These zucchini chips are amazing! Coated with olive oil, spices, and parmesan, then baked to crispy perfection, they're one of my favorite ways of making zucchini for my family.
The secret to making them crispy? Salt them to draw water out and then bake them in a hot 425°F oven.
I love zucchini, especially in-season zucchini, with smooth dark-green skin and firm flesh. I have many zucchini recipes on this website, including zucchini lasagna, zucchini noodles, and grilled zucchini.
These zucchini chips are especially good. They are incredibly crispy and flavorful. It's one of my favorite side dishes when zucchini are in season. It helps that my family loves them, too - even the Picky Eater!
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Ingredients
You'll only need a few simple ingredients to make these zucchini chips. The exact measurements are included in the recipe card below. Here's an overview of what you'll need:
- Olive oil spray: I love cooking with this delicious oil. Avocado oil and melted butter are excellent alternatives.
- Fresh zucchini: Using small, firm zucchini in this recipe is best. You don't want them large and watery.
- To season: Kosher salt, black pepper, and garlic powder.
- Grated Parmesan: Use finely grated parmesan, not coarsely shredded.
Variations
- As mentioned above, you can coat the zucchini slices in melted butter (use your hands or a pastry brush) instead of spraying them with olive oil. I love the flavor that butter adds!
- Experiment with more spices. Good options that I tried and liked include onion powder, chili powder, ground cumin, and cayenne pepper. I use just a pinch of each.
- For a dairy-free option, it's fine to omit the parmesan, although the chips are tastier and crispier with it.
Instructions
Scroll down to the recipe card for detailed instructions. Here are the basic steps for making this recipe:
Slice the zucchini thinly, salt the slices, and then rinse and dry them. This step helps eliminate some of the zucchini's water content, which helps prevent sogginess.
Arrange the zucchini slices on a rimmed, parchment-lined baking sheet.
Spray the zucchini slices with olive oil, then bake them in a 425°F oven for 15 minutes.
Remove the baking sheet from the oven, keeping the oven on. Season the zucchini with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and parmesan.
Bake the zucchini chips until browned and crispy, for 15-20 more minutes.
Expert Tips
- Salting the zucchini slices before baking them is an annoying extra step, but it removes water from the zucchini, which helps achieve crispiness. So, I don't recommend skipping this step. I tried, and the chips were still delicious, but they were definitely not crispy. In the photo below, you can see the water drops on the surface of the zucchini slices. This is the water we want to eliminate.
- Oven temperatures vary. I suggest you start with ten minutes, then check the zucchini slices. If they're already browning, sprinkle them with the cheese and seasoning and place them in the oven for just five more minutes or until crispy. If they are still wet and soggy after 10 minutes, keep baking them for the full 15 minutes or even 20 minutes, then sprinkle them with cheese and seasonings and bake until they are crispy.
- Some of the zucchini slices will be ready before the others. Remove them to a plate and keep baking the ones that have not crisped up yet.
Recipe FAQs
Slice them thinly, salt them before baking them to draw water out, and bake them in a hot oven. Coating them with grated parmesan cheese is another trick that adds to their crispiness.
You can use unsweetened ketchup, ranch dip, blue cheese dressing, Greek yogurt dip, guacamole, salsa, sour cream dip, cream cheese dip, tahini sauce, or a keto cheese sauce. These chips are also perfect on their own without any dips.
I use three substitutes when I cook. Almond flour (or almond meal), ground pork rinds ("pork panko"), or grated parmesan.
They all work well, and each is better suited for different recipes. Parmesan works exceptionally well in this recipe.
Serving Suggestions
I usually serve zucchini chips as a side dish. But sometimes my kids ask me to make them for a snack, and I am thrilled to oblige! They eat them on their own or dip them in unsweetened ketchup.
When I make them as a side dish, I like to serve these chips with a main dish that I can bake in the same 425°F oven. So, I often serve them with one of the following:
Storing Leftovers
The leftovers keep okay in the fridge, in an airtight container, for 2-3 days. But they lose their crispiness.
You can get some of the crispiness back by baking them in a 350°F oven for 10 minutes.
More Zucchini Recipes
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Recipe Card
Crispy Baked Zucchini Chips
Ingredients
- Olive oil spray
- 2 medium zucchini - about 1 pound total weight
- 1 ¼ teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt - divided; or ¾ teaspoon of any other salt
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ cup parmesan - grated - not shredded
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 425°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with high-heat-resistant parchment paper and coat it with olive oil spray.
