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These homemade air fryer mozzarella sticks are a dream come true! Crispy, golden-brown edges give way to gooey, melty cheese on the inside. And since they’re made in the air fryer instead of deep frying, you can indulge in this healthier snack completely guilt-free!
save this recipe!Comfort Food Meets Health
Name a better comfort food than mozzarella sticks. Spoiler alert: There isn’t one! Seriously, who can turn down a plate of warm, melty, cheese-filled sticks? But, they don’t exactly scream “healthy snack”.
The secret to successfully making breaded cheese sticks is to freeze the unwrapped cheese before breading. Without freezing, it melts too early (and will result in a devastating explosion all over your air fryer). Once that’s out of the way, these bad boys are ready in just 6-8 minutes. Ready? Let’s cook!
Reader rating
“I followed the recipe exactly and they turned out perfect. So yummy!! We had them with pizza sauce and ranch. 🤤” —Ali
Grab These Ingredients
These air fryer mozzarella sticks require just 4 ingredients and 4 spices. You likely already have most of them on hand!
- Mozzarella Sticks: For this recipe, mozzarella cheese sticks are the name of the game! You can use actual pre-cut cheese sticks or cut sticks from a block (I personally love to use mozzarella string cheese!)
- All-Purpose Flour: We will be using flour for the breading process.
- Egg: We will use an egg wash to help make the breadcrumbs stick.
- Panko: To coat the mozzarella sticks. Panko bread crumbs are made without crusts, making them great for breading fried foods.
- Spices: To make these cheese sticks extra yummy, we’ll add flavor with onion powder, garlic powder, smoked paprika, and salt (you can also add black pepper for a little kick).
- Dipping Sauce: Choose your favorite sauce for dipping, such as fresh tomato marinara sauce or kefir ranch dressing!
Air Frying Mozzarella Sticks Is So Easy
The directions may look intimidating at first, but trust me—these air fryer mozzarella sticks are so simple to make!
- Freeze the cheese to help it maintain its shape while cooking.
- Prep the breading station.
- Bread the cheese sticks once, then return them to the freezer.
- Bread the sticks twice for that extra crunch factor.
- Cook them in the air fryer until ooey and gooey!
Keep These Times In Mind
Homemade mozzarella sticks should be air-fried for 6 to 8 minutes—just the right amount of time to brown the outside and melt the inside without rupturing! Store-bought mozzarella sticks generally take 5 minutes (likely because they contain oils in the coating that will burn if cooked longer).
Tips for Air Frying Success
Don’t Skip Freezing: Good luck making these air fryer mozzarella sticks without freezing – it’s going to be a disaster! Without freezing, the cheese melts too early and will spill out before the coating cooks. Freeze the mozzarella to prevent a messy cleanup.
Cook In A Single Layer: If all the mozzarella sticks don’t fit in a single layer on your air fryer rack or the basket, cook them in multiple batches to prevent a soggy texture. I do not recommend double-stacking here!
Air Frying From Frozen: It’s totally possible to air fry mozzarella sticks from frozen (as in frozen store-bought mozzarella sticks). To do so, simply toss them into the basket and follow the temperature and time instructions listed in the recipe.
FAVORITE AIR FRYER
After trying out a bunch of different air fryers, this is my favorite!
Want More Air Fryer Snacks?
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Crunchy Gooey Air Fryer Mozzarella Sticks
Ingredients
- 8 mozzarella sticks
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 egg, whisked
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
- ½ tsp each onion powder, garlic powder, smoked paprika, salt
Instructions
- Freeze Cheese: Unwrap mozzarella sticks (or cut into sticks if starting from a block of cheese). Set on a parchment-lined plate and freeze for 30 minutes.
- Prep: Meanwhile, set up your breading station—place flour in a ziplock baggie, whisk the egg in a shallow bowl, and combine the panko and seasonings in a separate shallow bowl.
- Bread Once: Toss mozzarella sticks into the bag with the flour, zip it shut, and shake to coat the cheese evenly. Working one at a time, roll the mozzarella sticks in the egg, then the panko. Return to the plate and freeze for 30 more minutes.
- Bread Twice: Lightly grease your air fryer basket or rack, and preheat to 390°F (200°C). Coat the mozzarella sticks in egg and panko again, then transfer them to the air fryer.
- Cook: Cook for 6 to 8 minutes, until crispy and golden brown. Serve warm with your favorite dipping sauce, like marinara or ranch.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information calculated by Sarah Bond, degreed nutritionist.
did you make this?Leave a comment below and tag @liveeatlearn on social media! I love seeing what you’ve made!
I am loving this recipe! I am allergic to eggs. what can I use as a substitute?
Happy to hear it, Alexa! Milk or thinned out yogurt would work well here 😀
Np picture because we ate them all! Loved them! Followed recipe and they were just right. I went 6 minutes and 2 had just started to rupture.
These melted all over the air fryer.
Sorry to hear it, Donna! Did you make sure to freeze the sticks before cooking?
you have to cover twice inthe egg and panko… and frezze 30 min before cooking
These were fun to make and turned out great.
I followed the recipe exactly and they turned out perfect. So yummy!! We had them with pizza sauce and ranch. 🤤
So happy to hear it, Ali! Enjoy! 😀
Hi Sarah, I’ve been making your galette for a long time. I just found this recipe and I want to know if I can do both a” dips” and then freeze them and bake on another day in my air fryer. Thanks for a great looking recipe.
Yes that should work! 🙂 Happy cooking!