Fried Squash with a Crispy Cornmeal Batter

This easy Fried Squash with a Crispy Cornmeal Batter is crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. They make a perfect appetizer or meal.

Normally, I create healthy recipes, with some being on the more indulgent side. Of course, Fried Squash falls into the latter category.

Sometimes you just want something fried, you know! I also included directions for baked squash, if you prefer a healthier version.

Some recipes come from a necessity to use up what you have, and I just happen to have more than 40 yellow squash in my house at the moment. Remember Forrest Gump and all the lines with coconut shrimp, shrimp gumbo, fried shrimp...

That is me after I visit Market on the Move, a program where you get up to 60 lbs. of produce for $10. It has not only become a running joke, but I have been making up songs about my vegetables while I cook too.

That is actually nothing new. I have been singing to my food for years. You know what they say - food tastes better when love goes into it!

I have to say I have a love-hate relationship with the Market on the Move. I love getting such a good deal. I hate trying to use up that amount of produce before it goes bad. I love figuring out different ways to use the produce I get, but I hate eating the same vegetables over and over again.

I haven't gotten sick of eating Cornmeal Fried Squash though. I love how it is crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. I have spiced these up to add some pizzazz.

Did you know there is such a thing as sriracha powder? Well, neither did I until the hubby came home with it from Costco.

Sriracha is one of my favorite condiments, so to find out that they make it in powder form was too good to be true! This is the very first recipe I have used it in and I am loving it so far.

I have made these fried, baked, with gluten-free flour, and with corn meal. To be honest, I don't think it really makes too much of a difference if you bake or fry the squash.

Yes, fried is a bit more indulgent, but I think baked works just as well, especially if you want to use less oil. As far as corn meal vs. gluten-free flour, I like the corn meal better because it adds more crunch.

If you want a "cheesy" flavor, I have included nutritional yeast as an option. I like these both with or without the nutritional yeast.

I also have some Breaded Cucumber if you want to try something different.

Other Appetizers

• Vegetable Fritters
• Roasted Tomato Bruschetta
• Cornmeal Baked Asparagus Fries with Vegan Lemon Garlic Mayo
• Vegan Cream Cheese Puffs
• Maple Chipotle Cashews

Instructions

1. Slice yellow squash into disc shapes.
2. Mix dry ingredients and put them in one bowl.
3. In another bowl pour almond milk.
4. In assembly line fashion, place squash in almond milk, then cornmeal or flour batter. Place on a plate to wait to be fried. If you're baking them, place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet that's been sprayed or coated with oil.
5. To test the oil for frying sprinkle a few drops of water in the pan. If they sizzle, the oil is ready. You can also test the oil with a wooden spoon. Bubbles will form around the spoon when it's hot.
6. Fry on each side until golden brown. For baking you will bake the squash for 20 minutes on each side, or until golden brown and crispy.

These crispy fried yellow squash chips (or baked yellow squash chips, if you prefer) are a healthy snack or appetizer.

📋 Recipe

Pin Print

5 from 4 votes

Fried Squash

This easy Fried Squash with a Crispy Cornmeal Batter is crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. They make a perfect appetizer or meal.

Course Appetizer

Cuisine American

Diet Gluten Free, Vegan, Vegetarian

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour

Servings 4

Calories 106kcal

Author Willow Moon

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Ingredients

• ▢ 2 yellow summer squash or zucchini
• ▢ ½ cup cornmeal or gluten free flour all purpose flour
• ▢ 2 teaspoons sriracha powder
• ▢ 1 ½ tablespoons nutritional yeast optional
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon salt
• ▢ pepper to taste
• ▢ 2 tablespoons  unsweetened plain almond milk
• ▢ canola oil or other high heat oil

US Customary - Metric

Get ingredients with Instacart

Instructions

• ▢
  If baking, preheat oven to 450°F.
• ▢
  Cut off the ends of yellow squash and slice into ¼" slices (or a little bigger).
• ▢
  Mix cornmeal or gluten free flour, sriracha powder, nutritional yeast, salt, and pepper in a bowl.
• ▢
  In a separate bowl, pour unsweetened plain almond milk.
• ▢
  In assembly line fashion - dip yellow squash into almond milk, then corn meal or flour mixture. Put dredged squash on a plate to wait for their execution (I mean frying).
• ▢
  Frying:

  Heat canola oil (you will need about a ¼" or so covering the pan) to 350°F. If you don't have a thermometer you can test the oil by dropping a couple of drops of water into oil. If it sizzles, it's ready. Place dredged squash pieces into oil. Cook on each side until golden brown and crispy.

  Baking:

   Cook squash at 450°F for 20 minutes, then flip and cook for another 20 minutes, or until crispy on both sides.
• ▢
  Serve with vegan sour cream.

Notes

Since corn meal is already crispy,  a good way to tell when the squash is done is the corn meal (or gluten flour, if you are using that) will turn a nice dark golden color. Also, the sriracha powder will darken from cooking.

💌 SAVE THIS

We'll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!

I agree to be sent email.

Nutrition

Calories: 106kcal | Carbohydrates: 19g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 0g | Cholesterol: 0mg | Sodium: 158mg | Potassium: 397mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 610IU | Vitamin C: 17.4mg | Calcium: 24mg | Iron: 1.2mg

*Note: Nutrition information should be considered an estimate only. Different nutrition calculators give you different results.