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10 Minute Air Fryer Zucchini

This air fryer zucchini recipe is the easiest way to get a delicious flavorful side dish on the table in about 10 minutes! Slice the zucchini, toss in olive oil, and season with a blend of your favorite dried herbs and Parmesan cheese and air fry! If your garden is overflowing with zucchini this summer, be sure to keep this recipe handy.

White plate filled with sliced air fryer zucchini garnished with parsley and Parmesan cheese.


 

You Will Love This

  • You will never cook zucchini any other way! Sliced zucchini can be a bit finicky to make because it cooks super quickly and is easy to overcook into a limp, mushy mess. The air fryer cooks the sliced zucchini into perfectly tender rounds that are slightly crisp on the outside and tender on the inside. Perfect for an easy veggie side dish or afternoon snack.
  • If you loved this easy air fryer recipe, be sure to check out my air fryer French toast, air fry baked potatoes, air fryer asparagus, and air fryer green beans.
White counter top with bowls of ingredients to make air fryer zucchini.

Ingredients and Substitutions

  • Zucchini – Grab some from the garden, the farmer’s market, or the grocery store. Try to make sure they are the same size so they cook evenly.
  • Olive OilOlive oil is my preferred oil for air frying, but you could also use grapeseed oil or avocado oil. You could also use olive oil cooking spray if you like.
  • Grated Parmesan Cheese – Grated Parmesan cheese works well for this recipe because it perfectly coats the slices of zucchini. You could also use shredded or shaved Parmesan but it may be hard to get to stick well to the zucchini or stick as evenly as grated Parm. If you prefer, you could sub panko bread crumbs for the Parmesan.
  • Italian Seasoning – If you don’t have any Italian seasoning on hand you can sub with dried oregano, dried thyme, and dried rosemary instead.
  • Garlic Powder – I love a little sprinkle of garlic powder because it adds a ton of flavor without having to chop up fresh garlic. Fresh garlic is also prone to burning, so garlic powder works well in this recipe. If you want to add a bit of heat, try using paprika or a pinch of cayenne pepper too!

Instructions

Slice zucchini into 1/3″ thick slices to create thick coins. Add sliced zucchini to a large bowl.

White bowl filled with sliced zucchini.

Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with Parmesan, Italian seasoninggarlic powder, and a couple pinches of salt and pepper.

White bowl filled with sliced zucchini, olive oil, Parmesan cheese, herbs, and spices.

Toss to coat the zucchini evenly.

White bowl filled with sliced zucchini tossed in olive oil, Parmesan cheese, herbs, and spices.

Arrange zucchini slices evenly in a single layer across a couple of air fryer trays or in an air fryer basket, spacing them apart a bit. You may need to cook them in batches.

Seasoned slices of zucchini on an air fryer tray.

Air fry for 5-10 minutes or until the zucchini reaches your desired level of doneness.

Air fryer zucchini on a black air fryer tray.

Garnish with fresh parsley and more Parmesan cheese if desired and enjoy!

White plate filled with sliced air fryer zucchini garnished with parsley and Parmesan cheese.

Favorite Dipping Sauce

If you want a creamy sauce to accompany your air fryer zucchini, some of our family favorites include:

No Air Fryer?

If you don’t have an air fryer, you can also just bake the zucchini on a parchment-lined baking sheet in the oven!

  • Heat oven to 400 degrees.
  • Follow recipe instructions to season the zucchini with oil, herbs, and Parmesan.
  • Spread in a single layer across the parchment-lined baking sheet.
  • Roast for 10 minutes or until the zucchini is tender-crisp.
White plate filled with sliced air fryer zucchini garnished with parsley and Parmesan cheese.

