All things fried are suppose to be bad for our health, let me tell you this means nothing to me.  I believe that everything in moderation is good and once in while indulging in fried vegetables is good for our health.  Please tell me who can say no to a good french fry or deep fried chicken.  I can honestly say, pass the plate my way.

Frying vegetables is actually very popular in Turkish cuisines as well as Middle Eastern and Greek.  One of the top fried vegetables is zucchini, especially when they are in season like right about now.  Aside from frying zucchinis, these cuisines also fry or saute (a fancier word) green Italian peppers, eggplants, mushrooms, red bell peppers and tomatoes.  A combinations of these vegetables fired is utterly amazing and delicious.  We tend to fry these vegetables because it is becomes a quick, easy and actually very satisfying meal and very refreshing when served with garlic and yogurt sauce. These dishes are often served as an appetizer, a side dish or even as a main course.

The most important thing to remember is to keep the recipe simple and use the freshest ingredients when possible.

FRIED ZUCCHINI 
                   aka GREEN SQUASH

Ingredients:

• 4 medium to long, thick zucchini
• salt
• black pepper
• 3/4 vegetable oil
          (it is better to use this sort of oil when frying – because olive oil will burn very quickly)
• several paper towel – to absorb the excess oil

Yogurt Sauce:

• 1 cup of yogurt (or more if you like)
• 2-3 cloves of garlic (minced)
• salt

Preparation:

1. Wash the zucchini very well and pat dry with a paper towel.  Cut of the head and end pieces.  Begin slicing the zucchini into about 1/4 inch thick slices.  Nothing to thin and nothing to thick.  If it is to thin once it cooks it breaks apart and nothing to thick because the inside will not cook through.
2. Into a medium to large a bit deep frying pan, heat up the cooking oil to about 200-250 degrees. 
3. Slowly and carefully, add in the slices of zucchini, about 10 -12 pieces into the pan – depending on the size of your pan.  Do not dump everything all at once – the objective is to fry the zucchinis in batches. 
4. Let the zucchini cook about 2-3 minutes on each side, until they become a nice brown color.  The first batch will take a bit longer to cook, don’t worry this is normal. 
5. Onto a flat surfaced plate, place a paper towel over the plate.  Once the zucchinis are cooked on each side, remove from the oil using a spatula and place them over the paper towel.  The paper towel will absorb the excess oil.  At this time sprinkle with salt and black pepper over the hot zucchinis.  (I find the seasoning each batch is much easier and better, because you can control the amount of your seasoning.)
6. Continue to cook the zucchinis in batches until they are all fried and seasoned.
7. In the mean time prepare your yogurt and garlic sauce.  Into a small mixing bowl, add in the yogurt, salt and minced garlic and mix well. (I like to grate fresh garlic with the smallest side of the box grater – this brings out the flavor really well.)  Cover with plastic wrap and place it in the refrigerator until serving.
8. Once all the zucchinis are cooked, place on to a serving dish and let cool.  It can be served warm or cold.
9. When serving, place yogurt sauce over the top.
10. Enjoy!

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Tags: fried zucchini, greek, green squash, middle eastern recipe, Turkish, yogurt and garlic sauce, yogurt sauce