When doing research on food science, it can be hard to peg down fried or cheesy foods because it contains multiple aspects of flavors as well as being a bit heavy on the stomach. Cheese sticks can be notoriously hard to pair due to the abundance of carbs and dairy in the dish. In terms of taste, it’s a very salty and savory treat that can be extremely hard to pair with a main dish.
There are plenty of things that go perfectly with cheese sticks, from your basic carnival foods to wings, pizza, and endless sauce possibilities.
Sauces
One of the easiest ways to serve cheese sticks is as the main dish, although it’s not impossible to pair it with something else. With the litany of sauces available, you can get lots of flavors from a basic cheese stick and make it an enjoyable and fun meal for everyone in involved!
Marinara
One of the most classic sauces to pair cheese sticks with is a fresh marinara sauce. This is because the combination of these flavors has the same umami flavor of classic Italian dishes such as pizza, and the freshness of the tomatoes and herbs perfectly complements the savory and salty flavors of the mozzarella in the cheese sticks.
If you feel the marinara sauce is lacking something, adding extra basil can take it up another notch in relation to the cheese stick, due to the complimentary herbs involved in making the cheese stick. There are also plenty of ways to spice up the marinara sauce, giving it an extra fresh kick and creating a nostalgic flavor.
Garlic Butter
One of the simplest things that you can pair cheese sticks with is a garlic butter. This works especially well if you added a lot of herbs to the breading of the mozzarella sticks or decided to splurge on some higher end cheese sticks.
A good garlic butter will not be too rich, so it will perfectly highlight the better aspects of the mozzarella stick. The easiest way to tweak the butter if you’re not enjoying the taste is a bit of salt and pepper added onto the sauce in order to make the flavor deeper.
A dash of red pepper or reaper sauce will add a serious kick to the garlic butter if the savory flavor of the butter is too much compared to the salty and savory cheese stick.
Smoked Cream Cheese
This oddly controversial dip is one of the prefect additions to a plate of cheese sticks. If you regularly do barbecue nights, you probably are aware of a little hack that you can use in order to make a quick buffalo dip.
Crosshatching and smoking cream cheese sprinkled with barbecue rub, with added sharp cheddar and buffalo sauce, is a deeply flavored and extremely savory dish that you can pair with multiple proteins and snacks.
This is an extremely rich addition that is bound to be addictive during barbecues, but make sure to limits yourself so you don’t get a stomachache!
Other Foods
One of the more surprising aspects of cheese sticks is they tend to pair well with other fried and carb loaded foods. Foods like pizza also oddly pair well with cheese sticks due to the popularity of cheese sticks as a side dish in early Italian restaurants and in fair foods.
Some of the foods you should avoid when pairing things with cheese sticks is rich traditional foods. Pairing mozzarella sticks with traditional Indian or Mexican food will lead to a big bellyache afterward. Mozzarella is a very rich and creamy cheese that shouldn’t be paired with other overly rich cuisine.
One of the best appetizers to have with cheese sticks is a pure chips and dip. Depending on what type of dips you can get, you can use them on the cheese sticks as well. This will widen the variety and the flavors available, and it is a perfect set up if you’re hosting a lot of people at once. Everyone will be able to find something that they like.
Another great addition to a plate of cheese sticks is chicken wings. With the variety of flavors that wing sauces come into, you can have a spicy and fresh protein added to a plate of savory cheese sticks. Both are rich in flavor, but not to the point to where you’ll have a serious stomachache afterward.
One of the best wings to plate with cheese sticks is the popular mango-habanero sauce that many places offer, as the freshness of the fruit and spiciness of the habanero will prevent the plate from being overly savory.
Related Questions
Does Barbeque Sauce go With Cheese Sticks?
Barbecue sauce makes a surprisingly good addition to a plate of cheese sticks! It will be very savory, but the sweetness of the sauce should add a unique and fun flavor.
What Herbs go on Cheese Sticks?
Cheese sticks are usually made of
- dried oregano
- parsley
- thyme
- basil
