3-Ingredient Pizza Sticks

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It only takes 3 ingredients to make these easy, cheesy Pizza Sticks! Wrap cheese and mini pepperonis in wonton wrappers, then fry to crispy golden perfect. So great with marinara sauce, ranch, or nacho cheese dipping sauces!

Someone pulling apart a 3-ingredient pizza stick to expose the cheese.


 

This trifecta of tastiness is as easy as wrapping up a cheese stick with some pepperoni in an egg roll and deep-frying it. You could bake these stuffed Pizza Sticks too, but why would you want to do that? Better to heat up a vat of oil. If that seems like a lot of work, trust me: It’s worth it.

I use smoked mozzarella string cheese (personal preference) and mini Hormel pepperoni.

I slice each cheese stick about 75% of the way through lengthwise, creating a slice where I can stuff pepperoni.

Ingredients for pizza sticks on a wooden cutting board.

I also create a second line of pepperoni next to the cheese stick on the egg roll wrapper. I’ve found that this double-whammy of pepperoni ensures you’ll get delicious pepperoni flavor in each bite.

Pizza sticks being made on a wooden cutting board.

Roll the wonton wrappers around the cheese and pepperoni as if you were wrapping a burrito or a special birthday gift.

As for the dipping sauce, I have an easy recipe for my favorite Homemade Marinara Sauce. It’s just 5 pantry ingredients and comes together in minutes.

I like it on everything from pasta to homemade pizza and of course, as an appetizer dipping sauce.

I also have recipes for delicious Buttermilk Ranch or my favorite Homemade Cheese Sauce. No bad options here!

Someone dipping a pizza stick in marinara sauce.
Pizza sticks pair perfectly with a homemade marinara dipping sauce.

More pizza favorites

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Someone pulling apart a 3-ingredient pizza stick to expose the cheese.

3-Ingredient Pizza Sticks

It only takes 3 ingredients to make these easy, cheesy Pizza Sticks! Wrap cheese and mini pepperonis in wonton wrappers, then fry to crispy golden perfect. So great with marinara sauce, ranch, or nacho cheese dipping sauces! 
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes
Servings 12 servings, 1 pizza stick each
Course Appetizer
Cuisine American
Calories 176
5 from 10 votes

Ingredients 

  • 12 egg roll wrappers
  • 12 mozzarella string cheese sticks sliced mostly through lengthwise
  • 1 package mini pepperoni
  • 2 quarts vegetable oil or canola oil, for frying
  • marinara sauce for dipping

Instructions 

  • Set up an area for assembling the pizza sticks. Working with one egg roll wrapper at a time, lay an egg roll wrapper on a plate. Arrange a cheese stick at one end.
  • Fill the cheese stick with pepperoni where it has been sliced lengthwise and arrange additional pepperoni in a line next to the cheese slice. Brush all the edges of the egg roll wrapper with water.
  • Starting at the end of the wrapper with the cheese stick, roll the wrapper tightly around the cheese stick and the pepperoni. When the cheese stick is about 75% rolled, fold in the sides like a burrito and continue rolling.
  • Seal the edges of the egg roll wrapper on itself. Set aside on a plate covered with a damp paper towel and repeat with remaining wrappers, cheese, and pepperoni.
  • Heat oil in a sauce pan, stock pot, or electric deep fryer to 350°F. Working in batches, deep-fry 3 to 4 pizza sticks at a time until the egg roll wrapper is golden brown on all sides, about 3 minutes. Remove to a plate lined with paper towels and repeat with remaining pizza sticks.
  • Serve pizza sticks warm with the marinara dipping sauce on the side if desired.

Nutrition

Serving: 1 pizza stickCalories: 176kcalCarbohydrates: 9gProtein: 10gFat: 11gSaturated Fat: 5gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 29mgSodium: 501mgPotassium: 43mgFiber: 1gVitamin A: 6IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 29mgIron: 1mg
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Meggan Hill is a classically-trained chef and professional writer. Her meticulously-tested recipes and detailed tutorials bring confidence and success to home cooks everywhere. Meggan has been featured on NPR, HuffPost, FoxNews, LA Times, and more.

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Comments

    1. Hi Hannah! I haven’t tried that, but I think so. Freezing them would work fine, I just cannot predict for sure what the cook temperature and time would be coming from frozen. If you thawed them, then the recipe should work without issue. If you cook them straight from frozen, you might need to play around with that to figure out the time and temperature. To freeze, set them on a plate or something like that, not touching, and freeze individually, then transfer to a bag so they don’t get stuck together. Thank you! -Meggan

  1. Can these be wrapped ahead of time, frozen and then fried up the day of? These look like the perfect little appetizer and my lil’ ones would absolutely love them! Thanks for sharing :)

    1. I bought an air fryer on Black Friday. I’ll definitely try these out in that! Thank you so much for the great idea. -Meggan

  2. Thanx for another wonderful recipe…can’t wait to try it! HOWEVER, I can’t join you in your “frying dance” as my family will not eat fried food….boo hoo! Would you share the best way to bake these “little wonders” so they come out kidda like yours? I will try them this weekend!

