I live in San Diego and every year we’re blessed with the San Diego County Fair. It’s an outdoor affair filled with charcoal and kettle corn aromas. Unfortunately due to COVID-19 we weren’t able to experience it and I miss having deep fried induced food comas.

Recently, my mom bought me an air fryer, saying it was a complete necessity to have in the kitchen. This came as a surprise for me because this woman still uses a toaster oven to make baked chicken and keeps her pots and pans in the oven. In the end, trying to figure out cooking times and temperatures, I was craving some deep fried goodness.

Zucchini fries to me are always a hit or miss, a lot of the times there’s no flavor or they’re just too soggy to enjoy.

The secret to this recipe is dipping the egg mixture and flour twice instead of just once, and flavoring the flour AND the panko!

Take three bowls and fill one with 3 beaten eggs, one with panko and salt and pepper, and the other with flour, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, salt and pepper.

It’s going to get pretty messy so I try to do everything with one hand so the other is free to do things like grabbing your air fryer handle, writing an essay on as to how COVID has affected you and your mental state, or rejecting phone calls.

Go ahead and cut your cucumbers into “matchstick” shapes. In doing this I cut the ends of the zucchini, then cut it in half. Take those halves and cut them into thirds and voila! You have matchstick zucchini shapes that you can’t smoke but you can air fry.

I like having spoons in the bowls to help with coating as well.

Dip the zucchini in flour, then the egg wash, then again in the flour, then again the egg wash, then dip it into your panko. Set aside and four or five more (make sure not to overcrowd your pan to evenly air fry).

Spray oil onto your pan to prevent sticking, and set it to 375 to 370 degrees and set it to 15 minutes and air fry!

During these 15 minutes I do my next set of 4 or 5 (depending on size) and set up any dipping sauces I plan on utilizing between cooking times.

When your first batch is done set aside on a cooling rack with paper towels or a metal tin underneath for easy clean up, repeat until all of your zucchinis are used up!

Ingredients:

Refrigerated:
3 Zucchini
3 Eggs

Baking and Spices:
1 ½ cup of Panko
1 cup Flour
1 tbsp Garlic powder
1 tbsp Onion powder
1 tbsp Paprika
Salt and pepper

Oils and Vinegars:
Olive oil spray or spray of your choice

Equipment:
Air fryer
Chopping knife
Cutting board
Three clean dipping bowls

Directions:

Take empty bowls and fill one with 3 beaten eggs, one with panko and salt and pepper, and the third with flour, 1 tbsp garlic powder, 1 tbsp onion powder, 1 tbsp paprika, salt and pepper.
Cut 3 zucchinis into matchstick shapes
Take one cut zucchini stick and dip into your flour, then egg wash, then flour, then egg wash, and then finally your panko
Set aside and do up to four or five (enough to not crowd your air fryer pan)
Spray pan with oil of choice, then set made zucchini into pan
375/370 degrees for 15 minutes!
Top with parmesan cheese or favorite fry seasoning while still hot

Quick garlic aioli:

Mayo , italian seasoning, minced garlic and lemon juice

Quick fry sauce:

Mayo, bbq sauce, chili powder, black pepper