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Looking for a dairy-free alternative to the most popular appetizer around? Well, you've landed in the right place, because these Vegan Mozzarella Sticks are crispy, tangy and delightful.
Mozzarella sticks were my favorite junk food growing up. I'm sure I am not alone with this one. They were crunchy, stringy and yummy!
Every restaurant that I visited had them and I ordered them religiously. They were quite addictive and filling and I'd usually get full before my meal arrived.
Now, I can still enjoy these fun snacks without dairy with these Vegan Mozzarella Sticks.
For this recipe, I used hearts of palm as the cheese substitute. I know it sounds crazy, but it works well, I promise. When breaded & fried, they get a little stringy inside.
No, it's not exactly like cheese, but it's just as delicious. Also, they have a hint of tang, just like cheese.
When I purchase hearts of palm, I look for labels that say "sustainably harvested". This way, I won't be contributing to knocking down whole trees.
Hearts of palm can be cultivated from a base plant... it has many branches & can be cut without killing the tree. This allows other branches to continue growing. I buy Native Forest, but there are other companies using the same practices.
How to make Vegan Mozzarella Sticks
Prepare your breading station by placing ¼ cup flour in a bowl or a plate & set aside. In another bowl, place ¼ cup flour and ½ cup water together, mix well & set aside. In a third bowl or plate, mix bread crumbs and salt together, set aside.
Dry the hearts of palm with a hand towel to remove excess moisture. Next, place a heart of palm in the flour bowl and dredge.
Then place it in the batter mixture and cover all sides with batter. (allow runoff batter to drip back into the bowl when removing).
Next place the battered heart of palm into the breadcrumb bowl. Roll around and press, until completely covered in breadcrumbs.
Place oil in a large pan over medium heat, until hot. You can test it by placing the edge of a breaded heart of palm in the oil, to hear if it’s ready. If it sizzles, you are ready to start frying.
Put each breaded heart of palm in the pan, and fry evenly on all sides, until golden brown. (to fry the ends, you can tilt the pan to one side & get all the hearts of palm to the edge & submerged in oil. When they're golden brown, repeat for the other side)
When done, place on a large plate with a paper towel to absorb excess oil. Enjoy!
If you make these vegan mozzarella sticks or one of my other recipes, I’d love to hear from you. Leave a comment below and let me know what you think. It would really make my day. You can also follow me on Instagram and share your creation with me, Just tag me @veganhuggs and hashtag #veganhuggs.
Vegan Mozzarella Sticks
Ingredients
- ¼ cup coconut oil , more if needed (or any frying oil)
- 2 14 oz can/jar hearts of palm , drained (about 10-12 hearts of palm)
- ½ cup all-purpose flour , divided (GF if preferred)
- ½ cup water
- 1 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ¾ teaspoon Himalayan salt (or preferred salt)
Instructions
- Prepare your breading station by placing ¼ cup flour in a bowl or a plate & set aside. In another bowl, place ¼ cup flour and ½ cup water together, mix well & set aside. In a third bowl or plate, mix breadcrumbs, garlic powder and salt together, set aside
- Dry the hearts of palm with a hand towel to remove excess moisture
- Next, place a heart of palm in the flour bowl and dredge. Then place it in the batter mixture and cover all sides with batter. (allow run off batter to drip back into the bowl when removing)
- Next place the battered heart of palm into the breadcrumb bowl. Roll around and press, until completely covered in breadcrumbs. Repeat until all hearts of palm are breaded.
- Place oil in a large pan over medium heat, until hot. You can test it by placing the edge of a breaded heart of palm in the oil, to hear if it’s ready. If it sizzles, you are ready to start frying
- Put each breaded heart of palm in the pan, and fry evenly on all sides, until golden brown. (to fry the ends, you can tilt the pan to one side & get all the hearts of palm to the edge & submerged in oil. When they're golden brown, repeat for the other side)
- When done, place on a large plate with a paper towel to absorb excess oil. Serve with your favorite marinara sauce. Enjoy!
Amee
Can't wait to try these! I think they would work in an air fryer? Has anyone tried?
Melissa Huggins
I'm so glad you liked them! Thank you for giving them a try 🙂
Scarlett
Really tasty! The smaller ones definitely work best!
Melissa Huggins
Hi Ann, thank you for stopping by. Hearts of palm are my fave too. Such a great replacement for string cheese. 🙂
Ann
I have actually made these before!! They are so yummy!
I commented on hearts of Palm years ago to my friend saying they taste just like string cheese and texture. I'm not veagan or anything but she is and she took the thought and breaded and fried the suckered and they were great!
Ingredients different but amazing! She has a blog with it her recipe too. Thanks for sharing. I'll have to taste test and compare.
Melissa Huggins
Thank you, Beverly! I'm so happy you enjoyed them! Cheese was so hard for me to give up too. I love all the healthier and kinder alternatives now. So much to choose from! Have a great weekend! 🙂
Beverly Ellis
I have to say these were amazing! I think cheese was the hardest thing to give up when I started my plant based lifestyle and now with these Mozzarella Sticks I feel like I can make it. Thank you for this recipe. I have already shared with other family members who have also changed to plant based.
Melissa Huggins
Hi Jasnin, Ahh, thank you for the kind compliment. I used to big a fan of mozzarella sticks too. These are a fun replacement. I hope you can find them in Germany. Can you order from Amazon?
Jasnin-Veeatcookbake
I am speechless. Thanks for sharing this recipe. Who wasn't addicted to mozzarella sticks?! I need to find out where I can buy or order the hearts of palm in Germany.
Melissa Huggins
Hi Melissa, yes, this is true...a newbie might expect something different. I'm actually working on a melty-cheese version right now. Fingers crossed. Thank you for making them, and for your feedback. Have a great week! 🙂
Melissa
If you are newly vegan and remember the taste of mozzarella sticks you might be disappointed with these. But if you aren't trying to directly compare, these are a tasty treat! Such a good flavor and even though fried, much healthier than mozzarella! They look so pretty, too! I fried these in my deep fryer and they were quick to make!
Melissa Huggins
Hi Tiffany, I've never tried baking these, but I think they would bake just fine. Just use parchment paper to prevent sticking. 🙂