How To Make Mozzarella Sticks In Air Fryer

How To Air Fry Frozen Mozzarella Sticks Or Cheese Sticks

• Well never cook these frozen mozzarella sticks in any other way now except in the air fryer. The regular oven doesnt cook them nearly as good or crispy.
• Dont thaw first. Air fry the cheese sticks straight from the freezer. It gives them a crispier outside coating.
• Spread into an even layer when air frying. Dont stack the cheese sticks in the air fryer basket/tray. Crowding or stacking the cheese sticks makes them cook un-evenly. So cook in smaller batches if needed so theres space for the hot air to circulate between the mozzarella sticks.
• No oil spray. There is no need for any oil spray to cook the cheese sticks. There is enough in the crust when they make them that you dont need to add any more.
• Add your favorite dip and youre ready to enjoy. We love serving them with a marinara sauce but we know lots of folks enjoy dipping them in ranch or bbq sauce too.
• All recipe details, time and temp are in the recipe box below.

Can I Make Them From Scratch

Yes, you can make your own mozzarella sticks from scratch. This involves making a dredging station with egg and seasoned breadcrumbs, then dipping the cheese stick into both, freezing it, then dipping again before air fryer. Its possible to do. However, Ive done it a few times and it always turns out a disaster.

The breading doesnt stay on the cheese while its being air fried. The cheese sometimes sort of evaporates while cooking, and the exterior is hard to get a nice golden even brown because you have to spray them perfectly.

In my opinion, its just so much easier to buy frozen mozzarella sticks. There are some really good brands that are worth buying. I feel that most people end up regretting the extra work involved in making your own.

Why Do You Freeze The Cheese Before Air Frying

Freezing your cheese is going to help firm up the cheese a bit. If you skip this step, you will find all your cheese has a higher chance of oozing and making a mess in your air fryer.

If you freeze the cheese, it will take longer to warm up, giving you the perfect cheese pull texture when you pull your cheese sticks apart or bite into them!

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Tips For The Best Outcome

• Dont thaw the frozen mozzarella sticks. Place the frozen sticks directly into the air fryer. Itll be crispier this way.
• Give the mozzarella sticks space in the air fryer basket, so they can cook evenly. You may have to work in smaller batches, but it will make for a better end result.
• For an easier clean-up, line the basket with parchment so that there arent too many crumbs in the basket after.

How To Make Mozzarella Sticks In Air Fryer

Contents

Just because you dont have an oven doesnt mean you cant enjoy the deliciousness of Mozzarella sticks. Air fryer technology has come a long way and is now able to cook up these tasty treats without using any oil! This blog post will show you how to make Mozzarella sticks in air fryer. After following these easy steps, youll be enjoying homemade Mozzarella sticks that are crispy on the outside and gooey on the inside.

Mozzarella sticks are a delicious carb-heavy snack. They are easy to make and can be enjoyed by anyone with a craving for something cheesy, crispy, and breaded. This recipe is designed to utilize an air fryer like Ninja Foodi so you can enjoy these tasty treats at home!

Air frying is an excellent way to cook food without using too much oil, reducing calories and fat content while still retaining flavor. It also requires less time than traditional cooking methods making it perfect for those who love spending leisure time outside their kitchen but still want great tasting food!

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Tips For Making Mozzarella Sticks

• Choose your cheese sticks wisely: Not all cheese sticks are created equally. I used regular, full-fat mozzarella sticks. You can also make these with low-fat sticks, but I found the texture slightly rubbery. I cannot vouch for what will happen to nonfat mozzarella sticks.
• Freeze completely before air-frying: Make sure they are frozen before air fryingif they are even a tiny bit soggy in the freezer, they arent going to fry evenly. The coating will fall right off. The sticks should feel dry to the touch.
• Use nonstick spray: Hit the air fryer basket and sticks with some nonstick spray oil before you put them in the basket. This way they dont stick to the basket, and a little extra oil helps them brown.
• Work in batches if need be. I didn’t like the way they sometimes got stuck together if I made all eight of these at once, so I broke the process into two batches.
• If you have a toaster oven/air fryer combo, you may want to place an extra rack underneath the fry basket and line it with foil to prevent mozzarella from dripping onto the heating elements.

Need something to dip these sticks in? Try our basic tomato sauce!

Ingredients For Air Fryer Mozzarella Sticks

This recipe calls for just four ingredients and four spices. Since the ingredients are super simple, you most likely already have most of them on hand!

• Mozzarella Sticks: For this recipe, mozzarella sticks are the name of the game! You can use actual pre-cut cheese sticks, or you can cut sticks from a block.
• All-Purpose Flour: We will be using flour for the breading process.
• Egg: We will use an egg wash to help make the breadcrumbs stick!
• Panko Breadcrumbs: Panko breadcrumbs will be used to coat the mozzarella sticks. Panko crumbs are made without crusts, making them great for breading fried foods.
• Spices: To make these mozz sticks extra yummy, well be adding flavor with onion powder, garlic powder, smoked paprika, and salt.
• Dipping Sauce: Choose your favorite sauce for dipping, such as or ranch!

