Name: Air Fryer Zucchini Chips
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 12 min
Total time: 22 min
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 1 lb Zucchini (2-3 medium); 2 TB Dijon Mustard; ¼ Cup Plain Unsweetened Non-Dairy Milk; 3 Cups Plain/Panko Gluten-Free Breadcrumbs; 2 Tsp Italian Seasoning; ½ Tsp Onion Powder; ½ Tsp Garlic Powder; ½ Tsp Black Pepper; Salt (to taste)

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These crispy Air Fryer Zucchini Chips are healthy, oil-free, and made with just 5 ingredients! This quick and easy gluten-free air-fried zucchini rounds recipe is vegan and allergy-free; no eggs, dairy, or nuts needed! Just like Italian fried zucchini, this seasoned and breaded, crunchy, low-carb appetizer is perfect for dipping, served as a side dish, or as a kid-friendly snack!

Crispy, crunchy, gluten-free Air Fryer Zucchini Chips! The perfect healthy, dippable, veggie appetizer your guests will love! This homemade version of the classic Italian restaurant staple is made without deep-frying, eggs, dairy, or gluten. Just 5 ingredients and totally customizable, this air fryer fried zucchini recipe is easy to batch for serving a crowd and quick enough to make as a healthy mid-day snack for just yourself!

Why You'll Love These Gluten-free Air Fryer Zucchini Chips

I have fond nostalgic pre-celiac memories of eating at Italian restaurants with my family and having fried calamari and fried zucchini served up as appetizers for the table. Long gone are the days of enjoying a basket of battered semolina, deep-fried, greasy, melt-in-you-mouth zucchini...But all hope isn't lost with this healthy, gluten-free, copycat recipe! Easier to make with no oil or mess, free of the top allergens, and a perfect way to serve up the humble zucchini in a delicious new format! This recipe is...

Gluten-Free
Vegan & Vegetarian
Allergy-free (Dairy-Free, Soy-Free, Egg-Free, Nut-Free, Peanut-Free, Wheat-Free, Sesame-Free, Coconut-Free, Corn-Free)
Low-Carb, Keto & Paleo Options
Oil-Free + Sugar-Free
Kid-Friendly
Customizable Seasonings
Healthy Appetizer, Simple Side Dish, Quick & Easy Snack
Great For Holidays and Dinner Parties to Feed a Crowd

Ingredients For Air Fryer Zucchini Chips

Zucchini: Fresh medium-sized zucchini work best. Not too small or big. It will be up to you how many you need, but this recipe calls for 1 pound.
Gluten-Free Breadcrumbs: Plain gluten-free breadcrumbs are the coating you'll need for the air-fried zucchini. You can use panko or regular.
Seasonings: A nice blend of Italian seasonings such as dried parsley, oregano, basil, salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder work beautifully to season the breadcrumbs. You can use a premade Italian herb seasoning blend or mix and match with what herbs and spices you have on hand.
Non-Dairy Milk: Any kind of non-dairy milk you have on hand works! Plain and unsweetened so you don't end up with sugary zucchini!
Dijon Mustard: The dijon is mixed into the milk for an egg-free wash that you'll be dipping the zucchini slices in before coating them in breadcrumbs.

Ingredient Modifications

Can you use yellow squash? If you don't have zucchini on hand, use yellow squash (aka yellow zucchini). Literally, basically, kinda sorta the same thing.
Make It Grain-Free: If you want to eliminate the low amount of carbs completely and make this recipe grain-free, paleo, and keto, while still being allergy-free (no nuts) you can use these cassava crumbs or tigernut crumbs.
Make It Spicy: Add some spice to your zucchini chips by adding chili powder or chipotle powder to your breadcrumbs. You can also add some hot sauce or buffalo sauce to your milk mixture.

How To Make Air Fryer Zucchini Chips

Prep 3 stations for zucchini coating in three bowls. The sliced zucchini chips, milk, and breadcrumbs.
Mix the seasonings into the gluten-free breadcrumbs and whisk the Dijon mustard into the dairy-free milk.

Use a fork to dip a zucchini round into the dairy-free milk mixture, allowing excess liquid to drip off.
Then place the wet zucchini round in the gluten-free breadcrumbs and toss breadcrumbs on top to coat (do this with one hand to prevent clumping).

Place a single layer of breaded zucchini chips in the basket of your air fryer.
Set the temperature to 400°F on your air fryer and timer for 8-10 minutes before flipping them over.

After you've flipped the chips, air fry them for an additional 4-5 minutes until they are golden brown.
Remove the first batch of zucchini chips and set them on a wire rack to prevent them from getting soggy as you finish the rest of the zucchini rounds.

How Long Do You Air Fry Zucchini Chips?

This comes down to zucchini thickness and air fryer basket size. You want your zucchini rounds to be about ⅛-inch in thickness. This will ensure that they get crispy and not just steamed in the middle of the zucchini when you bite in. If you have a small air fryer, as I do, you'll need to do multiple small batches to ensure that each round has ample breathing room and gets air-fried properly, not steamed. If your air fryer is one that can be preheated, that will cut down on time. Use my recipe guidelines as your starting point, 8-10 minutes on the first side, 4-5 on the second.

How To Serve Air Fryer Fried Zucchini

Served as an appetizer, the Italian way, this air-fried zucchini fritti is served with a simple tomato sauce or marinara. You can also dip these breaded zucchini chips into ketchup, eggless aioli or mayo, or even some BBQ sauce! If you want to serve them as a side dish, with a sandwich, or with complimentary dishes, here are some delicious ideas:

How Long With Breaded Zucchini Chips Last?

These air-fried gluten-free zucchini chips are best served and enjoyed immediately! If you do have leftovers, the best way to store them after they've cooled to room temperature is to place them in an airtight container with a paper towel lining the bottom and place the container in the refrigerator. Use them within 1-3 days.

How To Reheat Leftovers

The best way to reheat leftover air fryer zucchini is to place them back into your air fryer! Place the leftover zucchini rounds in a single layer in your air fryer set to 400°F and air fry for about 2-3 minutes until the zucchini is hot and crisp again. Alternatively, you can place them on a baking sheet and bake them at 400°F for 10 minutes, flipping halfway through, until crispy.

Additional Tips & Tricks

To ensure the crispiest air-fried zucchini do not overcrowd the air fryer basket! Batches are key to the best most delicious end product and to prevent them from being soggy!
If you don't have an air fryer and you want to make these vegan zir fryer zucchini chips, you can follow the same breading process and bake them in a single layer on a parchment paper or Silpat lined baking sheet at 425°F for about 10 minutes, flip and bake the other side for 7-8 minutes or until golden brown and crispy.
Make sure to slice the zucchini thin but not too thin. ⅛-inch is the best option to ensure that the zucchini is thick enough to hold up to the breading while still being thin enough to get nice and crispy instead of steamed.

More Breaded Air Fryer Side Dishes: