These crispy vegetable fritters are packed with broccoli, carrots, and zucchini. Dip each delicious appetizer fritter into the creamy avocado yogurt sauce.
I feel like vegetables never get enough praise, so today I’m going to let them shine! As a food scientist, it still amazes me how healthy, and wholesome food can nourish our bodies. You know I love my sweet desserts, but today it’s all about carrots, broccoli, and zucchini. We’re going to combine them for crispy, golden brown, and super delicious vegetable fritters!
When these little guys are hot right out of the pan, you’re going to be tempted to eat them immediately. Before you eat all of these crunchy vegetable fritters straight out of the pan, I recommend whipping up a super creamy avocado yogurt sauce so you can dip and bite, then dip and taste again and again…
Good ole fashion Plain Greek yogurt is an excellent way to add creaminess to a homemade dipping sauce. It has the flavor similar to sour cream, but with less fat and higher protein. A nice healthier alternative without the sacrifice in flavor.
I used my trusty ruby red blender to create a super smooth avocado yogurt sauce. Then I stirred in some fresh chopped dill and chives to add an earthy and sweet flavor to the sauce. This cool and creamy sauce is a nice complement to those warm crispy vegetable fritters. You’ll want to make sure you made enough because you’re going to want to dip each bite.
Making these vegetable fritter appetizers are pretty straightforward. This working mom has no shame in buying pre-shredded carrots and broccoli slaw (broccoli stems cut into matchstick pieces). It certainly saved me time from peeling and chopping so I could start devouring each fritter a little bit sooner!
Each fritter is packed with flavor since the vegetables are pretty neutral in taste. I wanted to add some bold spices to the mix. Hello, cumin, chili pepper, garlic, and green onions. These add nice savory spices to the fritters. Now with a little Parmesan cheese, it all comes together into one happy patty.
You can use any flour you like to bind the fritters together and add a crispy texture. I’ve tried both all-purpose flour and white whole wheat flour. I found the fritters to be slightly more lite and crispy with the all-purpose flour. However, if you’re looking to add whole grain flour to the dish, whole wheat, and white whole wheat are excellent alternatives.
The garden goddesses are smiling with each bite of vegetable fritter. I made these as a side dish for dinner, and I couldn’t stop eating them! This is certainly a quick vegetable packed and a super yummy dish that you can make any day of the week.
More appetizer recipes
How do I achieve crispy vegetable fritters using a stainless steel pan?
Start by preheating your pan on low heat for one or two minutes before adding foods. Pour in 1 tablespoon of cold oil or enough to cover the bottom of the surface. It’s best to use medium heat for pan-frying the vegetable fritters as high heat will cause the surface to brown and harden too quickly. If the sound that food makes on initial contact with the pan is more of a crackle than a sizzle, your heat is too high, and sticking may occur. Allow the fritters to fry without moving them for about 3 to 4 minutes on each side. The natural sugars in the fritter will caramelize on the cooking surface, so you can easily lift the fritters off the pan. Check out this post on how to clean stainless steel pans for more tips!
Crispy Vegetable Fritters with Dipping Sauce
Ingredients
Vegetable Fritters
- 4 cups water
- 1 cup broccoli, stems, matchstick-cut (or pre-cut broccoli slaw)
- 1 cup carrots, matchstick-cut
- 1 cup zucchini, matchstick-cut
- ½ cup all-purpose flour, or white whole wheat flour
- ⅓ cup parmesan cheese
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon cumin, ground
- ¼ teaspoon garlic salt
- ⅛ teaspoon chili powder, ground
- 3 tablespoons green onions, thinly sliced
- 1 large egg, whisked
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Avocado Yogurt Sauce
- ½ cup plain greek yogurt
- ½ medium avocado, ripen
- 1 teaspoon dill, chopped fresh
- 1 teaspoon chives, chopped fresh
Instructions
Vegetable Fritters
- Bring 4 cups of water to a boil in a medium-sized saucepan.
- Cook broccoli, carrots and zucchini for 4 minutes; drain.
- Pat broccoli mixture dry with paper towels. Roughly chop so that fritter can hold together when formed. Place broccoli mixture and flour in a large bowl and stir to coat.
- Stir in cheese, salt, pepper, cumin, garlic salt, chili powder, and onions into the broccoli mixture. Stir in the whisked egg until the broccoli mixture is evenly combined.
- Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add oil and swirl to coat.
- Form ¼ cup of the broccoli mixture by hand into a ball.
- Add ball into a pan and flatten slightly with a spatula; cook 3 to 4 fritters at a time. Cook each fritter 4 minutes on each side or until golden brown.
- Transfer to a plate with a paper towel to soak up the excess oil. Repeat procedure for the rest of the fritters.
Avocado Yogurt Sauce
- In a blender, combine yogurt, avocado, dill and chives in a small bowl. Serve yogurt mixture with fritters.
Recipe Video
Notes
- Make it vegetarian: Look for vegetarian parmesan that does not contain animal rennet, instead microbial/vegetarian rennet.
Alice says
Hey, just wanted to let VEGGIES know that parmesan is NOT vegetarian. It contains animal rennet so be careful!
Jessica Gavin says
Hi Alice- I really appreciate your comment, I learned something new. Thanks! I’ve updated the recipe.
saima ahmad says
You can use vegetarian parmesan cheese. Trader Joe’s & 356 brand.
Jessica Gavin says
Thanks for the insight, Saima!
Lynnbo says
This has become my go-to veggie fritter recipe! I’ve been using broccoli and carrots and whatever other veggies I happen to have in the fridge and they always turn out great! Next time I’m going to double the recipe so we have enough for main course for me and my husband! Thanks for the recipe!
Jessica Gavin says
I love that you’ve been adding in any veggies you have on hand, great job!
Hillary Schneider says
These were fabulous!! I used gf flour and also added corn for a little more crunch!!
Jessica Gavin says
Thank you, Hilary! I’ll have to try it with gluten-free flour.
Priya Chandra says
What can I substitute for egg?
Jessica Gavin says
You can make a flax egg. Combine 1 tablespoon ground flaxseeds and 3 tablespoons cool. Stir and let sit for 10 minutes until thickened. It helps with binding the mixture together.
Sue says
Absolutely excellent! For when you are eating all your vegetables and yet craving a little something fried.
Thank you, Jessica! I really like so many of your recipes and the explanations as well.
Jessica Gavin says
Thank you so much, Sue!