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Air Fryer Mozzarella Sticks – Lower-Calorie

Easy homemade mozzarella sticks made from scratch made with only 5 ingredients. Cut back on calories by air frying rather than deep frying.

It can be so hard to resist the ooey gooey cheesiness of mozzarella sticks. Especially if you’re a cheese lover like I am. It’s almost safe to bet that any dish containing cheese is a better dish because of said cheese.  These air fryer mozzarella cheese sticks are no exception. Air frying them also drastically cuts back on calories as opposed to deep frying. This recipe alone is a great reason to own an air fryer. It’s been one of my favorite kitchen gadgets. Making these mozzarella sticks is a fairly simple process and it doesn’t require many ingredients. 5 to be exact, with cheese being the star, of course.

Start with a 16 oz. block of mozzarella cheese, then cut it into 3 x 1/2″ squares. This should give you 24 sticks of cheese. Add the bread crumbs in one bowl and flour in a different bowl. Then, in a third bowl, mix the egg and milk together. Dip the cheese sticks in the flour, then egg, and then bread crumbs until all the cheese sticks have been coated in bread crumbs. Lay the breaded cheese sticks flat on a cookie sheet and freeze for about 2 hours until they are solid.

When coating the cheese with the breadcrumbs, I recommend making sure to coat the cheese well not leaving any cheese exposed. If there are areas where the cheese is exposed before going into the air fryer, then the cheese will ooze out of the breading. It leaves a cheese puddle in the air fryer basket, and a hollow cheese stick.

Once the cheese sticks are frozen, set the air fryer to 390 degrees and preheat for about  5 minutes. Spray the air fryer basket with non-stick cooking spray. I recommend taking the basket out to spray and not spray directly into the air fryer. Place small batches of breaded cheese sticks into the air fryer basket being carful not to overcrowd. Cook for 2 minutes, then flip the cheese sticks over and cook for another 2 minutes. 

I also recommend keeping an eye on your cheese sticks while they are in the air fryer. They can go from perfect to burnt fairly quickly. I found that cooking them for two minutes on each side, for a total of 4 minutes, worked perfectly for me. My favorite dip for these is marinara sauce, so I always have that on the side.

What do I serve with Mozzarella Sticks?

Mozzarella sticks can be served with tomato sauce or marinara sauce, as well as plum sauce, jalapeño jelly, barbecue sauce, honey mustard sauce, and ranch dressing. Most dipping sauces will work.

I’d love to hear your thoughts. Comment below or tag me on Instagram. And don’t forget to Pin it for later!

Ingredients for Air Fryer Mozzarella Sticks

• Mozzarella block cheese
• Eggs
• Nonfat milk
• All purpose flour
• Breadcrumbs

Calories per serving (4 sticks): 276

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5 from 9 votes

Air Fryer Mozzarella Sticks - Lower-Calorie

Easy homemade mozzarella sticks made from scratch made with only 5 ingredients. Cut back on calories by air frying rather than deep frying.

Prep Time15 mins

Cook Time9 mins

Freeze Time2 hrs

Total Time2 hrs 24 mins

Course: Appetizer

Keyword: air fryer appetizer, air fryer mozzarella sticks, low calorie food option, mozzarella sticks

Servings: 6

Calories: 276kcal

Author: simplylowcal

Ingredients

• 16 oz mozzarella block cheese
• 2 large eggs
• 3 tbsp nonfat milk
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup plain breadcrumbs

Instructions

• Cut cheese into 3 x 1/2 inch sticks.
• Place bread crumbs in a bowl. Place flour in a bowl. Mix the egg and milk together in a bowl.
• Dip cheese sticks in flour, then egg, and then bread crumbs.
• Lay breaded sticks flat on a cookie sheet.
• Freeze in freezer for 2 hours or until solid.
• Set air fryer to 390° and preheat for about 5 minutes. Spray basket with non-stick cooking spray. Take basket out to spray, don't spray into air fryer.
• Place small batches of breaded sticks into fryer basket. Do not overcrowd.
• Cook at 390° for 2 minutes. Flip mozzarella sticks and cook for another 2 minutes.
• Serve immediately.

Notes

• Be sure to coat mozzarellas sticks well with breadcrumbs so no cheese is showing. This will prevent cheese from oozing out during cooking.

 

• Serve with marinara sauce.

 

• Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.

Nutrition

Serving: 6g | Calories: 276kcal | Carbohydrates: 19g | Protein: 21g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Cholesterol: 115mg | Sodium: 427mg | Potassium: 35mg | Vitamin A: 650IU | Calcium: 630mg | Iron: 0.2mg

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Enjoy!

If you like Air Fryer Mozzarella Sticks, then you might also like:

Air Fryer Tortilla Chips