Fried Zucchini Flowers – without egg & vegan

This blog post is also available in German.

Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

The late summer is just shining in its full splendor and the temperatures are pleasantly warm. What could be nicer than sitting together with friends, drinking an iced glass of white wine, and snacking some tasty antipasti? These fried zucchini flowers should not be missing on your antipasti platter! They are completely vegan and therefore do not need any egg. And you only need a few ingredients to prepare them. And believe me, the crispy result will deeply impress your guests.

vegan fried zucchini flowers

Fried zucchini flowers, the Italian summer classic par excellence. I can’t tell you how long vegan fried zucchini flowers have been on my to-do list. Several times I’ve taken it upon myself to make some and something always came up.

Well, as you can see, I finally did it! It only felt like it took two summers to finally put that plan into action. And fried zucchini flowers are so quick and easy to make. And so delicious! So it remains a mystery to me why it took me so long to finally try it!
I hope you take this to heart and don’t wait as long as I did to try these vegan fried zucchini flowers!

fried zucchini flowers without egg

Fried zucchini flowers are a typical Italian dish. The zucchini flowers are dipped into a water-flour coating and then fried or deep-fried. If you like, you can also stuff the zucchini.

The classic coating consists of flour, grated parmesan, egg, olive oil, salt, and pepper. So at least two ingredients that are not vegan. But don’t worry, they can easily be exchanged. Respectively you can just leave out the egg completely, it`s not necessary. You can simply replace the parmesan with yeast flakes. You see, the Italian summer classic also works vegan quite easy and simply!

How to make vegan fried zucchini flowers

Vegan fried zucchini flowers are easy to prepare and guaranteed to work! Nevertheless, I would like to give you a few tips here.

I used a hot-air deep fryer for frying. I personally like the fact that you need very little oil and the result is really crispy. Of course a hot air deep fryer is not absolutely necessary. You can also simply deep-fry your zucchini flowers in a pan. But then you will need even more olive oil than the recipe says.

When handling zucchini flowers, you need to show some tact. Because the flowers are somewhat delicate. Especially if you want to fill them in advance. But you should also be careful when washing and dabbing them dry. Before you dip the zucchini flowers in the breadcrumb coating, remove the somewhat sticky pistils.

By the way, you can exchange some of the water in the breading with beer or white wine. For this recipe I left it at sparkling water. But feel free to use half beer and half water.

Less Waste tips for vegan fried zucchini flowers

Following are – as always – a few tips on how to avoid waste when preparing these vegan fried zucchini flowers.

• You buy unpackaged zucchini flowers at the weekly market
• The baby zucchini to which the flower is attached can also be fried or used for other dishes
• You will find flour, salt, pepper, olive oil, and garlic powder without packaging in the unpacked shop
• You can make sparkling water at home with a SodaStream (no advertising, bought by yourself)
• Basil can be planted in a pot on the windowsill or bought unpacked at the weekly market

Alternatives to the products used

You can also replace the flour used in this recipe with gluten-free flour. I haven’t tested it myself, but it should work fine.

There are also no limits to your creativity when it comes to spices. Experiment around, use different spices, try for example chili flakes, curry powder, smoked paprika powder and different herbs like oregano or marjoram. Also a pinch of Kala Namak would be conceivable to imitate the egg taste.

As already mentioned, you can also replace some of the water with beer or white wine. I would recommend a ratio of 50:50 here. If you do not want to use sparkling water, just use regular tap water.

Meal Prep tips

You eat vegan fried zucchini flowers fresh! They are not suitable for Meal Prep. Yeah, I wouldn’t eat them the day after they were cooked. So in this case please prepare them fresh and eat them immediately. Otherwise the zucchini flowers will become soft and soggy and will not be crunchy, especially if you keep them in the fridge.

Why you should try these vegan fried zucchini flowers:

They are:

• vegan
• egg-free
• cheese-free
• cooked with few ingredients
• easily prepared
• quickly prepared
• a crispy snack
• perfect for your summery antipasti platter

More vegan & summery snack & antipasti ideas:

• Tofu-Feta
• carrot lox toasties
• curry cashews
• baba ganoush
• vegan caprese salad
• grilled vegetables

If you are trying these vegan fried zucchini flowers, I would love your feedback here in the comments. If you share your creation of this recipe on Instagram, please don’t forget to link @velvetandvinegar and use the hashtag #velvetandvinegar. So my community and I won’t miss your contribution.

By subscribing to my newsletter, you also get access to my ebook and other freebies, as well as exclusive offers & content directly to your inbox. I also regularly send you the latest recipes, personal insights and interesting tips and tricks on vegan nutrition and sustainability.
You can also contact me directly via the newsletter by simply replying to my emails. This allows me to respond more specifically to your questions and wishes. I am happy to welcome you as part of my community!

Read you soon
Your Sarah

Do you have a Pinterest account? Then you can find me here and of course pin this picture!