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Tips And Yummy Variations

The great thing about making mozzarella sticks at home is that you can customize them however youd like! Ive listed a few of my favorite seasonings and dips here for you to try. I hope you love them as much as I do!

• Seasonings: I love the simple flavor of bread crumbs and parmesan cheese. It makes your mozzarella sticks perfect for just about any sauce! If youre looking for a little extra flavor, though, feel free to add Italian seasoning, Cajun seasoning, or lemon pepper to your bread crumb mixture! It makes each bite flavorful and divine. No dip needed!
• Sauces and Dips: These air fryer mozzarella sticks are perfect for dipping! Aside from marinara, my family always loves having them with buffalo, bbq, and honey mustard sauces.
• Crispier Texture: For a more crispy texture, dredge and coat the cheese sticks once. After freezing, coat them again and freeze for another 30 minutes, then cook and enjoy!
• Dont Overcook: If you overcook your mozzarella sticks, you run the risk of them bursting open and getting too melty. Keep an eye on them at the 6 minute mark to ensure you pull them out right when theyre golden and crispy.

Air Fryer Mozzarella Sticks Helpful Tips

• For extra crispy mozzarella sticks dunk them one more time in the beaten eggs and then in the panko bread crumb mixture. Increase the breadcrumbs to 1 1/4 cups and the eggs to 3.
• Freeze the breaded mozzarella sticks on a parchment covered baking sheet with space between the sticks for at least 30 minutes.
• Every air fryer cooks at a little different pace so check on the sticks several times.
• For maximum enjoyment serve with warm marinara.
• Refrigerate leftovers and reheat in the air fryer at 390 degrees for about 5 minutes.
• Freeze for up to 3 months. See below for freezing tips.

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What To Pair With Mozzarella Sticks

The real question is, what DOESNT go with mozzarella sticks?? Okay truthfully I like to stick to either ranch or marinara/pizza sauce.

But the world is your oyster and you are free to do whatever makes you happy! Wanna dip them in BBQ sauce? Homemade fry sauce? Honey? Chimichurri? Pesto? Carrot Pesto? Alfredo sauce? Applesauce?

Im not here to judge! If you go through the trouble to freeze bread freeze bread freeze air fry these , you can dip them in whatever you want!

Air Fryer Mozzarella Sticks

Air Fryer Mozzarella Sticks are a mouthwatering air fryer appetizer! These unbelievably crispy mozzarella sticks in the air fryer will make you quickly forget the ones from the freezer section.

Mozzarella sticks are a great handheld snack to feed the masses, and these Air Fryer Mozzarella Sticks take minutes to make and can be prepared way in advance.

The same mozzarella cheese sticks you pack in kids’ lunches and eat as on-the-go snacks become melty, delicious mozzarella sticks with a few spices and some breadcrumbs.

While they still need to be frozen for at least an hour before cooking, the air fryer magic helps the fresh and seasoned coating stay tasty and crunchy.

While the full fat cheese sticks will have the best melted texture, low fat cheese sticks will also work for this!

If you are a professional snacker, you have to check out our Air Fryer Meatballs and our Air Fryer Risotto Balls.

These air fryer recipes, however, will take your snacking expertise up a notch.

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How To Know That The Frozen Mozzarella Cheese Sticks Are Ready To Be Taken Out Of The Air Fryer

The moment you see the smallest sign of cheese oozing out of the mozzarella sticks, take them out as they are already done. There is no other way to precisely tell when they are done. Keep an eye on them and open the basket a minute before the suggested time.

Do not let them stay in the air fryer after done. The air fryer will still be hot and the cheese will continue to ooze out. So, remove immediately and serve with your favorite dipping sauce.

Mozzarella Sticks Recipe Notes:

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Air Fryer Is Perfect For Frozen Mozzarella Sticks

Just like cooking frozen pizza rolls in the air fryer, cooking mozzarella sticks in the air fryer is simply the best way to cook them. The outer bread crumbs are crispy and crunchy on all sides, and the cheese in the center is so full of cheesy goodness that you may lose yourself in the whole box!

In fact, we use this same method to make homemade air fried babybel cheese too.

More Yummy Air Fryer Appetizer Recipes

We have so many air fryer recipes to choose from!

If you are having trouble figuring out which one to try next, we suggest: Air Fryer Zucchini Chips, Air Fryer BBQ Chicken Wings, Pickles in the Air Fryer, Air Fryer Chicken Tenders and Air Fryer Meatballs

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Here are my TOP picks of air fryers on the market today!

