Air Fryer Nashville Hot Mozzarella Sticks (Chili's Copycat)
I've spent an awful lot of time and money at Chili's devouring my weight in their mozzarella bricks. The Nashville hot mozzarella sticks were a must-make copycat recipe and here we are! These are so melty and crispy and saucy. Obsessed.
Servings: 8 cheese sticks
Calories: 396kcal
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 large eggs
- 1 1/2 cups panko bread crumbs
- ½ cup Italian style breadcrumbs
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
- 1 pound block part skim mozzarella
- 1 recipe Nashville hot sauce
- Oil spray
Instructions
- Add the flour, garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, and salt to a shallow dish and whisk to combine.
- Add the eggs to a second shallow dish and whisk well until smooth.
- Add the panko, breadcrumbs, and parsley to a third shallow dish and whisk to combine.
- Line a sheet pan with wax or parchment paper.
- Slice the block of mozzarella in half both lengthwise and widthwise. Slice each piece of cheese in half lengthwise again to form 8 bricks of cheese.
- Dip each cheese brick first into the flour, then egg, then back into the flour. Dip back into the egg to coat and then press the cheese brick into the panko mixture, pressing firmly to adhere the breadcrumbs to the cheese.
- Place the breaded cheese bricks onto the prepared baking sheet. Freeze for 30 minutes.
- Preheat air fryer to 360 degrees. Spritz the basket with oil spray.
- Arrange the mozzarella sticks in an even layer in the basket with space between each. You may need to work in batches depending on the size of your air fryer.
- Spritz the mozzarella sticks liberally with oil spray and then cook for 6 minutes.
- Check the mozzarella sticks and continue cooking in 1 minute increments until the cheese just starts to leak out of the breading.
- Remove the cheese from the air fryer and let cool 1-2 minutes.
- Add the Nashville hot sauce to a shallow dish, such as a pie plate. Dunk each mozzarella stick in the hot sauce, turning to coat. Alternately, brush the sauce over the cheese sticks.
- Serve immediately with ranch dressing for dipping.
Notes
Be liberal with the oil spray - it’s what keeps the breading from being dry and pale.
Don’t skip freezing these. The cheese will leak out before the breading is crispy and browned otherwise.
Feel free to brush the hot sauce on to control the amount used. You can also leave it off entirely for those who don't like spice! The mozzarella sticks are delicious without the sauce, too.
Nutrition
Serving: 1mozzarella stick | Calories: 396kcal | Carbohydrates: 47g | Protein: 24g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 90mg | Sodium: 1459mg | Potassium: 116mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 512IU | Vitamin C: 0.3mg | Calcium: 581mg | Iron: 2mg