It is as they say #tbt ( Throw back Thursday ) So I would like to remind everyone of this delish Mozzarella Cheese Sticks recipe that was showcased on the site a couple of years ago. One of our lovely reader’s, Miss Jen, recently made this at home and kindly sent in pictures of her finished product! Even though this is not my first, or one hundredth time indulging in this cheesy goodness, seeing pictures and hearing about how people have enjoyed them, it always makes me drool just a little 😉
So if you have not tried these yet… what are you waiting for?!
Mozzarella Cheese Sticks
1 cup crushed pork rind recipe
1 egg, lightly beaten
16 pieces of string cheese
peanut oil (enough to fill a skillet 1/2″)
Preheat oil in the skillet over medium heat.
While the oil is heating, crush the pork rinds in a gallon ziplock bag with a rolling pin (or crumb using a food processor) until the pieces are bread-crumb-fine. Add Mrs. Dash (or other preferred seasoning) to the bag.
Lightly beat egg in a bowl. (This is going to be the egg bath.)
Taking a string cheese, completely cover with egg in the bowl. Transfer the cheese to the crumb/spice bag.
The crumbs will not necessarily want to stick to the cheese. That said, and because the cheese should be completely covered (to keep ooze at bay in the pan), you are going to want to firmly “mold” the rind crumbs around the cheese while the cheese is still in the bag. (I mean firmly. Not green-Hulk crush-the-cheese tough) (down boy), but enough to invalidEmbedTag the breading bits into the cheese as best you can before removing from the bag.
Cook in preheated oil until the coating is lightly browned, about 2-4 minutes, turning once, and cooking for 1-4 more minutes. Move to a plate covered with a paper towel to remove excess fat.
Serve warm with ranch dressing or marinara sauce.
This recipe makes 16 mozzarella sticks.
Per cheese stick:
Nutritional information: Calories: 125, Carbohydrates: 1g Fiber: 0 g, Net Carbohydrates: 1 g, Protein: 11 g, Fat: 10 g.
Tip 1: Freezing string cheese, pre-cooking helps keep the cheese from becoming a puddle of goo in the pan
Tip 2: A too-cold pan will yield greasy sticks. Too hot, and the cheese will melt out of the crispy crust
Tip 3: Don’t forget to cover the ends with rind coating as well, lest the cheese ooze from the edges.
A BIG Thank You to Jen for sending in her pics 🙂
For the cheese you can also use Paneer (a cooking cheese from India that doesn’t melt when heated), or fresh Queso (the Mexican version), or even Haloumi (from Cyprus–has the texture of mozzarella with the briny moistrure of feta). These cheese become soft and shiny, but don’t melt completely into a puddle like other cheeses–they retain their shape when cooking.
Question about your recipe above: do they have tho fry in peanut oil, or can some other oil be used–like olive, coconut, or MCT?
Also–if you include some unflavored gelatin to the pork rinds, the coating will stick better, and you won’t have to “mold” it. Unflavored gelatin forms a protein bond with the cheese, and sticks better. You can use this trick for any protein you wish to coat like this: meat, fish, cheese, boiled eggs, etc.
Thanks for the great suggestions about the additional types of cheeses that can be used and also regarding the gelatin. I take 2 tablespoons of Great Lakes cold water soluble gelatin daily for health so I try to incorporate it in my diet any way I can. Since this type of gelatin doesn’t actually gel, do you think it would be ok to mix the gelatin in the egg rather than the pork rinds?
How much unflavored gelatin?
What is the photo where it looks like she is scraping the cheese with a fork?
I didn’t see it in the instructions but I think that scoring the cheese with a fork before dipping in the egg wash provides additional surface for the pork rind crumbs to cling to resulting in a crunchier texture.
It looks like she is pocking holes with the fork? Perhaps to help the egg find a hold/rind crumbs stick better. Just a guess!
Can I use Panko instead of pork rinds? I live in Israel and don’t think I’ll be able to find those….:)
Of course you can!
What could you use as an alternative to the pork rinds. I don’t eat pork. thanks.
Maybe some soy nuts ground to a flour?
Great idea!
Does Panko contain wheat, As I cannot tolerate it. Not celiac but anything with wheat causes severe heartburn.
Try dipping the cheese in melted butter instead of the egg. The pork rinds/parmesan (from green container/ almond flour will stick a lot better.
I would suggest removing the vegetarian tag on this…there is nothing vegetarian about pork rinds. The recipe looks great, but is in no way vegetarian
Pork Rinds are made from pig skin. They are meat. This is no way vegetarian.
Lose the veggie tag please, firstly I was drooling, read the recipe then felt sick!
To cook them in a deep fryer, bread the sticks with egg wash and Italian bread crumbs, then freeze for at least one hour. It will keep them from exploding.
Thanks for the tip!