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How To Make Sure Cheese Doesnt Ooze Out Of The Mozzarella Sticks

One complaint I hear time and time again from people airfrying mozzarella sticks is that the cheese oozes out on them.

The cheese will only ooze out of the mozzarella sticks when they are overdone.

The melted cheese builds up pressure inside and then bursts a hole open somewhere on the stick causing the cheese to ooze out.

While its okay for the mozzarella sticks to split showing cheese , its never fun to eat cheeseless mozzarella sticks and deal with the mess it causes.

Rule #1? Preheat your air fryer! Preheating allows for even cooking, which will lower the chances of your cheese oozing.

Rule #2? Read the above How to Know When Your Mozz Sticks are Done section to know when to pull them out of the air fryer as soon as theyre done.

If the mozzarella sticks are still oozing cheese, drop the suggested temperature down 10-20 degrees and cook again.

The higher temperature may be the cause of your specific brand of frozen mozzarella sticks leaking cheese.

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The Secret For Great Mozzarella Sticks

This is admittedly a bit of a persnickety process, but its not for nothing, as my grandmother used to say. TRUST ME. You do NOT want to go through this effort and have these cheese sticks explode all over your air fryer.

Here’s the secret: DOUBLE-COAT your mozzarella sticks.

You need to dip the mozzarella stick in the lightly beaten egg and then the breadcrumbs freeze it for a short period of time, and then repeat the process again to add a second coating before you air fry. These steps are crucial.

Otherwise, the coating slides right off the cheese stick once you pop it in the fryer. It divests itself of the layer kind of violently, like its an exoskeleton or something. The mozzarella stick is rendered edible. And also, messy.

Double layering also makes for extra crunch and extra insurance that all parts of the stick get coated with the egg and panko mixture.

Theres a lot more freezer time than you might expect, but I promise, they wont taste like ones you make from a box that you buy in the freezer section of the grocery store. Its worth it.

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How To Make Frozen Mozzarella Sticks In Your Air Fryer

This recipe is insanely simple, so here we go!

Preheat air fryer to 360 degrees. Its important to preheat your air fryer even to cook frozen foods to allow for even heating.

Place your mozzarella sticks inside the air fryer. I recommend placing them in a single layer and not stacking for the best results.

I personally used Farm Rich frozen mozzarella sticks.

Cook them for approximately 6 minutes and check for readiness using the directions below.

Remove them from the air fryer and wait 1-2 minutes to allowthem to cool and enjoy with your favorite marinara sauce or other dippingsauce.

Thats it!

Can I Freeze Mozzarella Sticks After I Make Them

Yes, if you want to make a huge batch to stock up, freeze them, as directed. Once they are completely frozen, remove them from the baking sheet, and place the frozen mozzarella sticks into a large Ziploc bag.

They should last about 2 to 3 months.

When you are ready to air fry them, follow the directions in the recipe below.

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Why Make Homemade Mozzarella Sticks

Do you really need a reason to make homemade mozzarella sticks? They are a fantastic snack or appetizer. You can also add them to pizzas or strombolis to make super awesome variations of these dishes.

But, if you really want a reason, here are a few:

• They taste better than frozen ones
• You use less fat when you air fry them
• You can make some changes to the breading, like adding more spices and herbs, parm cheese, or other variations
• If you follow a vegetarian diet, you dont need to worry about eggs being in the sticks

Get The Complete Air Fryer Cheese Sticks Recipe + Video Below Enjoy

Thats one coating of flour, but two coatings of egg wash and breadcrumbs, for a thick double coating to hold in the melted cheese.

Place on a baking sheet. Then repeat, repeat, repeat.

Once all the cheese sticks are breaded, place the baking sheet in the freezer for at least one hour.

When the cheese sticks are frozen solid you can air fry right away, or place them in a freezer bag and keep them frozen for later use.

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About These Air Fryer Mozzarella Sticks

Is there anyone out there who doesnt absolutely love mozzarella sticks? There is just something about the ooey, gooey cheese encased in a crispy breaded coating that is completely and absolutely irresistible.

Dipped in marinara or ranch, theyre the perfect party food or snack when youre craving something cheesy.

We tested these a few different ways and found the best way possible to make these was to bread them twice. First you freeze the cheese stick halves until theyre solid. Then, they undergo the first breading: flour, then egg, then seasoned breadcrumbs. Then, back into the freezer they go. Once theyre frozen again, youll repeat the egg and breadcrumb step. And yup, you guessed it, back into the freezer!

Why the freezing? Well, you want the cheese to be nice and frozen when they go in the air fryer so that the breading has time to crisp up and get golden brown before the cheese starts to melt and ooze out of the breading. This will still happen occasionally and in small amounts, but if you skip the freezing steps, youll lose a lot more cheese.

No one wants that!