As my milking season winds down, I had a dear Facebook friend tag me in a video of how to make Mozzarella sticks. It wasn’t detailed though, so I did a bit of research and came up with my version of Mozzarella sticks.
I decided to use Ritz crackers for my breading. I used roasted vegetable for a bit more zing.
I smashed one foil to start with. I figured if I made my recipe by the foil I could do as many or as few as I wanted. I also thought it would help keep my crumbs fresh if I only made it one foil at a time.
After smashing the crackers, I added 1/4 teaspoon each of basil, garlic salt, and onion powder. I also added 1 Tablespoon of parmesan cheese.
In another bowl, I mixed egg and milk. Again, the ratio is 1 large egg to 1 Tablespoon of milk. By the time I finished, I had used four eggs and four Tablespoons of milk. Part way through, I emptied the bowl and started fresh.
Cut your Mozzarella into sticks. You can also buy string cheese and cut them in half. I am using a big block of my homemade cheese.
You start by rolling it in the egg and milk.
Then you roll it in the cracker mixture.
Then you repeat those those two steps.
The important thing is to make sure you don’t have any cheese showing or it will all glop out when it’s cooking. After you have them covered, put them in the freezer for at least an hour. You have to do this, or you’ll end up with a gloppy mess.
Then you simply deep fry them. I did also see some recipes that said you could bake them at 400*F for 8 – 10 minutes, but some reviews said they were soggy. I’m thinking deep frying is the way to go to make them nice and crispy.
I did decide to cook them all at once. I have to say, they are amazing! I used ranch for dipping, but they would be great with a marinara sauce as well.
Then I refrigerated them until I was ready to take them to a dining event that evening. We threw them in the oven at 450* for about 10 minutes. They even maintained their crispness! In fact, it worked so well that I think I’m going to deep fry and freeze them ahead.
It even worked to microwave them to reheat and get them all melty. That’s all there is to it!
Because it takes so much to get that big chunk of cheese to be really melted, I think the next time, I’ll make them more bite-sized poppers instead of real sticks.
Teresa
