Zucchini tots! These golden, crispy little fritters perfumed with garlicky oregano flavours might properly grow to be your new favorite zucchini recipe. Belief the Greeks to take one thing as plain as zucchini and switch it into one thing fabulous! Serve them for dinner, or go them round at a celebration.
That is an outdated, outdated, outdated recipe from 2015 that desperately wanted a spruce up – and most significantly, a Lifetime of Dozer part added!
Greek Zucchini Tots
10 years in the past in 2015, I discovered a recipe for Courgette Rissoles (ie. Zucchini rissoles) from Alonnisos in Greece in a e book referred to as The Meals and Cooking of Greece that I stumbled throughout once I was searching the cookbook part at my native library.
Do you do this? Borrow cookbooks out of your library? It’s an undiscovered secret. 🙂 You see, an obsession with cookbooks poses two issues – price range and area. What number of cookbooks have you ever purchased, solely to search out you solely use a couple of recipes from it? And as for storage…my cookbooks are all over the place. My bookshelf is overflowing!
As a cookbook writer, I totally respect the irony of encouraging folks to borrow cookbooks from the library. 😃 However I do, and so does my group. Fairly certain JB‘s on a primary identify foundation with the workers at our native library!
So, that’s the place I discovered The Meals and Cooking of Greece, full of conventional home-style recipes. These cute little Greek Zucchini Tots (aka courgette for the Europeans!) caught my eye as a result of they seemed like humble, on a regular basis meals made with common components, however secretly scrumptious.
Plus, zucchinis are a discount year-round right here in Australia, particularly when you head to the Scruffy Veg part (my first cease, at all times!).
Substances in Greek Zucchini Tots
Right here’s what it’s worthwhile to make these. Through the years I’ve made them since I initially revealed the recipe in 2015, I’ve discovered that it’s a really versatile recipe – simply make it gluten free, substitute inexperienced onion for herbs, change parmesan for different cheeses, and oregano for different dried herbs.
1. FOR THE BATTER
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Flour – I exploit plain flour / all-purpose flour. I additionally tried it with gluten free flour and it labored completely, you wouldn’t even know the distinction,
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Egg – The egg is what holds this batter collectively when it bakes. The most effective (pure) food-glue identified to man variety!
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Panko breadcrumbs – I’ve a sense the unique recipe referred to as for normal breadcrumbs. However the bigger sized panko breadcrumbs make the within softer.
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Parmesan cheese – That is what offers these fritters a savoury flavour increase so it’s not bland inside, in addition to making them bake up with a golden crust. I completely cheat and use the shop purchased sandy sort of parmesan (from the fridge part, not pantry – if it’s on the shelf, it’s not pure cheese!). The superb strands would additionally work, and for these extra virtuous than me, shred your individual. 🙂
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Dried oregano – Greece’s favorite herb? 🙂 We’re utilizing an entire tablespoon right here, a very good quantity! Substitute with the identical quantity of dried parsley or dill, or 2 teaspoons dried thyme, or herb mixes (like Italian, herbs de provence or a generically named “combined herbs”).
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Garlic – Is it actually Greek if there’s no garlic in it? No! 🙂
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Feta cheese – Ideally Greek!
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Inexperienced onion – For freshness and flavour. Substitute with finely grated pink onion or eschalots (US: shallots), or 1/2 cup tightly packed roughly chopped child spinach or kale (this works nice, I’ve finished each), or 1/2 cup loosely packed parsley.
2. YES you want Zucchini too!
Oh WAIT! I virtually forgot – you additionally want zucchini. 😂 And salt to sweat extra water out so the tots don’t find yourself a watery soggy mess that by no means crisp up.
You may see on this photograph (hopefully!) how the within is sweet and moist because of the zucchini however that the surface is crispy.
Different greens – I’ve additionally made this with carrots and so they have been fabulous. I used to be tempted to publish that however I resisted as I wished to spruce up the unique zucchini one first. Carrots coming subsequent! So useful – I at all times have carrots in my fridge.
How you can make Greek Zucchini Tots
The standard recipe is made by shallow frying them. However I discovered it took fairly some time (so many tots!!) and likewise, as common readers know, I’m selective about deep frying.
So I attempted baking them as an alternative. And what are you aware, it labored fabulously! A spritz of oil is all that’s required to create a golden crunchy crust, and it stays deliciously moist on the within. 🙂
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Grate the zucchini utilizing a normal field grater.
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Sweat the zucchini for half-hour to take away extra water. To do that, you simply toss the zucchini with 1/4 teaspoon of salt (you actually don’t want a lot) then go away it in a colander set over the sink or a bowl to let extra water drip out.
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Squeeze – Then seize handfuls and squeeze extra water out. Be aware: there isn’t any should be 100% meticulous right here and squeeze to dying, you simply need to get most of it out. The truth is, the remaining water within the zucchini is what retains these tots very nice and moist inside.
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Combine – Put the squeezed zucchini right into a clear bowl and add the remaining batter components besides the feta. I combine that in later to stop it from getting utterly smashed when mixing as I believe it’s good to have some little seen pops.
So, combine the whole lot else first till it’s properly mixed, then gently stir the crumbled feta by.
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Batter finished – That is what it seems like when it’s combined up. It seems a bit scruffy however holds when pressed collectively.
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Tots – Dollop heaped tablespoon mounds onto 2 trays lined with baking paper (parchment paper), then press into tater-tot / potato gem. I get 29 in whole (one wanting 30 didn’t trouble me once I filmed it however it’s bothering me at the moment….). Then spray generously with olive oil. The extra beneficiant you might be, the higher they brown!
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Bake for half-hour in a scorching 200°C/390°F (180°C fan-forced) oven, switching the trays on the 20 minute mark, till the floor is golden and crispy. It’s possible you’ll discover the underside tray wants a couple of additional minutes.
