Homemade Mozzarella Sticks
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Chewy sticks of mozzarella cheese, wrapped in seasoned bread crumbs and deep fried until golden brown and crispy, these Homemade Mozzarella Cheese Sticks are the ultimate finger food appetizer. Crispy, gooey and cheesy, these cheese sticks come together easier than you think.
Back to school in our family means back to college football tailgates and watch parties! Our youngest are Juniors in college this year – so those back-to-school photos look a little different for us. We look forward to seeing the kids at our big Nebraska Cornhusker Tailgates! I love coming up with new recipes to serve while we cheer on our team.
Homemade Mozzarella Cheese Sticks
If you’ve been searching for a recipe with mozzarella sticks, look no further! I’ve got the ultimate fried mozzarella sticks recipe right here.
Perfect for tailgating season, and the holidays and definitely ideal for party season, you’ll find these fried mozzarella sticks are also easy enough for a movie night or game night snack at home.
Once you taste them you’ll agree, that these fried cheese sticks are going to be one of your new favorite appetizers. If you’re expecting a crowd, you can easily double the recipe. If you want to get a head start on your preparation, make these up a few hours before you want to serve them and reheat them once your guests arrive.
Homemade Mozzarella Cheese Sticks
It’s time to forgo the frozen cheese sticks and make up a batch of your own. You’ll appreciate the amazing taste and potentially save some money too. I guarantee you will not be disappointed. You may have to make two batches as they will disappear quite quickly I can assure you.
If you love this recipe for homemade mozzarella sticks you are sure to love these too: Italian Cheese Bombs, Pepperoni Grilled Cheese, or this Pepperoni Pizza Bread.
Homemade Mozzarella Sticks Recipe
Though store-bought cheese works quite well to make these mozzarella sticks, you can even go all out and make homemade mozzarella cheese. It will involve a few more steps but you’ll get a rich, gooey cheese ready to be coated and fried.
Whether you use store-bought cheese or make your own, they are ideal for dipping in marinara sauce, pizza sauce, ranch dressing, or choose your favorite dipping sauce.
Ingredients for Homemade Mozzarella Sticks
For complete ingredients and instructions scroll to the bottom of this post for the full printable recipe.
- All-purpose flour– Use all-purpose flour to make the breading for these cheese sticks.
- Salt – A touch of salt to enhance the taste.
- Black pepper – A pinch of black pepper to enhance the flavor.
- Eggs – Any kind of eggs will work.
- Water
- Mozzarella cheese sticks – Choose your favorite cheese sticks from the grocery store.
- Bread crumbs – Preferably seasoned but plain bread crumbs will also work. You can add some dried herbs or Italian Seasoning to spruce them up.
- Vegetable oil – or use a mild flavored oil like canola or grapeseed.
- Marinara sauce – Marinara sauce, warm, is perfect for serving with these mozzarella sticks. Store-bought works great, or make my easy recipe!
How to make mozzarella sticks at home
This recipe comes together quickly and easily for the best homemade cheese sticks.
Combine flour, salt, and pepper, and place in a shallow bowl. Combine eggs with water in another shallow dish. Add bread crumbs to yet another shallow dish.
To prepare each cheese stick, dip it into the egg mixture, then the flour mixture, then give them a second coating of the egg mixture, and finally in the breadcrumbs.
Place the coated cheese sticks on a baking sheet and freeze for at least one hour.
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook half of the cheese sticks in the hot oil for 2-3 minutes, use tongs to turning occasionally until they are golden brown on all sides. Remove the homemade mozzarella cheese sticks using a slotted spoon.
Transfer to a paper towel-lined baking sheet to drain off any excess oil.
Serve with warm marinara sauce for dipping.
Allow leftovers to come to room temperature and then store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Freeze leftover cheese sticks for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight and heat in the oven, air fryer or toaster oven.
Love it? Pin it!
If you love this recipe for mozzarella sticks make sure you don’t lose it! Pin it to your favorite Pinterest recipe board before you go!
FAQs
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Should I freeze mozzarella sticks before frying? Yes, freezing the sticks before frying reduces the risk of the cheese melting and leaking out of the breading.
