Fried Mozzarella Sticks
- Level: Easy
- Yield: 4 servings
-
- Nutritional Analysis
- Per Serving
- Serving Size
- 1 of 4 servings
- Calories
- 1203
- Total Fat
- 89
- Saturated Fat
- 14
- Carbohydrates
- 71
- Dietary Fiber
- 7
- Sugar
- 15
- Protein
- 35
- Cholesterol
- 226
- Sodium
- 1307
- Total: 1 hr 10 min (includes chilling time)
- Active: 20 min
Ingredients
One 8-ounce block pasteurized part-skim mozzarella
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons milk
4 large eggs
2 cups Italian breadcrumbs
2 tablespoons finely grated Parmesan
About 1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
1 cup warm Homemade Pizza Sauce, recipe follows
Homemade Pizza Sauce:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 pinch crushed red pepper flakes
One 32-ounce can crushed tomatoes
1 sprig fresh basil
Kosher salt
Directions
- Cut the mozzarella into approximately 2-1/2-by-1/2-inch sticks (you should have about 16 sticks, depending on the shape of your mozzarella).
- Put the flour in a small bowl. Beat the milk with the eggs in another bowl. Stir together the breadcrumbs and Parmesan in a third wide, shallow bowl.
- Working one at a time, coat a mozzarella stick in flour and shake off the excess. Dip the stick in egg, letting the excess drip off, then add it to the breadcrumbs and roll it to coat. Dip the stick in the egg one more time, again letting the excess drip off, and roll it in a final coat of breadcrumbs. You can pat the mozzarella stick gently between your hands to smooth out the coating. Transfer the coated mozzarella stick to a platter. Repeat with the remaining mozzarella sticks. Refrigerate the mozzarella sticks until cold, about 15 minutes.
- Heat 1/2 inch of vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until it reaches 350 degrees F. Have a large brown paper bag ready for the fried sticks (they will stick to paper towels). Add half of the mozzarella sticks and fry, turning once, until golden brown on both sides, about 1 minute total. Transfer to the paper bag to drain. Return the oil to 350 degrees F (this is important, as the cheese will seep out if it is not hot enough) and fry the remaining mozzarella sticks.
- Serve hot with Homemade Pizza Sauce on the side.
Homemade Pizza Sauce:
- Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the oregano, garlic and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, until the garlic is golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, basil and 1/2 teaspoon salt and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer, with the saucepan loosely covered in foil to avoid splattering and stirring occasionally, until fairly thick, 5 to 10 minutes, depending on your tomatoes. Remove the basil.