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Serve with plain yogurt or a easy Mint Yogurt on the aspect, or different dipping sauce of selection (sure, even good ole’ ketchup works right here!)
One tip earlier than I log out – these reheat exceptionally properly. Zucchini is a good moisture retention ingredient so the within stays superbly moist and smooth even as soon as reheated.
In order that they make an amazing occasion meals as a result of they reheat so properly, in addition to in fact being very useful as a make forward meal. They do finest reheated within the oven although quite than the microwave, to protect the crispy exterior which does soften because it cools, although this hasn’t stopped me from utilizing a microwave when velocity is of the essence. 🙂
If serving as a meal, this may serve 3 to 4, say 8 to 10 tots per individual. Attempt a contemporary Greek Salad on the aspect, or for one thing extra substantial, a Greek Marinated Chickpea Salad, Tzatziki Chickpea Salad, a buttery Garlic rice or a zippy Lemon Potato Salad. See right here for many extra aspect dishes, when you’d wish to have a browse! – Nagi x
Watch the best way to make it
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Greek Zucchini Tots
Prep: 20 minutes
Cook dinner: 30 minutes
Zucchini sweating: 30 minutes
Whole: 1 hour 20 minutes
Appetizer, Breakfast, Brunch, Dinner, Lunch
Greek
Servings30 – 35
Faucet or hover to scale
Substances
Minted Yoghurt (non-obligatory)
Forestall display screen from sleeping
Directions
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Preheat oven to 200°C/390°F (180°C fan-forced)
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Sweat zucchini – Grate the zucchini utilizing a normal field grater. Place into a big colander, sprinkle with the salt, toss along with your fingers and go away to sweat for half-hour.
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Squeeze out liquid – Working a handful at a time, squeeze out the surplus water (as a lot as you may) and place the zucchini in a bowl.
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Tots batter – Add the Batter components besides the feta and blend properly to mix. Add the feta and gently stir by.
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Kind tots – Dollop heaped tablespoons 2 trays lined with baking paper / parchment paper (I get 29 in whole). Then use your fingers to form them into cylinder “tater-tot / potato gem” shapes.
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Bake – Spray generously with oil. Bake for half-hour, swapping the trays at round 20 minutes (for additional golden, spray once more with oil), or till golden brown and a crunchy crust varieties on the floor. The tray on the underside would possibly want a couple of additional minutes.
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Serve with Minted Yogurt, lemon wedges and sprinkled with contemporary oregano leaves if utilizing.
Recipe Notes:
Staple at supermarkets in Australia nowadays, often the Asian part (cheaper at Asian shops). Substitute with common breadcrumbs, although it’s not as crunchy.
2. Range cooking – You may pan fry these as an alternative of baking them. Simply shallow fry on medium excessive warmth till golden on either side. I recommend making them in fritter shapes to make it simpler to cook dinner evenly. You would additionally deep fry them, as per the unique recipe.
Leftovers will preserve for 3 days although they do soften. They reheat properly within the oven – 200°C/390°F (180°C fan) for five minutes. Not appropriate for freezing.
Make forward – Greatest is to cook dinner then reheat per above. Don’t type the tots and go away to bake later, the zucchini will sweat and make the batter too watery.
Vitamin per tot. Ridiculously low energy. Let’s eat LOTS! 🙂
Vitamin Info:
Serving: 25gEnergy: 45cal (2%)Carbohydrates: 4g (1%)Protein: 2g (4%)Fats: 2g (3%)Saturated Fats: 1g (6%)Polyunsaturated Fats: 0.2gMonounsaturated Fats: 1gTrans Fats: 0.001gLdl cholesterol: 17mg (6%)Sodium: 145mg (6%)Potassium: 68mg (2%)Fiber: 0.5g (2%)Sugar: 1g (1%)Vitamin A: 112IU (2%)Vitamin C: 4mg (5%)Calcium: 58mg (6%)Iron: 0.5mg (3%)
Initially revealed October 2015. Up to date July 2025 with glowing new images, utterly re-wrote the put up, tidied up the recipe writing, added a recipe video and most significantly, added a Lifetime of Dozer part. That’s how outdated this put up was – it was earlier than I began doing Lifetime of Dozer!!
Extra nice zucchini recipes
I’ve a shocking variety of zucchini ahead recipes! Listed here are a few of my favourites:
Lifetime of Dozer
The Mum Cha RecipeTin X Plate It Ahead reader lunch occurred on Saturday, and it goes down in historical past as essentially the most profitable occasion we’ve ever finished!
Nowadays, I take a devoted Dozer handler to occasions – for his personal security in addition to the security of visitor meals, leaving me free to speak to friends with out fretting about Dozer. That is Sofie, my assistant’s daughter, who did an excellent job as Dozer’s handler on the Mum Cha occasion!
He seemed very dapper in his tux, corsage and all….
….and confirmed his standard confidence as he waddled out onto the ground throughout speeches…..
With Dozer properly into his senior years (he’s 13 years younger!), he often runs out of puff early on nowadays. He waddles round sidling as much as everybody for a pat, however must flop repeatedly to get well.
In consequence, I’m fairly certain Sofie spent extra time on the ground with Dozer than on her toes!
You see? ⬇️ For this reason I would like a devoted Dozer handler. SCAVENGER ALERT! He pulls out his finest “please can I’ve a nibble, my mom doesn’t feed me” eyes for each visitor. 🙄
I’ll share extra in an replace put up about this lunch as a result of there’s a lot to say. However we’re in spite of everything within the Dozer part, so I wished to maintain this all about him. 🥰
He did so properly. I used to be so happy with him! He deserved to spend the whole Sunday like this:
