This breaded Zucchini Parmesan is fried until crispy and baked in a casserole dish with layers of marinara sauce and mozzarella cheese.
Have more zucchini in your garden? Try my creamy zucchini soup and eggplant rollatini next!
Zucchini Parmesan
This is definitely one of my favorite ways to make use of garden zucchini during the summer. The preparation takes a little bit of time before you assemble it in the casserole dish and bake it, but the effort is SO well worth it.
I prefer to fry the zucchini prior to baking it in the casserole dish with cheese and marinara, but I do have instructions in the recipe card notes if you want to bake or air fry it instead.
Be sure to check out my Pro Tips below where I share some key advice that I learned during my testing efforts for this recipe.
Should You Salt Zucchini Before Cooking?
- Zucchini is 95% water. Salting them extracts a lot of this moisture which gets absorbed by paper towels on the top and bottom of the zucchini rounds.
- This makes a huge difference between having firm, sturdy bites of zucchini, vs. a limp and watery consistency.
- Let them sit for at least 30 minutes after salting to allow the maximum amount of moisture to get extracted. I usually let them sit for 1.5 hours if time allows.
How to Make It
*See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
Slice zucchini into 1/4 inch slices, no thicker. Salt each side and place in between paper towels for up to an hour to extract water. Pat each one dry before dredging.
Dip each slice into beaten egg whites & garlic powder. Transfer to breading mixture and coat generously.
Fry in preheated 350° oil until golden brown on each side. Transfer to a cooling rack.
*Note: The recipe card at the bottom of this post has instructions for baking or air frying the zucchini if preferred.
Spoon marinara sauce on the bottom of a 9 x 13 casserole dish. Add a layer of fried zucchini and top with marinara and mozzarella.
Add additional layers of zucchini, marinara, and mozzarella until you’ve used all of the zucchini. You can do this in clean stacks or overlap them within the casserole dish.
Bake at 400° for 20-25 minutes, until cheese is melted and begins to brown slightly. Serve!
Do You Peel Zucchini?
- There is no need to peel the zucchini unless it’s jumbo sized, in which case the skins could be tough/bitter.
- The ideal size for a ripe zucchini is about 6 inches.
- I like to slice these into thin, 1/4 inch slices for a nice crispy consistency. Otherwise it’s harder to get the middle to cook through.
Pro Tips
- Don’t let them sit too long after being breaded. Give them another dip in the breading mix if any moisture starts to creep through before they’re fried.
- Make sure the oil has reached 350° (medium-high heat) before you add the zucchini. If it’s not hot enough, the breading will fall off. You can then adjust up/down during cooking as needed.
- Watch them carefully as they fry, once they start to turn brown it happens quickly.
- To keep the zucchini crisp: Place them on a cooling rack after frying/baking/air frying.
Using Egg Whites For The Breading
- Traditionally, Chicken Parmesan or Eggplant Parmesan is dredged in seasoned flour, then eggs, then in a breadcrumb mixture. I tried this method with the zucchini as well, but felt like the zucchini got lost in the breading this way, the zucchini to breading ratio was off.
- So instead, I like to dip the the zucchini in egg whites because it allows the zucchini to hold on to the breading, but isn’t heavy enough where the egg will bleed through. From there it goes into a seasoned breadcrumb/flour mixture with a bit of Parmesan cheese mixed in.
- This is a nice, light breading which compliments the thin slices of zucchini well.
Storage
Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
Try These Next
Get My Free Meal Plan
I’ve got a Free Meal Plan with 7 of my super popular recipes (complete with grocery list)! Sign up for my email list and I’ll send it over now along with weekly dinner recipes!
And follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest!
Tried This Recipe?
Leave a review, I love hearing your feedback! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Zucchini Parmesan
Ingredients
- 2 medium zucchini
- 2-3 egg whites, beaten until frothy
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 ½ cups marinara sauce
- 2 cups mozzarella cheese
- 20 oz. vegetable oil, for frying
Breading
- ¾ cup flour
- ¾ cup Italian breadcrumbs
- ¼ cup Parmesan cheese, grated
- 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
Bread/Fry the Zucchini
- Note 1: There is no need to peel the zucchini unless they are jumbo sized, in which case the skins could be tough/bitter.Note 2: See notes section on instructions for baking or air frying the zucchini instead of frying. This is done before the casserole is assembled with marinara sauce and cheese.
- Wash the zucchini and pat dry. Slice into ¼ inch slices, try not to cut thicker than that, or they won’t be as crispy. Place over paper towels and sprinkle evenly with a light layer of salt. Flip and repeat with more salt. Top with more paper towels. Let is for 30+ minutes, preferably up to an hour. Pat them each completely dry prior to dredging.
- Beat the egg whites and garlic powder until frothy.
- Combine the breading ingredients in a small bowl.
- Dip each zucchini into the egg whites, then coat generously in breading mix. Use the back of a spoon to pat the breading onto the zucchini. Flip, and repeat.
- Heat vegetable oil to 350° (medium-high heat), preferably in a cast iron skillet. Use enough to cover them about halfway. Add more oil while they cook as needed.