  3. I can’t say no to anything that includes warm, gooey cheese, especially when they are this simple to make! My husband would absolutely love these so I know I’ll be making them soon! Off to pin…

  4. These look insanely good. I love those little pepperoni pieces wedged in the cheese. My guys will love these while watching football.5 stars

    1. Thank you Cindy, they were definitely a hit in my household! It seems that on the weekends these days, it’s nothing but one football game after another, so no matter when I made these sticks, there would be football on. :) But at least I could eat pizza sticks!!!

  5. Meggan!!! You have totally and completely outdone yourself. I cannot take these more than adorable and most definitely drool-inducing pictures of pizza sticks!!! You are a genius, friend! Let the frying begin ;)5 stars

    1. Kathi you are the sweetest! High praise coming from you. :) Thank you so much, I definitely enjoyed making, and more importantly, DEVOURING all the pizza sticks! They were pretty delicious, if I say so myself. :)

  6. Get out of here with that baking talk–we need to deep fry these babies all the way! Those are some sexy, sexy pictures of stringy, melting cheese and pepperoni–hot dang! I cannot WAIT to give these a try at my next party.5 stars

    1. Yes, I try to leave the baking to YOU, my SugarHero, whenever possible. :) I’ll do the deep-fry dance! I did work really hard on the stretchy-cheese shot. It finally worked out, so thank you for noticing!

    2. Yes I shall leave the baking to you, I’ll stick to my deep-fryer. :) Thanks for appreciating my stretchy-cheese shot too. :)

  7. those mini pepperoni are adorable!! My husband is ALWAYS asking for mozzarella sticks, like to the point where it is annoying, but maybe I can shut him up if I make him these, haha!

    1. Isadora, I find these soooo much easier to make than regular mozzarella sticks! No messing around with bread crumbs and egg or milk or whatever to batter the cheese, just wrap them in an egg roll! And hey, leave out the pepperoni and tell him it’s a mozzarella stick! :) Thank you for stopping by!

  8. These are amazing! I love this idea Meggan! And could those little pepperonis be any cuter? What a perfect football game day appetizer.

    1. Thank you so much, Natalie! The pepperonis are super adorbs. I will probably always buy that size from now on, they are just too cute to pass up!

    1. Thank you for sharing to Facebook, Trish! I appreciate it! I also appreciate the pin. These were definitely a hit in my household!

  9. Those pizza sticks are so yummy! And I didn’t expect there’s mini pepperoni inside! Cute and delicious! It’s interesting idea to cook with whole garlic cloves and then discard them. This version of marinara sauce looks so simple, definitely keeping this one!

    1. Thank you so much, Maggie. :) The mini pepperonis are so adorable and great for photography. I am very happy with and proud of the marinara sauce too, so thank you. :)

  10. Oh now I know what I’m going to make for our next game day gathering! These are totally going on the list of foods to make for that gathering!

  11. These are totally adorable! I love the little pepperoni slices in there, and that dipping sauce really does sound perfect! My kids would go nuts for this snack ;)

    1. Thank you Allie, these are such a hit in my house. :) I do love the tiny pepperonis, they make it all very fun!

  12. I’ve never seen mini pepperoni! They’re so cute – and the perfect size for these delicious little bundles! So glad you worked on that marinara sauce until it was just right – those are always such wonderful kitchen moments! :)

    1. Thank you, Kathleen! The mini pepperonis are truly adorable. I had seen them at the store but never bought them, but now I see that they are great for photos too!

  13. HOLD MOLY. I have just died and gone to snack food heaven! I know I should be excited about the sauce too (because that is really clever the way you flavour it!) but those cheese sticks….those cheese sticks…..oh help me, it’s 8am here and I want to make them for breakfast!!!5 stars

    1. As you know, YOU inspired this recipe, so thank you. :) And yes, I have eaten them for breakfast. It is a perfectly normal thing to do, right?!

    2. But of course. I eat cookies, lasagna and all sorts of other inappropriate things for brekki so why not these??!5 stars

  14. I definitely have a feeling you’ve studied this recipe scientifically, Meggan … lol! But of course this means you’ve made it extra delicious for us! I especially love the marinara sauce tips. :-)5 stars

    1. You are so funny, Helen! :) They are pretty good, and personally I am thrilled with the results.

  15. What perfect little cheesy packages. I Love these. I’m a big fan of the flavoring of the olive oil too because I don’t like eating chunks of garlic.5 stars