These easy chickpea vegetable fritters are packed with plant based protein, carrots, zucchini and tons of flavour making them perfect for your next Meatless Monday.
Not only are these fritters vegan but they are also the perfect recipe to convince any vegetable hater that vegetables can actually taste good. I swear every single time I've made these they are always a huge hit with everyone (even the pickiest eaters). A recipe that will convince meat eaters to try vegetarian food AND like vegetables? I call that a huge WIN. So get the ingredients together because you need these fritters in your life ASAP.
What can I eat these chickpea vegetable fritters with?
I LOVE these easy chickpea vegetable fritters in so many ways. I'm always looking for new plant based protein sources to have prepped for the week. As much as I love eating plain chickpeas (or roasted chickpeas) sometimes I just want something with a little more OOMF. That's where these easy chickpeas vegetable fritters come in. They are packed with flavour and super easy to make, making them the best addition to spice up your boring salads.
- As a topping on salads or bowls (they taste amazing on a Mediterranean inspired salad).
- As part of a snack plate with veggies, hummus and cheese.
- In a wrap with some veggies, cheese and sauce of your choice.
- On their own! Honestly this is how I eat them 99% of the time. They are the perfect option to bring as an appetizer to parties with a little dill dipping sauce- YUM. See below for my favourite dipping sauce recipe.
My favourite Dill- Yogurt dipping sauce:
In a small bowl mix together:
- ½ cup plain yogurt
- 1tbsp mayonnaise (optional but makes it more creamy)
- 1 small clove garlic, minced or pressed
- 2 tablespoon fresh dill (or sub half the amount dried dill)
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 pinch cayenne pepper
- 1-2 tbs lime juice
- A small drizzle of olive oil
What ingredients do I need to make these easy chickpea vegetable fritters?
Chickpeas- As with most o my recipes, I choose to use canned chickpeas. This is because I just find them very convenient. However this recipe will work with dried chickpeas as well, just make sure you prepare them according to package instructions first.
Lime- A little lime juice for some acidity to help mesh with all the spice! If you decide to make my dill dipping sauce above you will need a little more lime juice!
Zucchini- It's almost zucchini season which is PERFECT for these fritters. I use my food processor to grate the zucchini to help save time and I LOVE it. You get perfectly grated zucchini in 2 minutes! To avoid overly wet chickpea dough just make sure you wrap the grated zucchini in a paper towel and squeeze out as much excess water as you can.
Carrot- Once again, I used my food processor to grate up the carrots and it worked so well. I always hated making these fritters because of how long it took to grate up the carrots but in the food processor it is SO easy now I have an excuse to make them every week!
Onions- I chose to use white onions in this to not overpower the fritters and I think they add just the right amount of bite.
Spices- I know the spice list can be a bit daunting, but I swear they are all basic spices you already have! These easy chickpea and vegetable fritters are packed with flavour!!
Flour- I used all purpose flour to help hold everything together, get rid of any additional moisture and form a dough. If you are gluten free feel free to substitute with a 1:1 gluten free flour or even oat flour.
Breadcrumbs- Once again, to hold everything together!!
Food processor- I personally use a food processor (I have this one and love it- it’s also currently on SALE). I recently got one and haven’t looked back. It’s made recipes that involve a lot of chopping, grating or mixing like these fritters, this salsa, or even these carrot cake muffins so much easier.
Air fryer- This isn’t an ingredient but to make these easy chickpeas and vegetable fritters even easier you can use an air fryer. I personally love this one! However any air fryer will work!
PS. I love seeing my recipes in action! If you decide to make these easy chickpea vegetable fritters don't forget to tag me on Instagram- @nourishedynic or leave a comment below!
📖 Recipe
Easy Chickpea Vegetable Fritters
Ingredients
- 1 can (15 oz) chickpeas rinsed and drained
- 1 small white onion (about ½ cup)
- ½ lime just the juice
- 2 cups zucchini shredded (about 2 large zucchinis)
- 1.5 cups carrots grated
- ½ tsp onion powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- salt and pepper to taste
- ⅔ cup flour
- ⅓ cup breadcrumbs
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 425°F or your air fryer to 400°F
- Rinse and drain your chickpeas and set aside.
- Grate your vegetables and using a paper towel squeeze out as much excess water you can from the zucchini.
- In a food processor or high powered blender combine chickpeas, onion and lime juice and mix until smooth.
- In a large bowl add blended chickpea mixture, shredded zucchini and carrots, all spices, flour and breadcrumbs and mix until fully combined. Form the chickpea mixture into small patties (using about 2 tablespoons in each).
For the oven version:
- OPTIONAL for crispy fritters: Heat a large pan on medium high heat. Add enough vegetable oil to cover the pan. Once the oil is hot, fit as many fritters as you can onto the pan. Cook until browned (about 5 minutes). Flip and cook the other side. Repeat with the rest of the batter, adding more oil as needed.
- Once fritters are browned, place them on a prepared baking tray and bake in the oven for about 20-30 minutes (flipping halfway).
For the air fryer version:
- Spray the bottom of your air fryer basket with non stick cooking spray. Arrange as many fritters as your can fit in a single layer along the bottom of your basket. Air fry for 20 minutes, flipping half way. Repeat until all fritters are cooked.
Monica Chavez says
Hey, what can I substitute zucchini with?
Nicole Addison says
Additional carrots will work great!
Fiona says
Where can I find the Dill dippi g sauce for veggie fritter recipe ?
Nicole Addison says
It's written out in the full blog post text above the recipe in this post!
Stephanie says
Is it actually 425 degrees for 20 to 30 minutes? Given the ingredients used can you not simply brown them and leave it at that since they don't include any raw meat that must be cooked through?
Nicole Addison says
Hi there! Yes! That is how long I bake mine, I find as the “batter” is quite wet baking or air frying them allows them to dry out giving them the perfect consistency. I have never tried this recipe without the oven time but if you decide to just brown them let me know how they turn out.