Vegan Column: Fried zucchini
These days, more and more people are considering a vegan diet, free of meat, dairy, and eggs. Their motivations are varied but often include concerns about animal welfare, health goals, and environmental reasons. Whatever the inspiration, there can be a learning curve when it comes to taking it on. After all, most of us grew up in meat-eating households and have habits that support that.
When I went vegetarian and then vegan almost two decades ago, it took some time to acclimate. Before then, I’d grown accustomed to having meat at most meals. Suddenly, I had to reconsider what I would be eating for breakfast, lunch, and dinner now that animal products were off the table.
But with time, I created new habits. I started making simple swaps and adjustments, and I discovered along the way that I could still have my old favorites but slightly tweaked to fit my new plant-based diet.
I didn’t have to say goodbye to tacos. I just filled them with beans instead of beef. I didn’t have to stop eating cozy pasta dinners. I just topped my marinara-tossed noodles with garlicky mushrooms, onions, and bell peppers. The days of making a quick sandwich for lunch weren’t behind me. I just had to use slightly different fillings. Time and again, for almost any meal to which I had a sentimental attachment, there was a compassionate alternative.
As I was growing my repertoire of recipes, I wanted to help others who were in a similar situation – people who wanted delicious, full-flavored vegan recipes that tasted like home. So I started a vegan food blog called Cadry’s Kitchen (cadryskitchen.com). I began writing and photographing recipes, making instructional videos, and sharing tips on living a cruelty-free lifestyle including restaurant recommendations.
Over the past 15 years, I’ve created hundreds of recipes for my website. I especially love plant-based takes on comfort food like French dip sandwiches, jackfruit reubens, pot pie, crispy arancini, and fried zucchini (recipe below).
While I was building my recipe site, I dreamed of someday writing a book that could distill everything I’ve learned along the way. It would be a beginner’s guide to living a vegan lifestyle—the kind of book I wished I’d had when I first dipped my toes into a meat-free life.
Then, last year I was able to make that dream a reality when I was approached about writing a book for the popular "For Dummies" series. The well-known books are beloved for the way they break down challenging topics into simple and manageable steps.
I poured my heart into "Living Vegan For Dummies, 2nd edition," and it’s now available in bookstores and online. It is a comprehensive guide to going (and staying!) vegan. It highlights the many reasons people choose this lifestyle, tips on navigating holidays and social gatherings on a plant-based diet, creating grocery lists and stocking your pantry, finding vegan meals in restaurants, and my personal passion, veganizing family favorites. "Living Vegan" also includes 38 user-friendly recipes to get folks started.
If you’ve been thinking about venturing into a vegan lifestyle, there couldn’t be a better time for it. Not only are there more resources like "Living Vegan" and plant-based specialty products than ever before, we’re also entering prime produce season.
One vegetable that pops up a lot in the summer months is zucchini. This mildly flavored vegetable can be prepared in many ways, from stir-fries to raw noodles and breads.
However, my favorite way to enjoy zucchini has to be breaded and fried. It’s a sure-fire way to make a zucchini lover out of almost anyone! Breaded zucchini gets beautifully crispy on the outside while the inside stays steamy and tender. Herbs and spices make the flavor pop. I’ve offered two cooking methods below − shallow frying in a skillet or air frying.
Serve fried zucchini as an appetizer, snack, or side dish. It’s terrific on its own or served with a dipping sauce like vegan ranch dressing, cocktail sauce, or warmed marinara.
Yield: Serves 2 to 4, depending on your appetite
Ingredients
1 medium zucchini (about 13 ounces)
½ cup all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of salt
6 to 8 Tablespoons water
1 cup panko bread crumbs (plus more if necessary)
¾ teaspoon dried basil
¾ teaspoon dried oregano
¾ teaspoon paprika
¾ teaspoon granulated garlic
Avocado oil for frying or oil spray for air frying
Instructions
Remove ends from zucchini. Then cut the remaining zucchini into roughly ¼ inch thick slices.
Blot the slices dry on a clean kitchen towel. Then set aside.
Now it's time to make a breading station. In a cereal bowl, use a fork or whisk to combine all-purpose flour, baking powder, a pinch of salt, and six tablespoons of water. After the batter is mixed, slowly add two more tablespoons of water, as needed. You want the batter to have the consistency of pancake batter.
Then on a dinner plate, combine panko bread crumbs, dried basil, dried oregano, paprika, granulated garlic, and a pinch of salt.
One at a time, dip each zucchini slice into the batter and fully coat it. Tap off any excess batter.
Then dredge it in the panko bread crumb mixture until it's fully covered.
Continue breading each one until they are finished. (If you run out of panko breadcrumbs, add more to the plate, along with a pinch of each of the seasonings.)
TO PAN FRY: Fill a large non-stick skillet with about a half-inch of avocado oil (or other high-heat oil) and bring to medium-high heat. Drop a breadcrumb into the oil to see if it's hot enough. If bubbles immediately form around it, it's ready to use.
Put the breaded zucchini slices into the oil. (Be careful not to overcrowd the pan. You may need to work in batches.) Fry for about 5 minutes, stopping once about halfway through to flip with a spatula. (Don’t move them until they brown.) Once they are brown all over, move the fried zucchini to a towel-lined plate to drain excess oil. Finish with another pinch of salt.
TO AIR FRY: Put the breaded zucchini slices into the air fryer basket. (Depending on the size of your zucchini and air fryer, you may need to cook in batches. Zucchini won’t brown as nicely when overcrowded.) Lightly spritz with oil (optional). Air fry at 360 degrees for eight minutes, stopping once to flip the slices and spray with oil again.
Cadry Nelson is the creator behind Cadry’s Kitchen (cadryskitchen.com) and author of Living Vegan For Dummies, 2nd edition. Cadry’s work has been featured on NBC News, Mashable, Yahoo, Buzzfeed, Parade, VegNews, and Vegan Food & Living. She lives in Iowa with her husband and their affectionate cats.
This article originally appeared on Ames Tribune: Vegan Column: Fried zucchini
