My veggie consumption of late has been abysmal, to put it mildly. Most of the time my meal planning only centers around our main course, and side dishes fall by the wayside. (And veggies are always side dishes here, and never included in the main course, since Shane doesn’t like them.) I’ll usually grab some sort of produce without a specific plan and figure it out as I go during the course of the week. Sometimes that works well – like when asparagus is in season as I’m perfectly content to eat it every night simply roasted or grilled with a little olive oil, salt and pepper. Salads are good options too, I really only need greens, tomatoes and cucumbers with a simple vinaigrette to make me happy.
Other veggies, though, require more advance planning because I just don’t love them enough to eat them the same way all the time. Luckily, with a wider variety of summer produce options beginning to make its way to our local farmer’s markets and grocery stores, I have some new inspiration to get better about the planning. Besides, how am I going to justify all the burgers I want to grill if I don’t have veggies on hand to balance them out?
Zucchini is still pretty low on my list of most desirable veggies, but it’s abundant and cheap, so every year I try to convince myself it’s good, and useful for more than just baking π And given the right preparation, I’m starting to believe that can be true. These zucchini fries are a recent favorite. They’re coated with a flour, egg, and Panko/Parmesan breading then baked until they’re golden brown and crispy on the outside with a tender center. I threw together a quick sriracha mayo for dipping – it’s just a little spicy and makes these fries even more fun to eat but feel free to substitute your favorite dipping sauce or skip it entirely. I may not love zucchini fries as much as I love regular french fries, but I definitely feel about 1000x better after I eat them!
Crispy Baked Cheesy Zucchini Fries with Sriracha Lime Mayo
fries adapted from Confections of a Foodie Bride, mayo adapted from White on Rice Couple
Fries
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 large egg
1 tablespoon water
1 cup Panko breadcrumbs
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 lb zucchini (about 1 medium)
Mayo
3 tablespoons mayo
1 1/2 teaspoons sriracha sauce
1 teaspoon lime juice
Preheat oven to 425 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Place a wire rack in the baking sheet.
Add the flour to a resealable plastic bag. Combine the egg and water together in a shallow dish, and beat lightly with a fork. In a second shallow dish, mix together the Panko, Parmesan, salt, garlic powder and cayenne pepper.
To cut the zucchini into fries: Slice the top and bottom off the zucchini. Cut into about 3-inch fries – I found this easiest to do by cutting the zucchini half and then continuing to cut the pieces in half again and again.
Add the zucchini to the resealable bag containing the flour. Shake to coat them evenly. Working with one fry at a time, shake the excess flour off, then dip in the egg mixture and dredge in the Panko mixture, pressing to coat completely. Place the fries on the wire rack. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the coating is golden brown and crisp.
While the fries bake, make the sriracha lime mayo by adding all of the ingredients to a small bowl and stirring to combine. Serve the fries with the mayo. These are best served immediately (or shortly after baking).
Baked zucchini fries sounds like such a fantastic idea and so wonderfully paired with sriracha lime dip! π
I love fried zucchini but it soaks up so much oil! This looks like a great alternative, thanks!
Yummy….a very innovative recipe
These look awesome, Tracey!
Anything zucchini is good on my list! This sounds fabulous!
Oh I absolutely adore zucchini! We love baking them into “fries” as well – in the summer they are so abundant we hardly know what to do with the bushels that crop up.
Lovely photos, too – you’re making me hungry for a second dinner!
That’s the only way I will eat zucchini is breaded – looks great!
What a healthy treat! I love that you baked these zucchini fries and the sriracha lime sauce sounds to die for!
These look really yummy! I wonder if I can get B&G to eat them, especially if I give them some ranch for dipping… =)
now that you mention eating veggies, i don’t eat very many veggies..but i try to incorporate them into my cooking so i’ll consume a healthy amount! i love zucchini though, one of my fav things to eat!! i love sriracha and the fact that it’s a DIP, is even more awesome. the flavors just go so well together! i think sriracha should be the 2nd ketchup π
These look yummy!!
I adore veggies and do a fairly good job of eating them. I think I’d do even better if they were breaded in panko and baked, and served along with Sriracha Lime mayo. Yum, Tracey! Sriracha is a staple in our house, this is perfect for us!
I love zucchini fries as an appetizer, and loved that you baked these. I think most of all, I love that mayo dipping sauce!
I tried a zucchini fry recipe months ago that was a total flop because it had you sprinkle salt on the zucchini to draw out all the moisture. Well, it did get rid of the moisture but they were also ridiculously salty. Such a disappointment. I’m definitely trying these soon. The only veggie my husband loves is zucchini so he’ll be happy!
YUM! Those fries look amazing, and I would LOVE LOVE the dipping sauce. Thanks for sharing Tracey.
Wow these are beautiful. I never seem to be able to master bread coating on things.
I love zucchini fries–love that you baked them and used panko! Can’t wait to try these out
-Alyssa
http://glossymusings.com/
love this!! that mayo sounds fantastic! and those zucchini fries look so crispy – i need to try this!
Will have to try these as a destination for some of our zucchini from the garden. My plants are producing already!
Great recipe! I made these last night, and they turned out fantastic. Even my husband wanted more, who generally avoids anything green. Even going to make them again tonight they were so good. Think I’ll try adding mushrooms too, maybe yellow squash.
I just made them. They are very good, but I prefer a marinara type dipping sauce made from a can of Tomato paste, 1 cup of water, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning and sugar to taste. Yummy π thanks for the idea.
omg absolutely delicious! I love the sauce too.
Hey, would any of y’all know how many carbs are in these?
I made these tonight. I’m gluten/dairy/egg free so I used egg substitute, italian spices in GF flour! They were incredible!!!!!
I made these this afternoon and LOVED THEM! thanks for sharing the recipe!!
OMG, these were fabulous (or, as I like to say, “frantastic”! The sriracha mayo was the crowning touch–so yummy. Posted them on my blog–thanks for the inspiration! http://www.fransfavs.com/2012/08/crispy-baked-cheesy-zucchini-fries-with-sriracha-lime-mayo/
Hey Tracey – this recipe and photo have been stolen here: http://www.quickneasyrecipes.net/crispy-baked-cheesy-zucchini-fries-with-sriracha-lime-mayo/
If she has one of yours, there are most likely more as well.