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Is it cheaper to make your own mozzarella sticks? It can be cheaper to make your own mozzarella sticks. It really depends on the cheese you choose and how much it costs at the grocery store.
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Can you use string cheese as mozzarella? Yes, you can make homemade mozzarella sticks with string cheese. They may not be mozzarella perse but they will work as a substitute.
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Why did my mozzarella sticks fall apart? If your mozzarella sticks fell apart it could be because your oil was not hot enough and the breading fell off. Make sure the oil is hot before you place the mozzarella sticks in the pan. Test it by throwing in a touch of water, if it sizzles it’s ready.
Substitutions
Remember that when it comes to making substitutions in recipes, you don’t need to be afraid to get creative and use ingredients that suit your personal taste and dietary preferences. Make it your own!
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Change up the type of cheese and use any kind of string cheese you can find. You can also buy a big block of cheese either a block of mozzarella or whatever you can find and cut it into strips yourself. Note, hard cheese works better than soft cheese so stay away from brie and camembert.
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Season the breadcrumbs as you like. Use plain crumbs and add Italian seasoning or mix in some Mexican spices like cumin and chili powder.
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Chop up chives or green onions to add to the breadcrumb mixture or mix in some garlic powder or onion powder for more flavor.
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Instead of regular breadcrumbs use panko breadcrumbs for a different texture.
Tips & Tricks
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Use your air fryer – How to make mozzarella sticks in the air fryer:
Follow the instructions for this recipe to prepare the sticks and then spray them and your air fryer with nonstick cooking spray. Place the mozzarella sticks in the air fryer and cook until they are golden brown, around 6-8 minutes.
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Don’t compromise on the freezing step as this ensures the cheese doesn’t ooze out of the breading while the coating cooks.
More Recipes to Love
Homemade cheese sticks are easier than you think. Next time you’re craving something cheesy and gooey with a crispy coating, this mozzarella stick recipe will be calling your name.
Homemade Mozzarella Sticks
Equipment
Ingredients
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 eggs
- 2 Tablespoons water
- 12 Mozzarella cheese sticks
- 1 cup seasoned breads crumbs
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- ¾ cup marinara sauce for serving
Instructions
- In a shallow dish, mix up flour, salt and pepper.
- In another shallow dish beat eggs with water.
- Add bread crumbs to another shallow dish.
- To prepare each cheese stick, dip it into the egg mixture, then the flour mixture, then back into the egg mixture, and finally in the breadcrumbs.
- Place the coated cheese sticks on a baking sheet and freeze for at least one hour.
- To fry the cheese sticks, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook half of the cheese sticks for 2-3 minutes, turning occasionally until they are golden brown on all sides.
- Move to a paper towel-lined plate to drain off any excess oil.
- Serve with warm marinara sauce for dipping.
Nutrition
I couldve eaten the whole batch of mozzarella sticks but I had to share with my family. Love how easy and cheesy these were!
I have always loved mozzarella sticks – now I can make them at home. So delicious!
So much better than anything store bought! the trick about freezing before frying worked great. Thanks for sharing!
Delicious yet simple recipe that the whole family loved. Can’t wait to make it again!
WOW! This recipe was amazing! Forget buying frozen ever again. My whole family ate these up so fast! Yum!
My kids go crazy for these!
I doubled the recipe for a crowd and made these a few hours before my guests arrived. I reheated them once people started showing up. Everyone raved about these – the perfect crispy and cheesy appetizer! Five stars!
So much better than store bought mozzarella sticks. So cheesy and the crunch had me hooked from the first bite.
These mozzarella sticks look so perfect!! I am making them this weekend, thank you so much for sharing this recipe 🙂
I recently tried this and they turned out absolutely delicious! The crispy outside and gooey melted cheese inside were a perfect combination. It was a fun and easy recipe to follow, and I highly recommend giving it a try!
I am tickled you loved them too!
These mozzarella sticks were crispy on the outside, gooey on the inside, and were so much better than mozzarella sticks we typically get at restaurants!! My kids loved these too!
I am so happy to hear that!
I made these mozzarella sticks before dinner last night and they were incredible! So easy to make too!
Happy that you liked them!!