Zucchini pancakes are such a delicious summertime recipe when zucchini is abundant. This recipe is a super easy one to make and it is big on flavor.
You may have heard of zucchini fritters and are wondering what the difference is between those and zucchini pancakes. Sometimes the names are used interchangeably but fritters are usually fried up in oil, and pancakes are made in a pan like pancakes.
This recipe is the zucchini pancake version. I find it to be a little lighter than zucchini fritters but just as amazing. The outside of the zucchini pancakes will have a really nice golden crust still but it is just not cooked in so much oil.
Now, my family is not a big fan of zucchini but they love this dish! What is not to like about zucchini that is shredded with spices and flour and pan fried to perfection. If you have picky eaters like I do and zucchini can be tough to get them to eat, you should check out my Italian zucchini too.
We actually have started to cook these outside on the large griddle grill because it makes a large batch so much faster! I have to make lots of these pancakes to keep up with demand!
The ingredients in this easy zucchini pancake recipe are very simple. You will probably already have all of them in your kitchen.
Ingredients for these easy Zucchini Pancakes:
- Zucchini (lots!)
- Eggs
- All purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Parmesan Cheese
- Salt
- Vegetable oil
- Green Onions
- Sour cream (for serving)
This dish requires grating the zucchini and then draining off the excess liquid before you cook it so your pancakes will hold it's shape in the pan. This drying out time is an important step and can't be skipped or you will end up with soggy pancakes.
This makes a great weekend meal that you can start in the late afternoon and start cooking it up around dinnertime. The only time consuming part is grating the zucchini and drying it out which makes this step the perfect one to get a head start on earlier in the day of possible.
The pancakes are served with sour cream and chives or green onions and this rally makes it taste amazing. The contrast of the hot pancakes and cool sour cream with the little bite of onion really make this dish what it is.
Tip:
When you are making these, make sure your pan is nice and hot and much like making regular pancakes, the first batch never comes out as nice 🙂
Zucchini Pancakes
Ingredients
- 2 cups grated zucchini dried well- see instructions below
- 2 large eggs slightly beaten
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped green onion plus more for garnish
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup vegetable oil or as needed
- For serving: 1 cup of sour cream and finely diced green onions
Instructions
- Pre-heat your oven to 175 degrees (warm). Place an oven proof cooling rack on top of a large sheet pan and place inside your oven to warm. This will be where you keep your pancakes warm as you make your batches on the stove top.
- Place grated zucchini in cheesecloth or a double layer of strong paper towels over a large colander.
- With your hands or the back of a large spoon, press down on the zucchini to remove as much moisture as possible. Do this a few times until the zucchini begins to dry out a bit and you see liquid coming through the colander.
- Now take your strained zucchini and add it to a large bowl.
- Next, add your eggs and onion to your strained zucchini and mix well.
- In a small bowl, combine your flour, Parmesan cheese, baking powder and, salt. Mix this into your zucchini mixture until batter is just moistened.
- Heat 2-3 tbsp of vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
- Drop rounded spoonfuls of zucchini batter on to the hot skillet and cook until golden brown, about 3 minutes per side. Blot pancakes on a paper towel-lined plate and then place in warm oven while you make the rest of your pancakes.
- Repeat Step 3 until all of your batter is gone. You may need to add a little more oil to the pan as your continue cooking your pancakes.
- Serve pancakes with a generous dollop of sour cream on the side and garnish with the extra green onions.
Jen says
Everyone loved them!