Tips

  • Add just a pinch of salt initially and add more to taste after cooking. The Parmesan cheese is going to add some salty flavor as well so to avoid your zucchini being too salty, add a pinch of salt with the herbs and spices, and then add more to taste after you’ve cooked the zucchini.
  • Keep the slices around 1/3″ thick or thicker so that the zucchini doesn’t overcook. Zucchini cooks super quickly so if the slices are too thin, you’ll end up cooking it into oblivion! You are looking to roast the zucchini.
  • The air fryer is the perfect way to cook vegetables, but keep in mind that all air fryers cook slightly differently so the cooking time is just an estimate. I used the Instant Vortex to cook my air fryer zucchini. Also, the size of your zucchini will affect the cooking time as well. Try to find small or medium-sized zucchini.

FAQ

How do you keep zucchini from getting soggy?

Cook it in the air fryer! Air frying zucchini gives you a tender-crisp zucchini with a delicious texture and the best part is you can switch up the flavors to suit your family’s taste!

Are you supposed to peel zucchini before cooking?

Nope! You can leave the skin on when you cook the zucchini. Not only does it hold the flesh of the zucchini together but the skin is also super nutritious and tastes great. By thinly slicing the zucchini you can get a little bit of the peel in each bite!

Make-Ahead, Storage, and Reheating

  • Make-Ahead: These air fryer zucchini are best enjoyed fresh from the air fryer. I don’t recommend making them ahead of time. I also don’t recommend seasoning them too long before air frying them because the salt will begin to draw out the moisture from the zucchini and dilute the seasoning.
  • Storage: If you have leftovers they can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week.
  • Reheating: Reheat leftover zucchini right in the air fryer! Air fry at 350 degrees for a couple minutes or until warmed through.

More Easy Air Fryer Recipes

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Air Fryer Zucchini

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5 from 3 reviews

This air fryer zucchini recipe is the easiest way to get a delicious flavorful side dish on the table in about 10 minutes! Slice the zucchini, toss in olive oil, and season with a blend of your favorite dried herbs and Parmesan cheese and air fry! If your garden is overflowing with zucchini this summer, be sure to keep this recipe handy.

  • Author: Kylie
  • Prep Time: 5 minutes
  • Cook Time: 5 minutes
  • Total Time: 10 minutes
  • Yield: 4 servings 1x
  • Category: Side Dish
  • Method: Air Fryer
  • Cuisine: American
  • Diet: Vegetarian

Ingredients

Scale

Instructions

  1. Preheat air fryer to 400 degrees.
  2. Slice zucchini into 1/3″ thick slices.
  3. Add sliced zucchini to a large bowl.
  4. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with Parmesan, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, and a couple pinches of salt and pepper.
  5. Toss to coat the zucchini evenly.
  6. Arrange zucchini slices evenly in a single layer across a couple of air fryer trays, spacing them apart a bit. You may need to cook them in batches if you’re tray/basket isn’t very large.
  7. Air fry for 5-10 minutes or until the zucchini reaches your desired level of doneness.
  8. Garnish with fresh parsley and more Parmesan cheese if desired and enjoy!

Notes

  • Add just a pinch of salt initially and add more to taste after cooking. The Parmesan cheese is going to add some salty flavor as well so to avoid your zucchini being too salty, add a pinch of salt with the herbs and spices, and then add more to taste after you’ve cooked the zucchini.
  • Keep the slices around 1/3″ thick or thicker so that the zucchini doesn’t overcook. Zucchini cooks super quickly so if the slices are too thin, you’ll end up cooking it into oblivion! You are looking to roast the zucchini.
  • The air fryer is the perfect way to cook vegetables, but keep in mind that all air fryers cook slightly differently so the cooking time is just an estimate. I used the Instant Vortex to cook my air fryer zucchini. Also, the size of your zucchini will affect the cooking time as well. Try to find small or medium-sized zucchini.

8 Comments

    1. This is the perfect way to cook all that fresh zucchini from the garden! Thanks so much for taking time to leave a review, Carla – I really appreciate it 🙂

  1. Does it need more then 10m tocook to get crispy. It’s my first time making this and the zucchini is from my garden

    1. The cooking time will depend on your air fryer, but mine cooks super quick so more than 10 minutes would be too much. Can’t wait to hear what you think if you try this recipe!

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