Do you love a good cheesy mozzarella stick – but have been skipping out on them because of the carb-filled bread crumbs? These keto mozzarella sticks have a crispy outside with that classic melty cheese interior – and will fit into your low carb lifestyle!
I don’t know about you all, but back in the day I used to hit up TGI Fridays like it was no one’s business. My favorite thing to get was their classic appetizer combo, which was a mixture of chicken wings, potato skins, and of course, mozzarella cheese sticks. Now that I’ve mastered a keto version of chicken wings, I thought it was time to move onto the mozzarella sticks!
HOW TO MAKE KETO MOZZARELLA CHEESE STICKS
These seriously could not be any easier to make! You only need a few simple ingredients:
- String cheese (yes, those same string cheese sticks you had back in elementary school!)
- Pork rinds
- Parmesan cheese
- Italian seasoning
- Egg
- Oil for frying
That’s it – 6 ingredients.
Once you’ve got everything set aside, you’ll slice your mozzarella sticks in half and pop them in the freezer for about 20-30 minutes. This is kind of a secret trick of the trade! It will prevent the cheese from melting too much during the frying process.
While those are chilling, you’ll make your breading. While normal mozzarella sticks are made with refined grains (hello, carbs) – these keto mozzarella sticks are made with a totally different breading. There’s no flour used; instead you’ll grind up some pork rinds, parmesan, and Italian seasoning in the food processor!
The result is a crispy and flavorful breading, sans carbs.
Then you just dip the cheese sticks in the egg, roll in the breading, and fry them up in some oil.
FAQs
Traditional cheese sticks are very low in carb with less than 1g of net carbs per stick. If you use a carb free breadcrumbs like pork grinds, your mozzarella cheese sticks will be a perfect keto friendly snack!
This recipe using pork grinds to make low carb breadcrumbs. These are obviously not ok to have on a vegetarian diet but the good news is that you can find keto friendly vegetarian breadcrumbs in stores!
ALTERNATIVES TO FRYING
Not going to lie, these taste the best fried. I mean, if you want mozzarella sticks, let’s just go all-in, right?
If for some reason you don’t want to fry them, you can try these other cooking methods though:
- Place in the air fryer at 375 degrees for about 6-7 minutes.
- Bake in the oven at 400 degrees for 8-10 minutes. (As a warning, it’s more likely that these can melt too much this way).
DUDE – WHAT’S UP WITH THE SMELL OF PORK RINDS?
If you are new to using pork rinds for cooking, I’m just going to say it – they don’t smell good. In fact, I very much dislike the smell.
BUT (here’s the key) the taste is nothing like the smell. They don’t taste bad on their own at all, and when you combine them here with parmesan and seasonings for breading – you’ll be shocked at how reminiscent this recipe is to your favorite pub-style mozzarella sticks.
WHAT TO SERVE WITH KETO MOZZARELLA STICKS?
The most common go-to is obviously marinara sauce. Some of the store-bought marinara sauces have extra added sugar, so I generally just stick with plain canned tomato sauce. An 1/8 cup serving (2 tablespoons) would be plenty for you to enjoy quite a few of these keto mozzarella sticks, and would only run you 2 grams of carbohydrates. Just do a small dip to get the flavor and that’s all you need!
Of course, if you want to get more of the traditional marinara flavor, you could go ahead and make try your hand at a keto marinara sauce recipe like this one. But for just dipping here, I think plain tomato sauce works just fine!
Other keto-friendly options for dipping include:
- Homemade pesto
- Guy Gone Keto Thai Chili Sauce
- Homemade keto BBQ sauce
- Homemade keto chicken dip sauce
- Keto-friendly roasted red pepper sauce
HOW TO STORE KETO MOZZARELLA STICKS?
You can store cooked mozzarella sticks in the fridge for up to 3 days in an airtight container. You can also freeze your leftover cooked mozzarella sticks for up to 3 months. To reheat your mozzarella sticks, you can put them in a preheated oven at 350F for 8 to 12 minutes.
I hope you enjoy this delicious snack! It’s a great option whether you need something to munch on for a game day, a party appetizer, or just want some tasty grub on the weekend.
SHARE: WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE KETO CHEESE IDEA? IF YOU TRIED THIS KETO MOZZARELLA STICKS RECIPE, WHAT DID YOU THINK?
Keto Mozzarella Cheese Sticks Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 mozzarella string cheese sticks
- 2 cups pork rinds
- 1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1 egg
- Oil for frying
Instructions
- Slice 8 mozzarella string cheese sticks in half and place in the freezer for about 20-30 minutes.
- While the cheese sticks are in the freezer, place your pork rinds into a food processor along with your parmesan cheese and Italian seasoning. Pulse it a few times until it looks like coarse panko breading. Place it in a shallow bowl or on a plate.
- Whisk the egg in a separate bowl. Place that bowl next to the breading mixture.
- When the cheese sticks are ready to be cooked, pour oil in a frying pan (enough oil so that it’s about half an inch deep) and place over medium heat.
- When the oil is hot, dip each cheese stick in the egg mixture then roll in the pork rind breading. Place in the oil. Repeat with the remaining cheese sticks, working in two batches so you don’t overcrowd the pan.
- Cook each mozzarella stick for about 1-2 minutes per side, or until outside is golden brown and the inside is a bit melty. Enjoy right away with your favorite low-carb marinara or tomato sauce.