Air Fryer Cheese Sticks

Name: Air Fryer Cheese Sticks
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 6
Ingredients: 8 ounces Cabot Lite50 Sharp Cheddar; ½ cup all-purpose flour; 2 large eggs; 1½ cup seasoned breadcrumbs; 4 teaspoons canola oil or avocado oil; ¾ teaspoon paprika; 1 cup purchased marinara sauce, warmed

Servings

6

Prep Time

15 minutes

Cook Time

10 minutes

These crispy appetizers are just like the classic breaded and fried mozzarella sticks, except made with Cabot Lite50 Sharp Cheddar and baked in the air fryer instead of deep fried. Serve them with marinara sauce and we bet these cheese sticks will become a permanent replacement for traditional mozzarella sticks! Share this tasty air fryer cheese sticks recipe with friends and family on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter or Instagram – be sure to tag us @cabotcheese when posting on Instagram.

Cut Cabot Lite50 Sharp Cheddar block into 12 sticks. (*See tip at bottom of recipe instructions on cutting block into sticks.) Place flour in a shallow dish. Whisk egg in another shallow dish. Combine breadcrumbs, oil and paprika in a third shallow dish and mix together with a fork until the breadcrumbs are evenly moist.

Dredge the cheddar sticks in the flour, then egg, then breadcrumb mixture and set on a baking sheet or plate. Reserve breading mixture. Transfer coated cheese sticks to the freezer and freeze for 1 hour. Remove the cheese sticks from the freezer and repeat breading steps to create a second layer of flour, eggs and breadcrumb mixture. Set air fryer to 400°F and coat air fryer basket with cooking spray. Transfer half of the cheese sticks to the basket (return the remaining sticks to the freezer) and air fry for 5 minutes.

Remove basket from the bucket and let cheese sticks cool in the basket on the counter for 4 minutes. Remove from the basket. Repeat with the remaining cheese sticks. Serve the cheese sticks with warm marinara sauce.

*Tip: To cut the block of cheddar into sticks, cut the block crosswise into two 2¾-inch chunks. Then cut chunks into slabs, each about ½-inch thick. Finally, cut the slabs into three sticks, yielding 12 sticks in total. They will look small, but once coated with two layers of breadcrumbs, they will resemble traditional mozzarella sticks.

If you loved this recipe, be sure to also check out our Air Fryer Biscuits recipe. For more air fryer cooking inspiration, see our collection of air fryer recipes. As a cooperative of farm families, Cabot takes a lot of pride in making our award-winning dairy products. We’d love to hear your thoughts on this Air Fryer Cheese Sticks recipe, so please rate and review it once you’ve tried it.

Ingredients

8 ounces Cabot Lite50 Sharp Cheddar
½ cup all-purpose flour
2 large eggs
1½ cup seasoned breadcrumbs
4 teaspoons canola oil or avocado oil
¾ teaspoon paprika
1 cup purchased marinara sauce, warmed

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Directions

CUT Cabot cheddar block in half crosswise. Then cut each into 6 sticks* see tip.
PLACE flour in a shallow dish. Whisk egg in another shallow dish. Combine breadcrumbs oil and paprika in a third shallow dish and mix together with a fork until the breadcrumbs are evenly moist.
DREDGE the cheddar sticks in the flour, then egg, then breadcrumb mixture and set on a baking sheet or plate Reserve breading mixture. Transfer to the freezer and freeze 1 hour.
REMOVE the cheese sticks from the freezer and repeat breading steps to create a second layer of flour, eggs and breadcrumb mixture.
SET air fryer to 400°F. Coat air fryer basket with cooking spray. Transfer half cheese sticks to the basket (return the remaining sticks in the freezer) and air fry for 5 minutes. Remove basket from the bucket and let cheese sticks cool in the basket on the counter for 4 minutes. Remove from the basket. Repeat with the remaining cheese sticks.
SERVE the cheese sticks with warm marinara sauce.

Recipe Tips

To cut the block of cheddar into 6 sticks, cut the block in half into two 2¾-inch chunks. Cut them into slabs, each about ½-inch thick. Then cut the slabs into three sticks, yielding 12 sticks total. They will look small, but once coated with two layers of breadcrumbs, they will resemble traditional mozzarella sticks.