Air Fryer Breaded Zucchini Chips With Parmesan

Why It's Yummy

• Simply great, crispy & flavorful - Zucchini chips in the air fryer with Parmesan and crumbs are irresistibly crispy and packed with savory flavor.
• Easy and quick - Enjoy the goodness of ‘’baked’’ zucchini chips with a twist. Air frying ensures a speedy cooking process, allowing you to enjoy crispy zucchini chips in just minutes.
• Healthier choice. Compared to traditional fried chips, these zucchini chips are a healthier alternative with less oil and calories.

• Zucchini - for this recipe, you can use any type of zucchini, but we recommend black beauty, gadzukes, cocozelle, or dunja. Find a dark green zucchini that's firm and doesn't have any cuts. Larger zucchini is better for slicing ¼ inches-thick rounds, as they will shrink while cooking. However, it may vary on the ripeness, as some larger ones can be too seedy and watery, which won't become crisp after air frying.
• Egg wash - the egg helps the crispy coating stick to the zucchini slices.
• Flour - you can use all-purpose flour or gluten-free flour blend (try my homemade blend for this) to make the coating for the zucchini chips. Or you can also use almond flour like I did in my air fryer buffalo cauliflower bites.
• Salt  - for natural flavor, we like sea salt or kosher salt over table salt. For a fun twist use pink Himalayan salt, celery salt, truffle salt or other seasoned salt varieties. Italian seasoning would taste here nice too.
• Panko or regular breadcrumbs - you can use regular crumbs or panko which are perfect for light and airy crispy coating. For gluten free, check the certified GF label on the package.
• Parmesan cheese - the addition of freshly grated Parmesan cheese enhances the flavor of the zucchini chips with its savory and nutty notes. It provides a delightful complement to the other ingredients. And I also recommend grating parmesan cheese from a block as it will blend better in the coating mixture.
• Cooking spray - we use olive oil. Oil is needed for the air fryer basket or tray to prevent the zucchini from sticking. This ensures a crispy and golden-brown exterior. Feel free to use your preferred type of cooking spray oil.
• Seasonings - I like to use Italian herbs (Herbs de Provence) which complement the zucchini flavor very well. Feel free to use other seasoning options or simply use salt + black pepper.

Tips

• I like to divide the breadcrumbs mixture into two bowls. Towards the end of coating the zucchini, the mixture can get lumpy and it will be hard to work with. This way there's less mess and the last batch of zucchini gets coated nicely as well.
• Make sure to firmly press both sides of the zucchini slices when coating them with the breading mixture to ensure it sticks well.
• While it's not absolutely necessary, preheating your air fryer can speed up the cooking process and ensure even results. Check the instructions provided by your manufacturer to see their recommendations.
• Using a non-stick spray is crucial when air frying, so don't skip it. It prevents the food from sticking to the basket and helps achieve a crispy texture. Feel free to use vegetable oil, olive oil, avocado oil, or any other oil spray of your preference.
• Please note that cooking times and temperatures may vary depending on the equipment used, so you may need to make adjustments accordingly. Once you see the exterior of slices is golden brown and crisp, they are ready.
• You can achieve perfectly sliced zucchini by using a mandoline slicer. Zucchini chips should not be very thin as they will simply burn if using the same instructions for air frying.
• Enjoy the zucchini chips while they are hot for maximum crispiness. Once cooled, I recommend reheating them only once in an air fryer at the same temperature until warmed through. They should still be crispy.
• To prevent soggy chips, thinly slice the zucchini, remove moisture with a paper towel, lightly oil, and always air fry until they are crispy.
• After air frying, place the chips on a cooling rack to maintain their crispness.
• You can also pulse the panko breadcrumbs for better adhesion to the zucchini slices. This is optional though.
• Every air fryer is different. Adjust cooking times based on your air fryer model until the slices turn golden brown and crispy. 
• Dot skip the salting of zucchinis. To prevent sogginess, sprinkle salt on the zucchini and let them dry on paper towels before air frying.
• Related: Is Zucchini Healthy?

Zucchini is very moist as it is mainly made from water and is not really storable like regular chips.

I recommend consuming it right away or within 24 hours.

• To Store any leftover air fryer zucchini slices, simply place them in an airtight container. They can be stored in a cool pantry or refrigerator for 1-2 days. These are thicker chips and they won’t last for long and maintain their crispiness.
• To Reheat. Just pop them back in the preheated air fryer at 400 F for a couple of minutes to regain that crispy texture.
• To Freeze. This can be a good option if you want to enjoy them later. For this, follow the recipe as is, but don’t air fry them. Place the breaded chips in one single layer on a baking sheet and flash freeze until they harden. Then transfer to a larger freezer-friendly bag or glass container and freeze for 2-3 months. To reheat, follow my recipe instructions for air frying. You can cook them directly from the freezer but you may need to add extra cooking time.

Recipe Substitutions and Variations

• Gluten free - for perfect crispy exterior I still recommend using some crumbs, if you don't
• For some added heat, sprinkle a bit of cayenne pepper or ground chili into the breadcrumbs mix. Or serve them with hot sauce like my buffalo sauce.
• Or use different seasonings like cumin, celery salt or taco seasoning.
• Make the recipe keto-friendly by using pork rinds instead of panko and almond flour instead of flour.
• For a vegan modification, you can opt for vegan Parmesan and replace the egg with a mixture of ¼ cup plant milk and 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseed, which acts as a binding agent.
• You can also use nutritional flakes instead of parmesan, they are mostly enjoyed cold but you can cook with them as well. Try my vegan recipe with nutritional yeast flakes, add 2 tablespoons into the breading mix, and use more flakes to sprinkle on top of the chips when serving.
• To switch things up, you can transform the zucchini into sticks instead of slicing them into rounds. It's a fun and tasty way to enjoy zucchini in a different form.