Homemade Cheese Sticks are the crispy finger foods that people crave often, and is made with cheese, eggs, all purpose flour, breadcrumbs, pepper and salt. On the first bite, you will feel the crispness of the outer coating, followed by the amazing softness of the cheesy core. It is a highly popular street finger food in Philippines and pair up with lots of special flavoured dips or tomato sauce.

Budget-Friendly Cheese Sticks

Cheese Sticks, as this food name suggests, are hot elongated pieces of cheese that are rolled over on batter and breadcrumbs. This simple but scrumptious recipe is a popular hors d’oeuvre or starter before the main course in France. Interestingly, this appetizer we are enjoying today was appreciated as well by French since 1393. Old but gold!

There are many types of cheese that can be stir fried but the original one was mozzarella. This is why cheese sticks are most commonly known as Mozzarella sticks. Nonetheless, you might want to roam around the kitchen to gold mine some blocks of cheese to be your next snack.

How to Make Cheese Sticks

There are two ways you can cook Cheese Sticks. Either way, you will be needing a very few and affordable ingredients. Don’t forget to follow a clear recipe guide, too! Basically, the two ways do not differ greatly but you are free to choose which to follow. The only distinction to note is the type of coating: flour or egg wrapper.

For the first version, begin with slicing the cheese based on how thick you’d like it to be. Then, coat it with flour. Dip it into a bowl of beaten eggs. Next, roll it onto the dry mixture of breadcrumbs, salt, and black pepper. Once more, sink in the beaten egg and coat with the breadcrumbs mixture. Set it aside for frying.

Now for the second version, cut the egg wrapper into two pieces. Then place a slice of cheese on the bottom part and roll until it is half-folded. Fold the opposing sides before wrapping the cheese completely. Add water to glue the ends of the egg wrapper. Set this aside for frying.

Both of the versions make use of the same cooking process. Heat the pan over low heat and put enough oil to sink the Cheese sticks. Make sure to put the cheese sticks when the oil is already hot to create a crunchy final product. Strain excess oil using a colander or lined tissue on a plate. Serve and enjoy!

How to Cook Cheese Sticks (2-Ways)

Course: Snacks

Servings

servings

Ingredients

(1st version)
block of cheese (I used Eden)
2 eggs
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup breadcrumbs
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tbsp water
(2nd version)
block of cheese
egg wrapper (lumpia wrapper)
2 pcs eggs
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp water
1 cup breadcrumbs

Directions

FOR THE FIRST VERSION
Start by cutting the cheese into small long slices, base the size and thickness from your preference.
In a small bowl, combine the breadcrumbs with a pinch of black pepper and salt. Mix well until fully combined.
Get a separate bowl to crack the eggs. Add a few drops of water. Beat until it becomes pale yellow.
Prepare the cheese coatings in separate containers: all-purpose flour, beaten eggs, and breadcrumbs. Roll the cheese first on the flour, then dip into the beaten eggs then roll onto the breadcrumbs. Once more, dip it into the eggs then roll onto the breadcrumbs for thicker covering. Repeat the process for the remaining cheese sticks. Refrigerate for at least an hour or overnight before frying.
Heat the pan over low heat then put enough oil to sink the cheese sticks. Cook this for 1 minute or until its color turns golden brown. Flip sides if there is not enough available oil.
FOR THE SECOND VERSION
Cut the egg wrappers in half. Slice the cheese based on the desired size and thickness.
Lay a wrapper onto a clean work surface then put a slice of cheese on the bottom side. Roll the wrapper with the cheese filling until it’s half-folded. Now, fold the left and the right sides to secure the cheese. Damp the ending side with water to stick. Repeat the process for the remaining ones.
Once all the cheese sticks are wrapped, dip it in a beaten eggs with water. Then coat with breadcrumbs. In this version, no need to refrigerate.
Fry with the same procedure as that of the 1st version. Strain the excess oil and transfer onto a platter. Enjoy dipping your cheese sticks in ketchup or mayonnaise!

Notes

Before making this, remember to wash the hands properly or wear plastic gloves for sanitary purposes since you’ll be working with bare hands for the most part.
While frying the cheese sticks, it is important that there is enough oil in the pan for the sticks to be fully covered. If there is not enough available oil, just make sure to flip the sides often to prevent burnt cheese sticks.
Make sure to put the cheese sticks in the pan when the oil is hot already. Otherwise, the product would be soggy from too much oil.