We’re thrilled to have 254 Brewing Co as our foodie boozy friends. One afternoon, hanging out at the brewery with the very cool, very chilled 254 team, it occurred to us take our food – and the wonderful variety of beers at the brewery – to the next level with a FatChap and 254 #beerforward web-series – and the rest is gooey, cheesy, beautifully crisp mozzarella stick history, battered and paired with the light, tropical hoppy Golden Rump session IPA and a deeply rich, tangy marinara, straight from theFatChap kitchen. For this recipe, I’d suggest using Sirimon Cheese mozzarella, it melts beautifully, as it is Naturally Extraordinary!
Here’s how it went down. The full recipe below!
STICKS – Serves 4 as bitings
- Sirimon Cheese Mozzarella 500g block
- plain flour 1/2 to 1 cup
- panko/white breadcrumbs 150g
- garlic salt 1 tsp
- paprika 1 tsp
- oil for deep-frying
- Golden Rump session IPA
SAUCE
- olive oil 1 + 1/2 tbsp
- butter 1 tbsp
- onion 1/2, chopped
- garlic 1 clove, crushed
- dried chilli flakes a good pinch
- smoked paprika + cayenne pepper 1/4 tsp
- tinned chopped tomatoes 100g
- sugar (any kind) 1/2 tsp
- vinegar 2 tbsp
STEP 1
Cut the mozzarella into thick slices then into 2cm-wide fingers / bite size bits.
STEP 2
Put the flour and breadcrumbs into separate bowls. Season the flour with spices that you like, and a little salt and pepper – I like paprika, a little cayenne for a kick and some garlic powder for some added roundness and depth of flavour. You can also add a little garlic powder and spices to the breadcrumb mix. This recipe works a treat with panko breadcrumbs but they’re not always readily available.
*FAT Tip, keep any stale or old bread, and when you’re ready, whizz them up in the blender for DIY breadcrumbs!
STEP 3
Fully cover the cheese sticks in the flour mixture. This will help the wet batter stick to the cheese. Once dredged in the flour, remove and keep to the side.
STEP 4
Take your remaining flour mixture and add about 1/2 a bottle of 254 Brewing Co’s Golden Rump. You’ll see it fizz up beautifully and it should be the texture/thickness of a standard pancake batter – it should coat the back of a metal spoon.
*FAT Fact, the CO2 in the batter will expand in the heat of the oil, puffing up to create a really aerated lovely bubbly finish.
STEP 5
Dunk each cheese stick into the wet mixture then roll in the breadcrumbs until fully covered. You’re sticks are ready at this point! You can freeze them for later or keep them chilled while you crack on with the sauce.
STEP 6
To make the sauce, heat the olive oil and butter in a pan, then add the chilli powder, paprika, tomatoes, vinegar and sugar, and simmer for 15 minutes until thickened. Use a blender to whizz until smooth
*FAT, tip – this sauce also freezes real well and can be used on a variety of things! When needed, defrost in a pan and simmer for 5 minutes before serving.
STEP 7
Fill a pan no more than 1/3 full of oil and heat to 170C or until your batter floats in the mixture. Fry the mozzarella sticks in batches, straight from frozen, for 3-4 minutes until golden brown, and drain on kitchen paper. Serve with the warm dipping sauce
Let us know how you get on in the comments below!
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