Homemade Mozzarella Sticks

Learn how to make hot and crispy mozzarella sticks at home! These mozzarella sticks are a great make-ahead snack that can be frozen and fried whenever you have a craving.

Homemade mozzarella sticks have been on my cooking list for years but it always seemed a little fussy and unnecessary considering practically every restaurant has them on their menu and, despite my love for home-cooking, I often fall prey to the path of least resistance. Why make them when I can just go out and order some?

But, recently, I paid $9 for six fried cheese sticks and something snapped. $9 for six pieces of fried cheese? It seemed ridiculous to me and it was the push I needed to get in the kitchen to make my own.

And now I’m in trouble because I have a freezer stocked with ready-to-fry mozzarella sticks which means the path is even less resistant than it was before I learned how to make them. The only thing standing between me and a plate of hot and crispy mozzarella cheese sticks is about ten minutes.

You see, you can prep a whole bunch of mozzarella sticks, pop them in the freezer and you can have them whenever you want. Seeing as football season is upon us (aka appetizer time!), there’s no time better than now to have some delicious snacks on hand for game-watching.

How to Make Mozzarella Sticks

So, for the last several weeks I’ve tested batches of mozzarella sticks. I know, it’s tough work, but I’ve learned a few things: the best way to slice the cheese, the best way to bread the cheese, and the best way to fry the mozzarella sticks. So, let’s get to it:

Cheese

You want just the right amount of cheese for mozzarella sticks. If the sticks are too big (as I learned early on) the sticks won’t fry properly (you’ll end up with not quite melted cheese with overcooked breading). If the sticks are too small, you get way too much breading with barely a smidge of cheese inside. I learned the best size is 1/2″ thick sticks.

• For this recipe, I used a 16-ounce block of low-moisture mozzarella cheese. This yields 33 sticks. Because you can freeze the breaded sticks and fry them from frozen I figured I’d make a big batch to keep on hand in the freezer.
• The easiest way to slice the cheese into sticks is to first slice across the block of cheese so you end up with eleven 1/2″ wide pieces (as shown in the top two photos).

• Once you have the eleven slices, you can cut each of them into thirds (bottom two photos) and that’s it! Your cheese sticks are ready for breading.

Breading

• For the breading, you’ll need eggs, Italian-style breadcrumbs, garlic powder, and grated parmesan cheese. Whisk the eggs in one bowl, combine the other ingredients in a separate bowl and your breading station is ready to go.
• It’s important to bread the cheese sticks twice. This will ensure that they have enough breading so there’s no risk of cheese leaking out while you fry them.
• I recommend starting with half of the eggs and half of the breadcrumb mixture. If your breadcrumbs get too wet from the eggs it will clump up and it will be difficult to coat the cheese sticks evenly. Start with half and then refresh them with a new mixture when you’ve breaded half of the sticks.
• The other thing that makes it easier is using one hand to coat the cheese sticks in the egg and the other to coat them in the breadcrumbs. It’s easier said than done, I kept messing it up and using the wrong hands, but you can always rinse and dry your hands if your breading hand accidentally gets in the egg mixture.
• So, dip the stick in the egg, coat it with breadcrumbs, coat it again in the egg and back to the breadcrumbs. Place the breaded sticks on a sheet pan and repeat until all of the cheese sticks are breaded.
• Place the sheet pan in the freezer for 15 to 20 minutes. This will firm up the breading so there’s less risk of it falling off when you fry the sticks.

Tips for Frying Mozzarella Sticks

• In testing this recipe, I figured out you need a thermometer for deep frying. I’d researched various recipes that made suggestions like, “heat the oil over medium heat and fry the mozzarella sticks”, “heat the oil until it shimmers”, and other variations that did not include a specific temperature to heat the oil. I tried them all and didn’t get great results.
• Not specifying an oil temperature is risky. If the oil is not hot enough, the mozzarella sticks will absorb too much oil. If it’s too hot the breading will burn before the cheese is melted. Also, depending on whether you have an electric stove or gas stove maintaining the correct heat without a thermometer is almost impossible. So, use a thermometer. One that hooks on the side of the pan, like in the photos, works really great.
• Technically, the recommended deep-fry temperature is 375°F, but I got the best results in maintaining the temperature between 350°F and 375°F. I have an electric stove, so even when I adjust the burner heat it takes time for it to have an effect, so the temperature would fluctuate a lot. Keeping it in the range of 350°F and 375°F worked fine.
• Keep in mind, every time you add a mozzarella stick it will lower the temperature of the oil. This is why the thermometer is so helpful. It takes all the guess work out. If the temperature dips too low, wait until it’s back to temperature before you add more sticks.
• Because I was only frying a few sticks at a time I used my 3-quart pan to fry them. I used about 24 ounces of vegetable oil, which is enough to fully submerge the sticks. If I used less oil, the sticks tended to stick on the bottom of the pan.
• Once the oil is at temperature, fry a few sticks at a time. With a 3-quart pan, I fried three at a time with no problems. They only need 30 seconds to 1 minute to cook, so you can fry up a decent batch pretty quickly.
• Once fried, transfer the mozzarella sticks to a plate lined with a paper towel to absorb the excess oil.

Fried Mozzarella Sticks FAQs

Can I bake mozzarella sticks instead of frying?

Technically, yes. I actually tested several batches in the oven with very mixed results. One issue is oven temperature – you need it hot enough so the breading crisps up, but if the cheese melts too fast it will leak out. Most of the ones I tested ended up a melted mess on the sheet pan.

Also, it’s very difficult to achieve the right kind of crispiness for the breading. The few I baked that managed to stay together weren’t crispy enough.

There are recipes out there for baked mozzarella sticks, but I opted not to include a baked version only because there are too many ways they can go wrong. If you try it, please share your experience in the comments – I would love to hear how it goes!

Plus, let’s face it, mozzarella sticks really are a once in a while treat, so if you’re going to make them you might as well fry them for best results.

How do I freeze mozzarella sticks?

What I love best about this recipe is that you can prep a big batch of mozzarella sticks, freeze them and they’re ready to fry them when you want them.

Freeze them on a sheet pan first for 20 to 30 minutes. Then transfer them to a large freezer bag. Squeeze out the air and then keep them in the freezer for up to 3 months.

When you’re ready to fry a batch, you can fry them from frozen following the instructions in the recipe.

What’s the best oil for deep frying?

I used vegetable oil, but any high smoke point oil will work like peanut oil or canola oil. This does not include olive oil which does not have a high smoke point.

Can I reuse deep-frying oil?

Technically, yes, but it’s a bit of hassle and there are quite a few things to consider before reusing oil you’ve used for deep frying. Epicurious has a great article about reusing oil if you want to learn more.

How do I dispose of deep-fry oil?

This is another reason I use a smaller pan to deep fry – there’s less oil to toss out. Cooking oil can be recycled depending on where you live and a quick google search will let you know if it’s available in your community.

If you can’t recycle it, the best way to dispose of cooking oil is to first completely cool it. Transfer it to a container with a lid (it should be non-breakable) and toss it in the trash. I use empty peanut butter jars. Don’t pour cooking oil down the drain because it can cause all kinds of issues!

Like a lot of restaurant offerings, these mozzarella sticks are less expensive and not super complicated to make at home. Football season is looking a whole lot more delicious, now 🏈

Happy cooking!

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More Appetizer Recipes

Here are a few favorite appetizers, but for even more ideas be sure to check out my Game-Day Recipes round-up!

• Apple & Sage Pork Sausage Rolls
• Deviled Eggs with Bacon and Chives
• Bacon-Wrapped Jalapeno Poppers

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