Fried Mozzarella Sticks

While I love the finer things in life I am also an ardent fan of pub food. One of the things The Husband and I love are fried mozzarella sticks and I can confidently say that if you haven?t had one, you haven?t lived. They?re ridiculously easy to make and are an integral part of any sports related junk food menu.

First of all, obviously, a block mozzarella cut in finger width pieces. You could use cheddar but mozzarella is the standard for this recipe.

Next you set up your breading line: flour, eggs and bread crumbs.

For this recipe I actually used corn flake crumbs. Usually I am not the biggest fan because they have the faintest sweet flavour but they?re perfect for this since when fried they turn extra crispy. I also added dried parsley, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and paprika.

After breading the sticks I put them in the freezer for half an hour. You cannot skip this step or else you will end up with a puddle of melted cheese when you try to fry them. If you leave them in a little longer and they start to freeze you will still be ok.

I put in half an inch of oil in a pan and quickly fried my mozzarella sticks. They really do not take very long, 30 second tops per side. You have to watch them carefully so they neither melt nor burn.

Usually I make marinara sauce with this but this time we just ate them with chili sauce. These are rich, they are of course, solid cheese and even I can?t eat more than a couple at a time. The Husband, happily inhaled quite a few of these while watching the Superbowl. They are so good, crispy on the outside and gooey and melty on the inside. Best eaten hot soon after they come out of the pan.