The Best Temperature For Frying Homemade Mozzarella Sticks

Homemade gooey, stringy mozzarella sticks are easy to prepare — simply dredge your mozzarella in flour and beaten egg before coating in seasoned bread crumbs and frying. These heavy-hitting handheld snacks are always hard to put down, but the real secret to making the ultimate batch is to fry them at the right temperature: 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

The best mozzarella sticks have a gooey cheese pull center and a golden crispy exterior. The filling should be stretchy and yielding and the breading structured with crunch. It's this textural combination that makes them so inviting. Classic mozzarella sticks are made with cheese that isn't packed in water and has a low moisture content so that it doesn't melt too much and ooze out of any cracks in the coating (if this occurs, the escaped cheese can burn, leaving the center of the sticks hollow). Frying your sticks at 350 degrees hits the ultimate sweet spot, as the temperature is hot enough for the cheese to melt and the coating to crisp up simultaneously. Oil set to a higher temperature will cause the sticks to burn on the outside before the cheese has melted to the perfect consistency. Conversely, oil that's cooler will result in soggy sticks that have no structural integrity. FYI, freezing your mozzarella sticks before deep-frying them can help to prevent the cheese from melting too quickly. As the cheese will be cold and solid inside, it gives the coating enough time to crisp up before the middle melts.

When selecting an oil for deep-frying, choose one that has a high smoke point. This will ensure that your oil doesn't become acrid or fill your kitchen with smelly smoke. Using a neutral oil, like a vegetable or sunflower oil, that isn't overpowering will also allow the mellow taste of your mozzarella to come to the fore. However, if you want them to have a richer flavor, you could use ghee, which has both a high smoke point and a savory buttery character. Once your sticks are golden on the outside, drain them on a paper towel to remove excess oil before spreading them out on a cooling rack. This move will allow air to circulate around the sticks and encourage the steam inside to escape, which will help them to remain crispy.

Other pro tips for making restaurant-worthy mozzarella sticks at home include switching your regular breadcrumb for panko for a crunchier finish or baking them in the oven for a lighter flavor. While baking mozzarella sticks takes longer than deep-frying them, you can achieve a similar crispy finish and gooey center as long as you spritz them with a healthy dose of cooking spray.