- Fry for 2-3 minutes per side, until golden brown. Leave room around each one so they will crisp on the outside. Watch carefully as they fry, once they start to brown, it happens fast.
- Set aside on a cooling rack, this allows air to circulate around them and keeps them crisp.
Assemble the Casserole
- Preheat oven to 400°.
- Spoon marinara sauce on the bottom of a 9 x 13 casserole dish, just enough to coat it lightly. Top with a layer of fried zucchini. Spoon marinara sauce over each one, then sprinkle with a layer of mozzarella cheese.
- Repeat until you’ve used all of the zucchini. You can make clean stacks or overlap them around each other.
- Bake, uncovered, for 20-25 minutes, until the cheese is melted and begins to brown. Serve with Cheesy Garlic Bread.°
Notes
Pro Tips:
- Zucchini is 95% water, so let them sit after salting as long as you can. You'll extract more water and will have a firmer consistency.
- Don't let them sit too long after being breaded. Give them another dip in the breading mix if any moisture starts to creep through before they're fried.
- Make sure the oil has reached 350° (medium-high heat) before you add the zucchini. If it's not hot enough, the breading will fall off. You can then adjust up/down during cooking as needed.
- Watch them carefully as they fry, once they start to turn brown it happens quickly.
- To keep the zucchini crisp: Place them on a cooling rack after frying/baking/air frying.
Made this tonight & it turned out great! I jazzed up the tomato sauce with our garden’s many herbs… I loved that I could adjust the size of the dish to use only one (big) zucchini). I’d never made this before, but I will be making it again- we have a lot of zucchini in the garden! 🙂
I’m so happy it was such a success Elisse! It’s one of my favorite ways to use Zucchini. Thanks so much for the great review!💖
Delicious! We had a HUGE zucchini from our garden to use up and this recipe was perfect. Everyone loved it. We served 2 slices alongside angel hair pasta. Will absolutely make again.
Hey JT!! I’m soo happy that you loved it and that you’ll be making it again, thank you so much for the review!!
Excellent flavor and well worth investing the labor involved. The specified ideal size zucchini (6 inches), yields small (less than 2 inch diameter) slices, too small to stack, and requiring at least 3 zucchini to create sufficient layers to generate reasonable portions. I fried enough quarter inch by inch and a half slices to create 3 layers and was glad I did. As I said, this took time but was well worth it considering the excellence of the result. I topped the whole with a layer of Parmesan and was glad I did. Were I to consider making this dish by stacking rather than layering the zucchini, I would use zucchini with a minimum 2 inch diameter, probably greater, even if it meant peeling the zucchini first. Stacks would make a dynamite side dish, while the layered casserole is a wonderful main course! Thank, Stephanie, for this outstanding recipe!!
Absolutely delicious. Made exactly per recipe but baked in an air fryer. They turned out great. Will definitely make again!
I’m so happy you enjoyed this one Susan! One of my favorite ways to use garden fresh Zucchini😋. Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review!
I’m Italian, so I modified your recipe a little bit. I had it with freshly made ricotta and added one beaten egg, along with dry basil, oregano, rosemary, marjoram, kosher salt, and cracked pepper. I added some powdered onion and garlic and also added a fourth of a cup of grated Parmesan. I have some fresh mozzarella balls that I sliced and added as well.
This was amazing!! Made it exactly according to the directions. Probably better than any typical lasagna I have made. Wouldn’t change a thing! Love this!
That’s so great to hear Maria! This is one of my favorite ways to use Zucchini. My husband almost refused to eat it since he said it wouldn’t taste anything like chicken parm, but he now asks for this one! Thanks so much for the great review!💕
This looks delicious! I can’t wait to try but am wondering if the casserole can be prepared ahead of time, frozen, then baked at a later date? Not sure if that would end up with a doggy casserole.
Thanks!
Hi Joanna! I’m not sure that I would assemble the whole thing, but you could bread the zucchini and immediately flash freeze them on a plate or baking sheet for 1-2 hours, then transfer to an airtight container and freeze until ready to assemble. Assemble from frozen and bake for about 10-15 minutes covered, then uncover and bake for another 20 minutes or so uncovered.
The recipe was delicious but did not have enough zucchini for more than 2 layers. The slices were also very small. I should have used a thicker zucchini. You are correct that the oil heats quickly so you need to watch the level of browning. Mine were extremely crispy. Watch that oil! Last but not least I poured the sauce over the whole layer instead of dolloping it onto each piece like was suggested. Duh…
I WILL make this again as it was delicious but I will be more attentive for sure!
Thanks for the great comments Wendy! I’m so happy you liked it, thanks so much for the great review!💗
Excellent quick and easy recipe!
I used store bought pasta sauce, fresh pecorino romano, panko and tex mex shredded cheese (what I had). Air fryer method (worked great).
Although it was a bit salty (most likely due to using pre-packaged items), the end product was definitely a success!
Ate it with steamed rice to cut the saltiness 😜.
Great and easy recipe for our garden zucchini!! Thanks.
This so delicious!!! Wondering if I could do the zucchini ahead of time? Like 4 hours?
Hi Kerri! I would bread and fry the zucchini ahead of time, and then assemble and bake later, that should be okay! 🙂