Courgette and Halloumi Fritters

Once summer kicks in, vegetables like courgettes – aka zucchini – become so plentiful that it’s good to have a few different things to do with them. This recipe for Greek style courgette fritters is a really good one. Courgettes are mild in flavour but the combination of spices, preserved lemon and halloumi blend together to create something really tasty.

Halloumi is such a great cheese yet despite being more popular than ever, it isn’t always easy to get hold of. You can easily substitute feta in this recipe or any other similar salty cheese that cooks but doesn’t totally melt away.

Courgette and Halloumi Fritters

Ingredients

Makes 12 fritters Serves 4 as a main dish.

• 3 medium sized unpeeled courgettes grated coarsely
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• I small onion finely chopped
• Peel of half a preserved lemon sliced thinly or lime zest (2 limes) or lemon zest (1 lemon)
• 60g flour
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 2 1/2 tsp ground coriander
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
• 150g halloumi (or feta), roughly broken into 1-2cm pieces
• Approx. 150ml oil for frying
• Coarse salt and black pepper

Method

Courgettes have a lot of water and the one important step is to get it out. Don’t skip this part or you will be left with an unmanageable mixture that will not hold its shape. Been there. Done that.

So, start by getting the liquid out of the courgettes. To do this, grate them coarsely, sprinkle over some salt and leave to drain in a colander for at least half and hour. The salt will start to draw the liquid out and you may even see some drips. Either way, you need to take handfuls of the grated vegetable and squeeze the water out till it’s almost dry. You can also wrap the grated courgette tightly inside a tea towel and squeeze the moisture out.

Take a large bowl, beat the eggs then add the other ingredients. Give it all a good mix and if it still seems too wet, add a little more flour. If you have time, put it in the fridge for half an hour to firm up. This will make it easier to handle.

Heat the oil in a heavy frying pan. Form the courgette mixture into patties or balls and drop them into the oil in batches. Cook on both sides till they are golden brown, giving them a gentle press with the back of a wooden spoon while they cook. Remove them with a slotted spoon and put them on a paper towel to absorb any excess oil.

I serve this with tzaziki made with Greek yoghurt, some fresh dill or mint and a little salt and lemon zest. Also great with a sweet chilli sauce or a chopped tomato mint salad if tomatoes are in season and ripe and juicy.