Deep-fried mozzarella sticks are one of the quintessential American bar snacks, and rank high on the king of appetizers list, up there with chicken wings, onion rings, and potato skins. While the fried version remains one of the staple bar snacks, baked mozzarella sticks are also very tasty and a little healthier, while also being easier to make in a home kitchen.
Mozzarella sticks are one of those lowest common denominator appetizers you can find on almost every menu at chain restaurants, bowling alleys, and dive bars across the country. Lowest common denominator? Well, not everyone likes onions or spinach dip, or maybe one of your friends is a vegetarian and doesn’t eat chicken… but fried cheese? Super wide appeal.
I am not a huge cheese person either, which many of my friends can’t believe. I like cheese, I just prefer it when it complements a dish rather than be the main star. That said, however, oh man are mozzarella sticks good. That crunchy outside with the hot gooey center, especially when dipped in a good marinara sauce? Its one appetizer I usually can’t say no to, and these baked mozzarella sticks are something I’ve been making at home for well over a decade now.
Where Did Mozzarella Sticks Come From?
There’s surprisingly a lot of debate on this subject, as there’s no one real source known for creating the original recipe. The only definitive consensus is that mozzarella sticks are not Italian, even though they use an Italian cheese.
One of the earliest known recipes comes from a book called Le Ménagier de Paris, which is a French medieval guidebook written in 1393. The book was about how a woman should properly behave in marriage and running a household and by today’s standards is probably considered very sexist. The second section of the book contains a cookbook and is actually a very interesting read on Medieval European cooking and recipes.
In a section for side dishes, there’s a recipe for what’s called a Pipefarce which reads as follows:
"Take egg yolks and flour and salt, and a little wine, and beat together strongly, and cheese chopped in thin slices, and then roll the slices of cheese in the batter, and then fry in an iron skillet with oil in it. This can also be made using beef marrow."
While this recipe would probably barely resemble the modern-day cheese sticks, it is one of the earliest known written versions of such a recipe. As a side note, if you can find a translated version of the cookbook section of this book, it’s actually a fascinating read.
The modern mozzarella cheese stick isn’t that old of a recipe, and likely came about in America in the late 1970s or early 1980s. With rapidly improving deep-frying technology in the ‘60s and ‘70s, more small kitchens in dive bars and bowling alleys could cook a variety of foods. Mozzarella string cheese was also invented around 1976 by Frank Baker, which also made storage and transport much easier than making or using fresh mozzarella.
So, at some point, somewhere in American in the late 1970s, someone decided to batter and fry sticks of mozzarella and it spread like wildfire across the country. I salute the unsung hero of the king of appetizers.
Ingredients for Baked Mozzarella Sticks
Mozzarella – The easiest way to make cheese sticks, is to start with an actual cheese stick. Use mozzarella string cheese. I prefer the whole milk ones, but the low-moisture, part skim work just as well.
Flour – A little all-purpose flour to coat the sticks in before an egg-wash.
Eggs – One egg with a splash of water for the egg-wash.
Breading – Use a mixture of regular breadcrumbs and panko breadcrumbs. Panko is great for the texture and crunch but doesn’t do a good job of fully coating the cheese sticks. Mixing the two gives the best coverage and texture so you’re less likely to have an explosion or leak while cooking.
Seasoning – While you can opt for Italian seasoned breadcrumbs, I prefer to use plain and season them myself. A mixture of salt, pepper, oregano, and basil works well.
How to Bake Mozzarella Cheese Sticks
The number one thing to remember in making cheese sticks, whether fried or baked, is that they need to be cooked from a frozen state. Because mozzarella will melt at about 130°F, you need the outside to cook before the inside turns to liquid.
Start by unwrapping the string cheese and cut each piece in half crosswise, then set aside.
Prepare 3 dishes for dredging. Add the flour to one, scramble an egg with a splash of water to another, and in the final bowl mix the two breadcrumbs with the seasonings.
Take the half slices of mozzarella and dredge in the flour, then the egg, and finally the breadcrumb mixture. Be sure to fully coat each stick, including the ends, at each step and shake off any excess before moving to the next. Using gentle pressure, press the cheese stick into the breading coating. If you want an even better seal around the mozzarella stick, repeat the egg and breading steps. Set the coated mozzarella sticks on a plate or small baking dish as you work and try to keep one hand for dry steps and one hand for wet steps as you work.
Once all the sticks have been dredged and coated, set them in your freezer and let them freeze for at least 30-45 minutes before cooking, or 2 hours preferably.
Preheat the oven to 425°F / 220°C.
Take the frozen mozzarella sticks out of the oven and place on a baking dish. Spray both sides with a little bit of cooking spray, or mist with oil from a diffuser. Set in the oven and cook for 5-7 minutes, watching closely after 5 minutes. You want the outside to brown but keep an eye for any cheese that starts oozing out and remove right away if you see that happening.
Place cooked mozzarella sticks on a plate and serve immediately with your favorite dipping sauce.
How to Store or Make Ahead
Mozzarella sticks, whether baked or fried, are best eaten right away. If you have leftovers you wish to save, allow them to cool completely and reharden, then refrigerate for up to a week. To reheat, place them directly from the fridge in a 350°F / 180°C oven. Let them slowly warm for about 6-10 minutes, keeping an eye that they don’t melt out.
If you want to make a large batch to serve and eat later, follow the recipe up to the freezing step. Allow to freeze for about an hour or so and then you can transfer them to an airtight freezer bag. They should keep for a good month or two and can be cooked directly from the freezer as usual.
📋 Recipe
Baked Mozzarella Sticks
Ingredients
- 4 mozzarella string cheese sticks,, cut in half
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon water
- ½ cup regular breadcrumbs
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon basil
Directions
- Start by unwrapping the string cheese and cut each piece in half crosswise, then set aside.
- Prepare 3 dishes for dredging. Add the 3 tablespoons of all-purpose flour to one, scramble the egg with a tablespoon of water to another, and in the final bowl mix the regular and panko breadcrumbs with the salt, pepper, oregano, and basil until fully combined.
- Take the half slices of mozzarella and dredge in the flour, then the egg, and finally the breadcrumb mixture. Be sure to fully coat each stick, including the ends, at each step and shake off any excess before moving to the next. Using gentle pressure, press the cheese stick into the breading coating. If you want an even better seal around the mozzarella stick, repeat the egg and breading steps. Set the coated mozzarella sticks on a plate or small baking dish as you work and try to keep one hand for dry steps and one hand for wet steps as you work.
- Once all the sticks have been dredged and coated, set them in your freezer and let them freeze for at least 30-45 minutes before cooking, or 2 hours preferably.
- Preheat the oven to 425°F / 220°C.
- Take the frozen mozzarella sticks out of the oven and place on a baking dish. Spray both sides with a little bit of cooking spray, or mist with oil from a diffuser. Set in the oven and cook for 5-7 minutes, watching closely after 5 minutes. You want the outside to brown but keep an eye for any cheese that starts oozing out and remove right away if you see that happening.
- Place cooked mozzarella sticks on a plate and serve immediately with your favorite dipping sauce.
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