Each and every member of my family loves cheese! No, we are not from Wisconsin, but we might as well be called cheese heads! One of our favorite ways to enjoy cheese is mozzarella sticks. We ALWAYS order them as an appetizer, no matter the restaurant. My daughter came across some recipes online for making your own mozzarella sticks and really wanted to try it. None of the recipes looked just right, so I combined a couple different ones from here and here.
I buy string cheese in bulk because like I said…we love cheese! I also used eggs, butter, flour, panko, Italian bread crumbs and pizza sauce.
We unwrapped the string cheese and cut it in half.
I added equal amounts of panko and Italian bread crumbs to a bowl.
I beat together 2 eggs and a little milk with a fork.
I put flour in a bowl and rolled each piece of cheese in the flour.
Next, the flour coated piece of cheese was dipped in the egg mixture.
Finally, we put the cheese in the bread crumb mixture and covered it with crumbs. Then, we pressed the crumbs onto the egg covered cheese. This technique really helped the crumbs stick and kept our fingers more clean.
We lined the mozzarella sticks up in a pan and placed the pan in the freezer for about 30 minutes. This hardens the cheese so that it doesn’t melt all over the oven while baking!
We removed the mozzarella sticks from the freezer and placed them on a baking sheet. I melted a couple tablespoons of butter and drizzled it over the mozzarella sticks. Then, we baked them at 400°F for about 8 minutes.
We dipped the mozzarella sticks in pizza sauce. They were everything we hoped they would be and for some reason we thought they tasted a bit like grilled cheese!
Baked Mozzarella Cheese Sticks Recipe
Prep Time
45 mins
Cook Time
10 mins
Total Time
55 mins
Course:
Appetizer
Servings: 24
Ingredients
- 12 count package string cheese
- 1 cup panko
- 1 cup Italian bread crumbs
- 1 cup flour
- 2 eggs
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 2 tablespoons butter
- Marinara or pizza sauce
Instructions
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Unwrap string cheese and cut in half.
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Put equal amounts of panko and Italian bread crumbs to a bowl and mix together.
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Beat together 2 eggs and a little milk with a fork.
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Put flour in a third bowl and roll each piece of cheese in the flour.
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Dip the flour coated cheese in the egg mixture and then coat with the bread crumb mixture.
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Place mozzarella sticks in the freezer for about 30 minutes.
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Remove the mozzarella sticks from the freezer and place them on a baking sheet.
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Melt butter and drizzle it over the mozzarella sticks.
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Bake at 400°F for about 8-10 minutes.
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Dip mozzarella sticks in marinara or pizza sauce.
Looking for something with a little more flavor? Try Buffalo Ranch Mozzarella Sticks
Buffalo Ranch Mozzarella Sticks
Bloomin’ Garlic Cheese Biscuits | Mac ‘n Cheese Pizza | Cheese Bombs
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Hi, I'm Tonia, a lover of food and photography! Fill a gunny sack with delicious ingredients, tie on an apron and let's get cooking!
Started testing recipes for our annual holiday bash. This was the first on the list and a hugh hit and is a welcome addition. Tasted great and make ahead makes it a great party recipe. I plan on putting the melted butter in a squeeze bottle for last minute prep ease and have chipotle dried crumbs that might be good with cheddar sticks. Either way thanks!
I made these and they turned out fantastic! I didn’t drizzle with melted butter before baking, so the coating was a little dry, but still crazy good! We dipped them in homemade pizza sauce. There will definitely be a repeat in the near future!
My kids are always in the mood for these cheese sticks!
These baked mozzarella sticks are amazing! They are a healthy and just as tasty alternative to the fried version. I usually make the fried ones for my family, but they love these! Great recipie 🙂
This recipie is great! It’s super simple and tasty. It’s also one of my families favorites. Thanks so much!
If I freeze them overnight do I need to thaw them before I place them in the oven or can I bake them right out of the freezer?
Bake them directly from the freezer. Enjoy!
I loved them. Had fun making them with my dad. Tip if you don’t have marinara sauce you can always use red pasta sauce. Thanks for the recipe!
Tried this reciepe and it was a complete disaster!! The cheese completely melted out al over the pan and didn’t work at all. Next time will only use a deep fryer, this reciepe just doesn’t work correctly
Did you freeze them for at least 30 minutes first?
This recipe is great! Of course – since it’s just me – I only use about four cheese sticks, so I ended up just eyeballing the amounts of egg/milk, flour, etc. Thanks!
This recipe is awful. As soon as you dip the sticks into the bread crumbs, it all sticks to your hands and you’re left with a flour covered piece of cheese.
That’s the lovely thing about having forks on hand. ^_^ (That’s what I end up doing, since I hate dealing with messy fingers)
Did anyone have the problem of them seeming undercooked even though a few were starting to melt/ expand? I had them in for 9 min and had uncooked areas on many of the sticks.
