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Breaded in savory parmesan breadcrumbs and made perfectly crispy in the air fryer, these air fryer zucchini chips are a delicious appetizer or side dish.
I’m a zucchini lover that lives with zucchini haters, so most of the time I end up hiding zucchini in baked goods like zucchini cookies and chocolate zucchini cake.
But sometimes I say “screw it” and make something savory out of zucchini just for myself to enjoy.
I might have been the only person in my family who liked these air fryer zucchini chips, but that didn’t stop me from making them and enjoying them all by myself. They’re perfectly crispy and the seasoned breading pairs so well with the mild zucchini.
CRISPY BREADED ZUCCHINI CHIPS
The rest of my family may not be zucchini fans, but I LOVE it. I’m especially a big fan of crispy, breaded zucchini fries and chips.
I just really love the contrast in textures between the crispy breading on the outside and the perfectly soft zucchini on the inside. It’s so good.
I love making veggie sides in my air fryer, such as air fryer brussels sprouts and air fryer green beans. And since it’s the height of zucchini season right now, I knew I had to grab my air fryer and use it to make some zucchini chips.
I originally thought I’d try to make zucchini fries instead of chips, but I found it was easier to get a good, consistent coating of the breading and crispy exterior when cut the zucchini into thin rounds instead of fries.
But you can totally use this breading recipe to turn yours into fries if you prefer!
Serve these up as an appetizer or as a side dish with some quick marinara sauce or homemade ranch dressing for dipping. You might even be able to convince a zucchini hater to give them a try!
HOW TO MAKE ZUCCHINI CHIPS IN THE AIR FRYER
Don’t be intimidated by the idea of having to bread the zucchini rounds for these air fryer zucchini chips. As long as you have 3 shallow bowls or pie plates, you can do this.
Prepping the zucchini
When buying your zucchini for this recipe, you will want to look for 3-4 small zucchini. Save those giant zucchini for baking recipes, such as lemon zucchini cake or classic zucchini bread.
Once you’ve washed the zucchini, cut off each end and then slice the zucchini into ¼-inch-thick rounds. There’s no need to peel the zucchini.
You can cut them with a sharp knife or use a mandoline to make quick work of making even slices.
Making this recipe
Once your zucchini is prepped and ready to go, you can start on making the air fryer zucchini chips.
You’ll need 3 shallow bowls or pie plates for your breading station.
In one bowl, whisk together the flour and cornstarch. In the second, lightly beat the eggs. In the last bowl, whisk together the breadcrumbs with the italian seasoning, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and parmesan cheese.
While you work on coating the zucchini rounds, let your air fryer preheat to 400°F for 5-10 minutes.
To coat the zucchini, dredge the rounds in the flour mixture, then dip them in the beaten eggs. Lastly, coat them in the breadcrumb mixture.
Set the coated rounds on a parchment-lined baking sheet until you’re ready to add them to the air fryer.
When your air fryer is preheated and you’ve breaded several of the zucchini rounds, place them in a single layer in the bottom of your air fryer basket. How many you can cook at once will depend on the size of your air fryer.
Spritz the tops of the rounds lightly with olive oil or cooking spray. Air fry them at 400°F for 5 minutes, then flip them over and spritz the new top sides with olive oil or cooking spray before cooking at 400°F for another 5 minutes.
The air fryer zucchini chips are ready when they are crispy and golden on both sides.
Repeat with the remaining batches of the breaded zucchini rounds as needed based on the size of your air fryer. You can keep the already cooked zucchini chips warm on a wire rack in a low oven if needed.
STORAGE & REHEATING
Like the majority of breaded and fried foods, these air fryer zucchini chips are definitely best when eaten right after cooking.
However, if you have some left over, you can store them in the refrigerator overnight and reheat them in the air fryer the next day.
Store leftovers in an airtight container with paper towels on the bottom of the container and between layers the zucchini chips. This will help absorb any moisture to make reheating more successful the next day.
To reheat, place the zucchini chips in a preheated air fryer and cook at 400°F for 2-3 minutes per side, until warmed through. They may not be quite as crispy as on day 1, but they will still taste great.
RECIPE FAQS
Can I bake these zucchini chips if I don’t have an air fryer?
If you don’t have an air fryer, you could bake these breaded zucchini chips in the oven instead. They may not get quite as crispy and will take a little longer than in the air fryer, but they will still be delicious.
Place the breaded rounds on a parchment-lined baking sheet and spray the tops lightly with cooking spray. Bake at 425°F for about 20 minutes, flipping halfway through, until golden and crispy on both sides.
Can I use frozen zucchini for this recipe?
I do not recommend using frozen zucchini to make these air fryer zucchini chips. The process of freezing and thawing creates a mushy texture in the zucchini, which we don’t want in our chips.
Save your frozen zucchini for chocolate zucchini muffins or zucchini soup instead.
Can I cut the zucchini into fries instead of rounds?
Yes, absolutely. I found that the rounds were easier to dredge and get an even, crispy coating on, but you can totally do fries.
If you choose to do fries, you may want to turn them a couple of times during the cooking process in order to get all 4 sides golden and crispy.
Can I use yellow squash instead of zucchini?
Sure! Just like with the zucchini, make sure you look for small yellow squash and save the big ones for a different recipe.
Why do you need to preheat the air fryer when making these zucchini chips?
In order to get the crispiest coating on our air fryer zucchini chips, you want to take the time to preheat your air fryer before adding the breaded zucchini rounds. Just set the air fryer to preheat while you coat the rounds in the breading and it’ll be ready to go when you are.
Air Fryer Zucchini Chips
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3-4 small zucchini cut into ¼-inch rounds
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup unseasoned breadcrumbs
- 1 tablespoon italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Grab 3 wide, shallow bowls or pie plates. In the first one, whisk together the flour and cornstarch. In the second, lightly beat the eggs. In the third, whisk together the breadcrumbs, italian seasoning, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and parmesan cheese.
- Preheat the air fryer to 400°F for 5-10 minutes.
- While the air fryer preheats, dredge the zucchini rounds in the flour mixture, then dip them in the eggs, then coat them in the breadcrumb mixture. Set the rounds on a parchment-lined baking sheet until ready to air fry.
- When ready to air fry, place some of the breaded rounds in a single layer into the basket of your air fryer. Spritz the tops lightly with olive oil or cooking spray. Air fry at 400°F for 5 minutes; flip the rounds, spritz the sides that are now up with olive oil or cooking spray, and cook at 400°F for an additional 5 minutes, or until crispy and golden brown on both sides.
- Repeat with the remaining batches of breaded zucchini rounds as needed based on the size of your air fryer.
- Serve warm with a dipping sauce such as marinara or ranch.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
