Courgette fritters are crispy, golden patties of grated courgette, onion, egg and flour, pan-fried until the edges turn lacy and the centre stays soft. The key to this courgette fritters recipe is salting and squeezing the courgette first, so the batter crisps rather than steams. The whole batch takes under 30 minutes and costs very little. They are filling, properly crunchy, and endlessly adaptable to whatever herbs you have in the fridge.
I make these courgette fritters whenever the salad drawer is overflowing and I need something fast on the table. The grating and squeezing take a few minutes, but the payoff is a deeply savoury, healthy vegetarian courgette patty that holds its shape in the pan and shatters when you bite it. The batter relies on everyday pantry staples, so the food cost stays very low. It is a reliable method that actually works, giving a real crunch on the outside without going to mush inside.
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Ingredients for Crispy Courgette Fritters
Here is everything you need for this courgette fritters recipe:
- Courgettes — the mild base that gives the fritter its soft, tender centre. Two medium courgettes are plenty.
- Salt — draws the water out of the grated courgette so the mixture stays dry and crisps up rather than steaming in the pan.
- Onion — grated onion adds a sharp, savoury note that balances the natural sweetness of the courgette.
- Egg — a whole egg binds the shredded vegetables and dry ingredients together tightly.
- Plain flour — gives the batter structure and forms the crunchy crust during frying.
- Garlic — fresh minced garlic brings a warm, savoury base flavour to the mix.
- Fresh herbs — dill and parsley add a bright, green lift that cuts through the rich fried batter.
- Black pepper — a pinch seasons the dish with a very mild heat.
- Cooking oil — a neutral oil with a high smoke point for pan-frying. Rapeseed works perfectly.
How to Make Courgette Fritters
This courgette fritters recipe is simple enough for a complete beginner. The only step that matters is getting the water out — everything after that is straightforward.
Step 1: Grate the courgettes and tip them into a mixing bowl. Sprinkle over the salt and leave to sit for 5 minutes to draw out the natural moisture. Wrap the grated courgette in a clean tea towel and wring out as much liquid as you possibly can.
Step 2: Put the squeezed courgette into a large, dry bowl. Add the grated onion, egg, flour, minced garlic, fresh herbs and black pepper, then stir until you have a thick, sticky batter.
Step 3: Heat the oil in a large non-stick frying pan over a medium heat. Drop large spoonfuls of batter into the hot oil, flattening each one slightly with a spatula, and fry for 5 to 6 minutes per side until golden and crisp.
Step 4: Lift the cooked fritters onto a sheet of kitchen paper to drain the excess oil. Serve straight away while they are hot and crisp.
How to Serve and Store Your Courgette Fritters
Serve these courgette fritters hot, straight from the pan. They are excellent with a spoonful of sour cream, a bright Greek yoghurt dip, or a sharp garlic mayonnaise. For a fuller meal, plate them alongside a fresh green salad, roasted vegetables, grilled chicken, or smoked salmon.
To store leftovers, cool them and keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days. Reheat in a dry frying pan or in an oven set to 180°C until hot and crisp again. Avoid freezing them — the cold ruins the texture and they thaw soggy.
More Easy Recipes You Might Enjoy
If these courgette fritters hit the spot, here are a few more easy, vegetable-forward dishes from the blog worth a try:
Looking for another way with courgette? This Roasted Courgette and Aubergine Salad with Lemon Dressing — roasted veg, pine nuts and feta tossed in a bright lemon dressing — is a brilliant warm-weather plate.
For something fresh and quick alongside the fritters, try this Easy Rocket Salad — peppery leaves, parmesan and toasted pumpkin seeds, ready in minutes.
If you fancy a light, protein-packed lunch, the Easy Butter Bean Salad with Tomatoes and Cucumber — creamy beans, crunchy veg and a zesty dressing — pairs beautifully with a stack of fritters.
For a heartier side, this Roasted Cauliflower Salad — golden roasted florets with sweet peppers and parsley — is ready in 25 minutes.
And to round out a summer spread, the Easy Summer Pasta Salad with Creamy Mayo-Yogurt Dressing — cherry tomatoes, peppers and sweetcorn in a creamy dressing — feeds a crowd cheaply.
How Much Do Courgette Fritters Cost to Make?
One of the best things about this courgette fritters recipe is how little it costs. The batter is built almost entirely from pantry staples, with courgettes as the only real fresh outlay.
Based on typical supermarket prices, the full batch — which serves four — works out at roughly £1.60 in the UK (about £0.40 per serving) and €1.90 in Ireland (around €0.48 per serving).
In the USA it lands near $2.30 for the batch, or about $0.58 a serving; in Australia closer to A$3.20, around A$0.80 a serving; and in Germany about €1.80, or €0.45 per serving.
Prices vary by season and retailer, but the takeaway holds everywhere: this is a genuinely cheap meal, and courgettes are at their lowest in summer, when a glut can push the cost down even further.
Top Tips and Notes for Perfect Fritters
- Remove the water completely. This is the single most important step in the whole courgette fritters recipe. If you skip the salting and squeezing, the batter boils in the pan instead of frying and you end up with pale, greasy patties. Use a thin tea towel or a piece of muslin and wring hard — you will be shocked how much liquid comes out. The drier the courgette, the crispier the fritter.
- Use the coarse side of the grater. Always grate on the large holes of your box grater. Fine grating turns the courgette into a wet paste that clings to moisture and never crisps. The larger shreds give the patty internal structure and a far better texture when you bite into it.
