Vegan Zucchini and Corn Fritters

These are the most amazing vegan zucchini and corn fritters you’ll ever have. Crispy and delicious, they’re perfect as a side to a nice fresh salad, or dipped into your favorite dip! If you’re craving some good vegan fried food, then look no further.

If you’ve ever planted zucchini in your garden, you know how bountiful the harvest can be. Zucchini is such a great vegetable because it doesn’t have a strong flavor. You can use it in anything from sauces, to baking, to even replacing noodles (zoodles!).

The health benefits are also a big plus. Zucchini has no fat, improves digestion and lowers blood sugar levels because of their fiber content.

So whether you’re adding zucchini into your diet because of the health benefits, or you’re looking at what to do with so much zucchini, these zucchini and corn fritters are a fantastic option, and delightfully tasty. 

Why This Recipe Works

Vegan corn fritters (just like my vegan German potato pancakes) are amazing if you’re craving something crispy and need to add more vegetables into your diet (another bonus is that it is yet another sneaky way to get kids to eat those veggies!).

It’s also really easy to make this corn zucchini fritter recipe totally vegan! Instead of using an egg to make everything stick together, simply replace it with a “chia egg” or a “flax egg”.

Use three tablespoons of water and one tablespoon of chia seeds or ground flax seeds. Let the mixture thicken for 5 minutes and it is ready to use.

Corn and zucchini fritters also keep well in the fridge for up to 4 days, so you can make a batch and bring it with you on an outing, a picnic, or take them with you for lunch.

If you still have a lot of zucchini and corn to use, or you love the flavor, be sure to try these mouth-watering vegan Grilled Zucchini and Corn Tacos.

One more great thing about this zucchini fritter recipe is that it’s very forgiving. You can add more or less jalapeño to your liking, or any other spices, it’s hard to go wrong. 

Look at all the amazing veggies that go into these fritters! Nutrient-dense, flavorful, balanced and amazingly delicious combo!

Ingredients

These are the ingredients you’ll need:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour (or whole grain)
• 2 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp black pepper
• 1 chia/flax egg (1 tbsp chia seeds/ground flax seeds + 3 tbsp water)
• ½ cup almond milk
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 ½ cup grated zucchini, shredded, squeezed and drained (about 2 medium-sized zucchini)
• 1 ear corn, kernels cut off the cob (about 1 cup corn kernels)
• ½ jalapeño pepper, finely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 scallions, diced
• 1/3 cup chopped parsley/cilantro
• 1 tbsp lime juice/lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, to fry
• Marinara sauce/vegan sour cream, to serve

How To Prepare Zucchini

To prepare the zucchini, you’ll need to get the excess liquid out of it.

Grate about 1 ½ cups of it (about 2 medium-sized zucchini) into a bowl or colander that is prepared with a clean dish towel or cheese cloth that is laid into it. 

Next, add a pinch of salt, and leave for 10 minutes. Finally, take the edges of the towel (like you would a garbage bag), twist the top of the cloth over a sink or bowl until it squeezes the zucchini and drains the excess liquid.

This is an important step as zucchini retains a lot of water. Too much water will make it difficult to fry the fritters, so be sure to squeeze out as much as you can! 

How to Make Zucchini and Corn Fritters

Once your zucchini is squeezed and drained, you’re ready to go.

Mix the dry ingredients together. Add the chia egg, almond milk and olive oil and mix again.

Finally, add grated zucchini, corn kernels, finely chopped jalapeño, minced garlic, diced scallions and chopped parsley. Sprinkle with lime juice. Mix all of the ingredients together and portion out one heaped tablespoon of batter per fritter.

Heat up a pan to medium heat and place one or two tablespoons of oil into the pan. Fry in batches over medium heat for about five minutes per side.

Cover the vegan corn fritters after flipping.

And serve with your favorite dip, or a yummy salad! 

What To Serve With It 

Vegan corn fritters make for a nutritious snack or light portable lunch that you can even eat cold. They taste great with a side of fresh green salad or a dip like this delicious baba ganoush eggplant dip, vegan buffalo sauce or Canarian green sauce or red sauce.

Sick of green salads? Try serving corn and zucchini fritters as a side to this Corn and Black Bean Salad. Skip the feta cheese (or use vegan feta) and enjoy a completely vegan, totally filling meal. 

Some other serving options you could consider are:

• Freshly cut up veggie sticks;
• A side of sour cream or vegan equivalent;
• Marinara sauce;
• Guacamole;
• As a side to a vegan wrap, vegan BLT sandwich or vegan Mediterranean bagel.

Top Tips 

• These vegan corn fritters are amazing if you need to add more vegetables into your diet or need another sneaky way to get kids to eat their veggies.
• To prepare the grated zucchini, you’ll need to get the excess liquid out of it (see instructions above).
• This recipe uses a “chia egg” or a “flax egg” as a replacement to normal eggs. Use three tablespoons of water and one tablespoon of chia seeds or ground flax seed. Let the mixture thicken for 5 minutes and it is ready to use.
• Serve the fritters with dipping sauces like marinara, sour cream or vegan equivalent, baba ghanoush, guacamole or avocado dressing, with your favorite salad (my recommendations are Grilled Corn and Black Bean Salad and Mexican Chopped Salad), with veggie sticks, as a side to a wrap, sandwich or bagel.
• These fritters keep well in the fridge for up to 4 days, so you can make a batch and bring it with you on an outing, a picnic, or take them with you for lunch.
• You can freeze them for up to three months. To reheat, bring them to a room temperature and fry again.

Recipe Variations

• Use all-purpose flour or whole grain flour. I like to use a 1:1 ratio to make the fritters more nutrient-dense.
• For the “egg” you can use both chia seeds OR ground flax seeds.
• You can replace almond milk with other nut milks.
• No fresh corn? Use a cup of frozen or canned corn instead.
• You can add more or less jalapeño to your liking.
• Use either parsley or cilantro, maybe even both.
• Instead of lime juice, use lemon.
• Replace marinara sauce with sour cream for a non-vegan alternative.

Quick Step-by-Step Instructions

If you want to see quick step-by-step instructions, tap the following link to watch the Vegan Zucchini Corn Fritters recipe web story:

Vegan Zucchini Corn Fritters Story