- Slice the zucchini into â…›-inch-thick rounds. Sprinkle the slices with 1 teaspoon of kosher salt. Place the salted zucchini in a colander in the sink and let them stand for 30 minutes at room temperature. This should draw some of the water out. After 30 minutes, rinse and blot dry the zucchini slices using paper towels.Â
- Arrange the zucchini slices in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet. Spray them with olive oil. Bake them for 15 minutes.
- Remove the baking sheet from the oven. Sprinkle the zucchini slices with the remaining ¼ teaspoon of kosher salt, black pepper, garlic powder, and grated parmesan. There's no need to flip the zucchini.
- Return the pan to the oven and continue baking until the zucchini slices are browned and crisp, 15-20 more minutes.
Video
Notes
Nutrition per Serving
Disclaimers
Cup measurements refer to the standard American cup, which is 240 milliliters. Most of my recipes are low-carb (or keto) and gluten-free, but some are not. Please verify that a recipe fits your needs before using it. Recommended and linked products are not guaranteed to be gluten-free. Nutrition info is approximate, and the carb count excludes non-nutritive sweeteners. Nutrition info may contain errors, so please verify it independently. Recipes may contain errors, so please use your common sense when following them. Please read these Terms of Use carefully before using any of my recipes.
Vered DeLeeuw, LL.M., CNC, has been following a low-carb real-food diet and blogging about it since 2011. She's a Certified Nutrition Coach (NASM-CNC), has taken courses at the Harvard School of Public Health, and has earned a Nutrition and Healthy Living Certificate from Cornell University. Her work has appeared in several major media outlets, including Healthline, HuffPost, Today, Women's Health, Shape, and Country Living. 
Kelli W.
These chips are great! I cut them too thin the first time I tried these, but the second batch was awesome!
Vered DeLeeuw
I'm so glad you liked these chips, Kelli! Thank you for the review.
Lynn B
They sure looked good in the picture, but about 2/3 of mine burned. My fault, as I thought I was looking at the clock, but it was seconds left of microwave time for something else I was making. So I thought these were tasty, but very salty. I rinsed and even soaked the slices in water to get the salt off. It really helped the drying, but even with adding no further salt, it's a bit much. Very crispy and nice flavor. I used dill and garlic with the Parmesan for seasoning. Not sure if I'll try these again as they were very time consuming.
Vered DeLeeuw
Thanks for the review, Lynn!
Josh
Hi! Do you spray both sides of the zucchini slices with olive oil or just the top side?
Vered DeLeeuw
Hi Josh,
Just the top.
Angela
I LOVE THIS!! I have been looking for healthier options for chips since I was diagnosed with DM, and I found it. I will be making this again. I used Mrs. Dash for the seasoning and it was great. I will be trying other seasonings too. I'm even going to try this with sweet potatoes. And, when I get my air fryer/toaster oven set up, I'm going too try cooking them in that. I did cut the zucchini too thin, but now I know better.
Vered DeLeeuw
I'm so glad you enjoyed this recipe, Angela! Thank you for taking the time to write a detailed review.
Lydia Holden
So, I just wanted to comment in case anyone else makes the same mistake. My first error was to oversalt the zucchini in the first step. I saw how effective the salt was, so then went to town on it. I didn't realise the zucchini absorbed some of it. so mine, even though I rinsed the salt off thoroughly, are very salty!!!
Next, I cut my zucchini slices way too thin! And so they shrivelled up and burnt.
I gave it 5 stars, because aside from my mistakes (easily avoided if I read the recipe properly) they smell and taste delicious even with too much salt. So I'd reckon if I did it properly they'd be a real winner. Perhaps a little more involved than I'd prefer to cook - but when you have too much zucchini to deal with, I'd reckon give this a go!!!
Vered DeLeeuw
Thanks for this detailed review, Lydia! I appreciate it. I'm sure people will find it helpful.
Lauren
Do you have to eat them hot? Are they good served cold?
Vered DeLeeuw
They're good at room temperature.
Kimberly Entenmann
We have so much zucchini and are looking for ways to use it. This was fabulous!
Vered DeLeeuw
I'm so glad you enjoyed this recipe, Kimberly!