Crispy Fried Manchego
These crispy morsels of cheesy goodness are such a treat! Drizzled with hot honey and served with a spicy tomato sauce, what’s not to love?
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Yield: 8 1x
Ingredients
Scale
- 80g plain flour
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 50g panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
- 50g fine breadcrumbs
- 250g manchego, rind removed
- extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced or minced
- ½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 x 400g tins of good-quality crushed tomatoes
- 1–2 sprigs fresh basil
- vegetable oil (or any neutral oil), for frying
- hot honey, for drizzling (optional)
Instructions
- Prepare your dredging station. 1) Place the plain flour in a wide shallow bowl. Season lightly with salt and pepper and mix well to combine. 2) Place the eggs in another wide shallow bowl. 3) Finally, place the panko and fine breadcrumbs in another wide shallow bowl and mix until well-combined.
- Cut the cheese into 2cm cubes or 1 ½ cm-thick slices, depending on whether it comes in a block or wedge respectively.
- Working with one piece of manchego at a time, dredge in flour, ensuring that there aren’t any bare spots. Shake off any excess flour, then dredge in egg, again, ensuring that there aren’t any bare spots. Let the excess egg drip back into the bowl, then coat the manchego in breadcrumbs. Repeat these steps for a second coating: double dipping offers maximum crunch and structure to stand up to the frying process.
- Arrange the manchego bites in a single layer on a baking sheet and freeze for at least 30 minutes – this will help prevent the cheese from melting too fast as it fries.
- In the meantime, you can make the spicy tomato sauce. Heat a splash of extra-virgin olive oil in a medium saucepan set over a medium heat.
- Add the garlic and chilli flakes and cook, stirring almost constantly, for 1 minute, then add the tinned tomatoes and fresh basil.
- Season with salt and pepper and bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to low and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes, or until thickened. Once thickened, taste and adjust the salt level to your liking, then set aside.
- Back to the manchego. Fill a large, deep frying pan or sauté pan halfway with vegetable oil. Set the pan over a medium-high heat and heat the oil to 180℃.
- Fry the manchego in batches, turning occasionally, until crispy and golden brown, 2 to 2 ½ minutes, then transfer to a kitchen towel-lined baking sheet to absorb excess oil.
- Transfer to the cheese bites to a serving platter, drizzle with hot honey (optional) and serve immediately with the spicy tomato sauce.
Find it online: https://zenaskitchen.com/crispy-fried-manchego/