- Choose the right pan. A wide, heavy-bottomed non-stick pan is the ideal tool here. A well-seasoned cast iron skillet also works beautifully. Thin or poor-quality pans cause the batter to stick and tear when you flip. Give each spoonful enough space so the fritters do not merge into one another.
- Be patient when flipping. Wait for a solid golden crust to form before you attempt the flip. Move them too early and they tear apart in the hot oil. Slide a wide, thin spatula fully under the base and turn in one confident motion. If a fritter feels stuck, it almost always needs another minute.
- Adjust the batter to the courgette. The water content of courgettes varies, so your batter may need tweaking. If it looks too loose to scoop, stir in an extra tablespoon of flour. If it is dry and crumbly, add a small splash of milk. You are aiming for a thick paste that drops cleanly from the spoon but holds its shape in the pan.
- Get the oil properly hot before you start. The single biggest cause of greasy fritters is dropping the batter into oil that has not reached temperature. Wait until the oil shimmers and a small test spoonful of batter sizzles on contact. Oil that is too cool soaks straight into the patty instead of searing the surface, and you end up with a heavy, oily result rather than a crisp one. A medium heat that holds steady is more reliable than a high heat you have to keep adjusting.
- Do not overcrowd the pan. It is tempting to fry the whole batch at once, but cramming the pan drops the oil temperature sharply and the fritters steam against each other instead of crisping. Cook in batches of three or four, leaving a clear gap around each one. The fritters brown more evenly this way, and you have room to slide a spatula underneath cleanly for the flip. A little patience here makes a visible difference to the final crust.
- Season the batter, then taste-check a tester. Courgette is mild, so the fritters need enough salt and pepper to lift them, but the raw batter is hard to judge by eye alone. Fry one small tester fritter first, taste it, and adjust the seasoning of the remaining batter before committing the whole batch. This small step saves you from a flat-tasting plateful. Remember the salt you added to draw out the water has mostly been squeezed away, so the batter usually needs a fresh pinch.
- Customise the flavour to suit the meal. This batter is a brilliant base for experimenting once you have the technique down. Crumble in a little feta for a salty, Greek-style version, add grated parmesan for depth, or stir through chilli flakes and cumin for a spiced twist. A handful of grated carrot or sweetcorn also works well and adds colour. Just keep the wet-to-dry balance in mind, adding a touch more flour if any extras bring moisture with them.
Courgette Fritters Recipe FAQ
Can I make courgette fritters ahead of time?
Yes, these work well for meal prep. Fry them completely, cool them to room temperature on a wire rack so they do not steam and soften, then store in the fridge. When you want to eat, reheat in a dry pan or air fryer to crisp the crust back up. They are best within two to three days, and reheating in a dry pan rather than the microwave is what keeps them from going limp.
Why are my courgette fritters falling apart?
The usual culprit is too much water left in the grated courgette, which prevents the batter from setting around the egg and flour. Squeeze the courgette very firmly in a towel after salting it — much harder than feels necessary. The other common cause is not enough binder: make sure you are using a full egg and enough flour relative to the volume of courgette, as these two ingredients are what hold the patty together in the pan.
Do I need to peel the courgettes first?
No, there is no need to peel them. The dark green skin holds plenty of nutrients and gives the batter an attractive flecked colour. Just wash the courgettes well under cold water and trim off both ends before grating. Peeling would also remove some of the structure that helps the fritters hold together, so the skin is doing useful work here as well.
Can I bake these instead of frying them?
You can, though they will not get as crisp as the pan-fried version. Brush a baking tray generously with oil, shape the batter into flattened patties, and bake at 200°C for about 20 minutes, flipping halfway through so both sides colour. The flavour is still good and it uses less oil, but expect a softer, more bread-like texture rather than the lacy fried crust.
Are courgette fritters healthy?
They are a good way to get more vegetables into a meal, built on simple whole ingredients. Frying adds some oil, but draining the fritters well on kitchen paper removes most of the excess, and you control how much oil goes into the pan in the first place. To lighten the meal further, serve them with a fresh salad and a yoghurt-based dip rather than a rich, creamy sauce.
What is the best oil to use for frying?
You should use a neutral cooking oil that has a high smoke point. Sunflower oil, vegetable oil, or light olive oil all work very well for pan-frying. Avoid using extra virgin olive oil because it will smoke too quickly and give the food a bitter taste.
Courgette Fritters Recipe
Crispy courgette fritters made from grated courgette, onion, egg and flour, pan-fried until golden and lacy at the edges. The trick is squeezing the water out of the courgette first, so they crisp rather than steam. Ready in under 30 minutes and built almost entirely from pantry staples.
Ingredients
- 2 medium courgettes (about 400g / 14 oz), grated
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 small onion, grated
- 1 egg
- 3 tablespoon plain flour (about 25g / ⅓ cup)
- dried or fresh herbs of choice — such as dill, parsley, oregano
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 2–3 tablespoon oil (for frying)
Instructions
- Grate the courgettes, sprinkle with salt, and let sit for 5 minutes. Squeeze out the excess moisture in a clean tea towel.
- In a bowl, mix the courgettes with grated onion, egg, flour, garlic, herbs and seasoning to form a thick batter.
- Heat oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Drop spoonfuls of batter into the pan and flatten slightly.
- Fry for 5–6 minutes per side until golden brown and crisp. Serve warm with your favourite dip.
