sure, these zucchini fries are the crunchiest when served immediately. That said, they do reheat well in a very hot oven.
- Store zucchini fries in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
- To reheat zucchini fries, preheat the oven to 375ºF and bake for about 10 minutes. I do not recommend reheating in the microwave as they will get limp and soggy.
More Zucchini Recipes To Try
- Grilled Vegetables and Halloumi
- Pasta with Grilled Zucchini and Summer Squash
- Zucchini Banana Bread
- Chocolate Zucchini Bread
If you give this Baked Zucchini Fries recipe a try, please feel free to leave a comment and/or a star rating below. We appreciate and welcome all your feedback. Thank you!
Baked Zucchini Fries
Ingredients
For The Zucchini Fries
- 1 cup Panko breadcrumbs
- 1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/2 cup rice flour or all-purpose flour
- 3 large egg whites
- 2-3 small/medium (about 1 1/4 pound) 7-inch zucchini cut into 1/2 inch x 3 1/2-inch “sticks”
- Nonstick cooking spray or olive oil
- 1 cup Homemade Marinara sauce (recipe follows) optional, or use store-bought
Quick Homemade Marinara Sauce
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, smashed
- 1 14oz can crushed tomatoes I like Mutti Polpa (linked in notes)
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
- freshly ground pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F. Coat two baking sheets with cooking spray or 1 tablespoon olive oil.
- In a shallow bowl, combine the panko, Parmesan, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Place the flour in a large mixing bowl. In another shallow bowl, beat the egg whites and salt until foamy.
- Quarter the zucchini in half crosswise, then cut each wedge in half lengthwise. Make 6 to 8 thick fry shapes, depending on the size of your zucchini (see photos in post for guidance). Place the zucchini sticks in the flour bowl and toss to evenly coat.
- Working with two or three at a time, dip the zucchini wedges into the egg whites, tossing to coat evenly, then let the excess drip off. Toss in the bread crumb mixture, pressing lightly to fully coat. Repeat with remaing zucchini sticks, placing them on the prepared baking sheet with plenty of space between them, as you go along.
- Lightly spray the tops with cooking spray, if using. Bake for 20-22 minutes, or until browned and golden, flipping once halfway through if you didn't use cooking spray. Serve with marinara sauce, or aioli, for dipping.
Marinara Sauce
- While the zucchini fries bake, make the Marinara Sauce: In a medium saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring often, for about 1 minute, until aromatic. Stir in the oregano and cook, stirring often, for 30 seconds. Add the crushed tomato, salt and pepper, increase the heat to medium-high, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 15 to 20 minutes, or until slightly thickened. Stir in the basil (if using), then taste and add more salt and/or pepper if needed.
Notes
To Store And Reheat Baked Zucchini Fries These zucchini fries are truly best when served immediately. That said, they do reheat well in a very hot oven.
- Store zucchini fries in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
- To reheat zucchini fries, preheat the oven to 375ºF and bake for about 10 minutes. I do not recommend reheating in the microwave as they will get limp and soggy.
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