These zucchini fritters are a great way to use up the massive zucchini you end up with at the end of summer, when your friends or neighbours pawn off a big boi on you. Creamy, crispy, fresh and with a hint of spice, these fritters are late summer afternoons personified. You only need four cups, but I recommend grating the whole thing, portioning and freezing the extra zucchini for use in cakes or more fritters. Be sure to constantly watch the fritters as you’re frying, as you want them to be a rich golden colour, but not burnt. Great with some silky garlic hummus or just simply tossed in sea salt and eaten by hand as a snack.

You will need:

1 medium-large zucchini or 3-4 smaller ones (you’ll need roughly 4 cups of grated, drained zucchini to make this recipe)
1 large yellow onion
1 green bell pepper
2 medium hot peppers (use hot Hungarians, mirasol chilis, or substitute with one thai red chili)
4 cloves of garlic
3 large eggs
5 tablespoons of flour
3/4 cup of grated pecorino cheese (or other hard sheep’s milk cheese)
coarse sea salt
fresh ground black pepper
peanut or sunflower oil for frying

You’ll also need:

1 large, deep pan or Dutch oven
metal tongs or metal spatula
a box grater
a couple of metal tablespoons
a strainer or colander and large bowl to fit under
a few layers of paper towel folded onto a serving plate, for draining
an hour to drain your zucchini

To serve:

get some roasted garlic hummus and serve these fritters with a generous spoonful

Method:

Grate your zucchini and toss liberally with salt (about a tablespoon). Line a strainer with paper towel, place over a bowl and put your grated zucchini in to drain. Leave for 1 hour. Squeeze excess liquid into bowl and pour into a jar and refridgerate to make a green bloody mary later.
While your zucchini is draining, grate onion, bell pepper, garlic, and cheese. Grate your hot peppers if they’re large enough, or finely chop if you’re using a thai chili (don’t forget to wash your hands). Place everything in a large bowl and add 3 beaten eggs, flour, drained zucchini and season with a touch more salt (just a pinch) and black pepper. Mix everything together. There should be no clumps, and should be a thick, gloopy paste that holds some shape when scooped out with a spoon.
At this point, heat your oil (about 1-1.5 inches deep in your pan – we’re going to be shallow-frying) to a medium-high heat, until it’s shimmering on top. Drop a teaspoon of batter into the oil to test it; it should start bubbling and slowly turning golden brown (but not burning – if it does, lower the heat to medium). Have your paper-towel lined plate ready and off to the side.
Use two metal tablespoons to scoop batter and shape fritters into quenelle shapes before gently lowering into oil – one to scoop from the bowl, one to push overtop and scoop under on the spoon to shape, and the first one again to remove from the spoon into the oil. It takes a little practice, but look up how to shape quenelles on YouTube (or watch Season 2 of The Bear). These make nice uniform fritters that flatten out as they cook. Don’t overcrowd the pan – make sure you leave about and inch of room in between each of the fritters as you’re cooking so that they have room to brown properly.
Wait until you can see the sides turning golden brown, and use your metal tongs or a metal spatula to gently flip them over and cook the other side.
When both sides are crispy, remove batch onto plate with paper towel, and immediately sprinkle a touch of coarse salt overtop. Continue until you’ve finished the batter. Turn off burner and remove oil from heat and let cool.

Serve while still warm with garlic hummus, or eat as is.