Me too. Next time I am going to cut the cheese in half lengthwise as well and hope it helps.
I love mozzarella sticks at restaurants. We usually order them whenever we eat out, so it would be fun to try making them myself. This recipe doesn’t sound too hard and they are baked, too. I wonder if they taste any different from fried ones that I’ve tried.
These look so good and so easy too! I’m going to make them for the upcoming holiday gatherings.
Thank you 🙂
Love this recipe so much I shared it on my own blog: http://www.juniperinherhair.com/mozz-sticks-baked/
thanks for a great recipe!
cheers!
Jennifer
About how many mozzarella sticks does this recipe yield? I was thinking of making them for a party and was wondering how many it makes to see if it is enough or if I need to double the recipe? Thanks. They look amazing!!
Hi Meghann,
I used 18 pieces of string cheese, which made 36 mozzarella sticks. Enjoy!
~Tonia
I just made these last night, they were amazing! Thank you so much for this recipe!
These looks so easy to make! Who knew? Thanks for the recipe…italian night coming soon!
You are very welcome! I hope you enjoy them! ~Tonia
These were delicous! My whole family enjoyed them! Will definitely make again! Very easy to make.
I froze them on the baking pan I baked them on. Not sure if this was correct or not. I also sprayed the pan with a bit of cooking spray. The fingers do not get really brown, but are still very crunchy. I think I left mine in a bit too long trying to get them browner. A few started to melt. Still yummy though. The mixture of panko crumbs (more crunchy than regular bread crumbs) and regular Italian bread crumbs provided both great crunch and light seasoning. Nice receipe!
Also, I used “pizza” mozzerela cheese strings. I think the only difference is that the cheese stretches a bit more when you bite in, which was good!
These taste awesome! Way easier being baked than fried, too. I use about half of the recommended bread crumbs (half cup Italian, half cup regular) because for me when I first made it I had a lot left that I couldn’t reuse. Super delicious recipe! We use Wisconsin string cheese primarily. I also use forks to dip and coat everything cause I’m way too messy with my hands! But yeah, definitely a great recipe and I love that you’ve added step by step pictures with instructions. Made multiple times and I keep coming back to it! Thanks for sharing this recipe, its for sure a hit here and they rarely ever last past the second day made. =)
Made these 3 times for my family! So simple and delicious! Thank you for this great recipe!!
Thanks for the great idea.- I’m sure my grandsons will love these
Can these be frozen for later use? If so, would you freeze them befor or after you bake? Thanks!
Yes! I make them ahead of time for my kids. Freeze them before baking them. Enjoy!
~Tonia
These were wonderful! And super easy! Thanks so much for sharing. I will definitely make these again for another party.
These sound delicious and really easy to do, too! Thanks so much for sharing. I’ll take cheese sticks any way I can get ’em!
These look delicious! I’ve never tried them since I don’t like to fry. I think I’ll try these though!
Thanks for sharing, I will be making these for New Year’s Eve…
we just made these and I ended up using the whole bag of cheese sticks they was AWSOME !!!!!!!!!
Fantastic! I need to make some more for my family! Thank you for letting me know, Kim! ~Tonia
I will make these for the antique tractor club meeting this week. Thanks for your help! I think they will be a big hit
with all ages!
Can I use whole wheat seasoned bread crumbs instead of panko bread crumbs. Also can I use plain bread crumbs instead of italian bread crumbs?
Yes, you can use any type of breading. Enjoy! ~Tonia
I am so happy I found this, I love mozzarella sticks and now it’s gonna save me tone by making my own
Wonderful! I hope you enjoy them as much as we do! ~Tonia
Easy recipe, thanks for sharing. Turned out great for an cocktail party.
I tried these and the cheese melted flat in the oven
Same problem, cheese poured out, and I did put them in the freezer for the half hour, and followed all the directions….was a lot of work in prepping them and they disintegrated….maybe this is why they are usually deep fried?
Same problem! I followed the recipe exactly, freezing them for a little over 30 minutes, but the cheese still melted all over the pan and created a mess after 8 minutes in the oven at the required temperature. It still tasted great, but it wasn’t exactly in the shape of a stick. Will try freezing longer next time, or overnight.
How many string cheese are in a package?
I need to know this too, Anyone? How many “sticks” is recipe supposed to make and then I can just double the pieces since they are cut in 1/2 Help?
I made this post back in September of 2009 so my memory isn’t clear. The photo shows 18 pieces of string cheese, which would make 36 mozzarella sticks. If you use a package of 12 pieces of string cheese, you would get 24 mozzarella sticks. I’ve found that when I make recipes that require a breading and end up not having enough, I can quickly add a little more of the breading ingredients to the bowl, stir it up and continue coating. Best of luck! ~Tonia
It depends on what package you buy.
