Crispy Mozzarella Sticks
This is a four part recipe. Wait…don’t leave! It’s seriously really easy. The key is to gather all your tools and ingredients before starting to cook. Besides, I promise a huge flavor and crunch payoff. Most traditional mozzarella sticks recipes call for a marinara dipping sauce, but use whatever sauce suits your fancy!
Prep time: 10 minutes
Freezer time: 5+ hours
Cook time: 5 minutes stove + 30 minutes oven
Makes 10-12 one-inch sticks
Ingredients
Mozzarella
- 1 cup hot water
- 1/2 cup (reserve ¼ cup) raw, unsalted cashews, soaked in hot water for at least ½ hour
- 2 Tbls. tapioca flour
- 3 Tbls. nutritional yeast
- 2 tsp. apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. onion powder
- 1 tsp. sea salt
Wet Mix
- ¼ cup soaked cashews
- 1 cup non-dairy, unsweetened milk
- 1 Tbls. Dijon mustard, whisked in
Dry Dredge Mix (place in two different shallow pans)
- 1 cup all-purpose flour, plus 1 tsp garlic powder and a healthy shake of black pepper
- 2 cups Panko or whole wheat breadcrumbs, plus 2 Tbls. nutritional yeast
Instructions
- For the mozzarella, blend all ingredients together until smooth.
- Over medium/high heat, cook mozzarella in a small saucepan, whisking the whole time.
- In about 5 minutes, it will begin to thicken. When it gets to a ‘paste’ consistency, take it off the heat and pour into a small, oiled (or parchment lined) baking or casserole dish.
- Cover, and freeze for about 3 hours.
- Meanwhile, make your wet mix by adding the 3 ingredients to a high speed bullet/blender and blend until smooth (it’s okay if it’s a tad grainy). Set in fridge until ready to begin dredging the mozzarella sticks.
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees
- Remove frozen mozzarella block carefully from your dish and slice into 10-12 sticks, each about one inch thick and four inches long.
- Roll each stick into the flour and seasonings mix first, lightly coating them all over, then into the wet mix, and finally, dredge them in the breadcrumbs and nutritional yeast mix.
- Lay the mozzarella sticks on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake at 425 degrees for 30 minutes, checking them halfway through. If bottoms have browned, turn them and continue baking until all browned and crispy.
- Air fryer? Preheat to 400, place mozz sticks in single layer on parchment lined basket and ‘fry’ for 8 minutes, turn them over and cook for another 8-10 minutes.
- Serve with your choice of dipping sauce like a marinara, or dijon mustard sauce, or Braswell’s Vidalia Onion and Summer Tomato (my personal favorite).
This sounds delicious! Have you tried cooking the sticks in your air fryer?
Great idea Ann, and next time I make them, I certainly will. These were baked, but I remember us devouring them in seconds! Let me know if you give it a try, too.