What's better than delicious squeaky cheese? Deep fried delicious squeaky cheese! This dish is a typical side dish or appetizer that is often served with some sort of dipping sauce. I personally love serving this with guava marmalade for a sweet and savory snack.
This delicious cheesy snack is popular in Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Nicaragua and several other spanish-speaking countries through out the Caribbean and South America.
Ingredients needed for this queso frito recipe
Queso De Freir
Frying oil of choice (Canola oil, vegetable oil or a light olive oil)
Dipping Sauce of choice ( guava sauce, tomato sauce or cilantro garlic sauce)
Instructions
Remove your cheese from it's packaging and pat dry with a paper towel.
Cut your cheese in whatever way you prefer. I like cutting them in small cubes, this makes it perfect for afternoon snacks. You can also cut long slices of cheese.
Pat again with paper towel to ensure you remove as much excess liquid as possible. This is to avoid oil splatter.
In a large skillet, add your choice of frying oil, you want about an inch of oil in the pan. Set the stove to medium-high heat and allow the oil to reach about 350 degrees.
Test the cheese by placing a small piece in the fryer. It should cook in about 30 seconds, so you can not look away.
Once you see the cheese develop a golden brown crust, then it's time to take it out and place over paper towels to drain the excess oil.
Serve immediately with a dipping sauce of choice.
Is queso frito keto-friendly?
The short answer is, YES. Queso frito by itself has no carbohydrates and is Ketogenic diet friendly. You do however have to be mindful of what dipping sauces you use.
Substitutions
If you can't find queso de freir (frying cheese), you can opt for Halloumi cheese. Some varieties of semi-firm queso blanco (white cheese) or queso fresco (fresh cheese) may also be used. You can find them at your latin section of your local supermarket or in a local latin market.
You're basically using a cheese with a high melting point. A soft cheese like mozzarella will disintegrate in the oil and make an inedible mess.
Top tip
Not all cheeses labeled as "queso de freir" will deep fry well. Different countries in the Caribbean, Central and South America also have their version of fried cheeses. For this fried cheese I've had the most success with the brand Tropical Cheese's Queso De Freir. I recommend testing one small cube of cheese in the fryer before starting to cook everything. This way you can ensure your cheese will keep its shape.
Do not crowd your frying pan. I like to fry 4-5 cheese slices at a time. Crowding the pan will make the cheese pieces stick to each other.
Do not look away! The cheese will cook in only 30 seconds! Anything longer than that the cheese will burn.
Storage
Any leftover quese frito can be stored in an airtight container inside the refrigerator. To warm up place in the microwave for 30 seconds to 1 minutes.
Check out these other appetizer recipes
Queso Frito
Ingredients
- 10 oz Queso De Freir
- 2 cups Frying oil of choice
- Dipping Sauce of choice
Instructions
- Remove your cheese from its packaging and pat dry with a paper towel.
- Cut your cheese in whatever way you prefer. I like cutting them in small cubes, this makes it perfect for afternoon snacks. You can also cut long slices of cheese.
- Pat again with paper towel to ensure you remove as much excess liquid as possible. This is to avoid oil splatter.
- In a large skillet, add your choice of frying oil, you want about an inch of oil in the pan. Set the stove to medium-high heat and allow the oil to reach about 350 degrees.
- Test the cheese by placing a small piece in the fryer. It should cook in about 30 seconds, so you can not look away.
- Once you see the cheese develop a golden brown crust, then it's time to take it out and place over paper towels to drain the excess oil.
- Serve immediately with a dipping sauce of choice.
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