I made these for my grandkids and they were a BIG hit!!! I loved them too and will be making them again. Thanks 🙂
These look absolutely delish! I will definitely try this recipe,
many thanks,
Thanks so much for this recipe! I’m from Argentina and I used to live in America, I love Muzzarella sticks so it’s great that I can make them here because we don’t have the ones to buy 🙁
You are very welcome! Enjoy!
Did you use fat free cheese sticks or regular? I`ve heard only fat free ones work otherwise they melt in the oven…
I used the regular ones, but froze them before putting them in the oven. They will melt eventually, just like the store bought cheese sticks, but they just need to be taken out of the oven before they melt.
Same problem, cheese poured out, and I did put them in the freezer for the half hour, and followed all the directions….was a lot of work in prepping them and they disintegrated….maybe this is why they are usually deep fried? I used reduced fat…
Hi! We have “Japanese style” Panko. Is that the same thing or should I get some normal Panko?
Hi Kathryn,
Yes, use Japanese style Panko! The description of the brand I used is: “Progresso Panko Crispy Bread Crumbs are Japanese-style bread crumbs.” Thanks for stopping by!
~Tonia
There is no such thing as “regular Panko” Panko is from Japan. It is their style of bread crumbs. Pan means bread in Japanese (which the Portuguese brought to Japan). Fell in love with it 40 yrs ago when I took my first trip to Japan.
I think maybe Kathryn had a different brand name and was confused.. make sense?
I’m going to try these as I too love cheese sticks. One question, my grandaughter is now on a gluten free diet, what would you recommend to do to make these where she can eat them?
I am also celiac so I adjusted this by using just a gluten free flour substitute and gluten free Italian breadcrumbs. I think it worked even better than the Panko would have bc the crumbs are heavier. You can use any brand of those two substitutes but I personally used: 4c gluten free italian seasoned breadcrumbs and Bob’s Red Mill gluten free all purpose baking flour. These are staples I use to make any recipe that calls for them into a gluten free one and my family often likes them even more than the original recipes.
I have never tried homemade cheese sticks before and these look and sound great even my son is interested in trying them and he’s a picky eater! Thanks for the recipe and have a blessed day.
What about taking them the next day to work? Would microwave maybe 40 seconds work? thank you
Hi Cathy,
I have put them in the freezer and made them later. They turned out great. The only concern with microwaving is to make sure that they get hot enough to cook the egg. Thanks for stopping by!
~Tonia
Have you tried any other cheese? Like Colby jack or cheddar?
Hi Carol,
I have not tried any other cheeses but I’m sure they would be delicious! I have used Velveeta to make Cheese Bombs https://www.thegunnysack.com/2013/06/cheese-bombs-cheese-filled-biscuits.html and they were really good! Thanks for stopping by!
~Tonia
What brand of mozzarella cheese sticks is your family’s favorite? We have tried a couple that we didn’t like.
Hi Tara,
Our favorite brand of string cheese is Crystal Farms: http://www.crystalfarmscheese.com/products/
~Tonia
The flour is to make the eggs stick to the cheese.
Going to try this. My family loves cheese too! Do you ever make these in large batches and store them in the freezer for snacks?
Hi Karri,
Yes, I did make them in a large batch and stored them in the freezer. It worked perfectly! Thanks for stopping by!
~Tonia
I doubled it and stored some in the freezer, they were perfect! Kids definitely enjoyed them 😀
What is the purpose of the flour? I feel like after you dip it in the egg mixture a lot of the flour may be left behind anyway? Just curious what purpose it serves! Thanks, these look great!
Gonna try making these today and we’re so excited! (We’re 29 and 37 btw)! 😀
Yum! Me and my husband love them too! Thanks for stopping by, Lolly!
In text copy of directions, I think you mean remove from freezer not oven. Cooks will know the process, just want you to have copy correct. Will try these for our next book group. Thanks for the recipe.
I’m guessing the grilled cheese taste is from the melted butter. I’m going to try these without butter. Thanks for the recipe.
This looks yummy gonna try this one soon THANKS!!!
Thanks Kimberly! I hope you love them as much as we do!
Baked?! That’s practically healthy.
Oh yum! I love string cheese and I love cheese sticks. I think I have everything on hand to do this!
I would never have thought to use string cheese for mozzerella sticks. Great idea!
I shall try these. They truly look delicious, and I’m a sucker for anything I can dip in red sauce!
Cheese sticks are my favorite! Yum! I’ve never tried homemade…I bet they are even better. 🙂
I usually try to pass up on mozzerella sticks since they are usually a heart attack on a plate but now baked ones?? I think I can handle that!!
Love this idea! My husband is a huuuge cheese fan, haha!
Love these! I like the idea of using cheese sticks!
Yummy. I may have to make these.