Fried Cheese | The Modern Proper (2024)

April 24, 2024

Fried cheese is a real triple threat–crunchy, comforting, and super flavorful–and the best way to add a little something extra to a hearty bowl of soup.

Photography by Gayle McLeod

Why Is Fried Cheese So Good?

To be honest, this is one of life’s great mysteries, but we’re guessing that the answer has something to do with cheese. We’re big fans of cheese, and lightly battering, breading it in panko, and a quick fry in oil really knocks it out of the park. For this home run of a dish, we use medium yellow cheddar for its excellent melting point. You’ll be sure to have a crunchy, toasted exterior, and a fun cheesy pull with this fried cheese bites recipe.

Fried Cheddar Cheese Is Our Favorite Food Group

Okay, okay, fried cheese is not a food group, but it’s a great accompaniment to some of our favorite things like soup and dipping sauces. We’d also like to recommend making this fried cheese recipe for a snack sometime–we guarantee you’ll get some smiles out of your audience!!

How To Make Fried Cheese

As with any frying project, we recommend setting up your work area for success. This means a great mise en place, with bowls lined up for the breading, a clear frying area, and a separate cooling area after you finish frying. Here’s how we like to prepare our kitchen to make fried cheese:

1. Set up three bowls, one each for flour and seasonings, egg, and finally panko.

2. Dredge each piece of cheddar carefully, making sure that everything is evenly coated at each step (flour, egg, and panko).

3. Transfer the prepared cheese to a plate or small baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Making fried cheese requires an additional step of freezing the cheese for thirty minutes before frying, so the outer shell gets perfectly browned and crispy without overcooking the cheese.

4. Once the cheese is extra cold, heat oil to temperature, and fry cheese in batches. Cook until golden brown, about three minutes.

5. Using a spider strainer, or similar tool, remove cheese from the hot oil, and carefully transfer to a paper towel lined plate to drain excess oil.

6. You’ll be tempted to eat these right away, but please don’t make the hot pizza mistake! Allow to cool slightly, and serve warm.

Tools You’ll Need

• Three mixing bowls

• A large pot, we love a heavy cast iron pot for this endeavor

• A thermometer

• We recommend a “spider” strainer, or other stainless steel tool, to remove the fried cheese from the hot cooking oil

Fried Cheese And Friends

If you don’t eat all of the fried cheese as soon as it reaches the perfect temperature, we recommend a few of the following recipes for excellent dipping pairings. Our favorite of all being this creamy Tomato Bisque!

• Garlic Soup

• Butternut Squash Soup

• Three Ingredient Tomato Sauce

• Romesco Sauce

Calling All Cheese Lovers

If you manage to snap a photo of your fried cheese before it’s all gone, we’d love to see it! Tag us on Instagram using @themodernproper and #themodernproper. Happy eating!