The Fried Snack That Turns Into A Soggy Mess When Delivered

Picture this: You've just added some fried mozzarella sticks to your delivery order, and you're looking forward to sinking your teeth into their crispy coating. But when the doorbell rings and you unwrap your meal, you find they've lost their magic and gone soggy. What went wrong?

Please don't blame the restaurant where you bought them. The real problem is that the coating of fried food is incredibly susceptible to moisture. During the frying process, water inside the food evaporates, forming little steam bubbles around each piece. These bubbles create a barrier that keeps the hot oil from soaking through the coating, so it emerges dry and crispy. If you were eating your cheese sticks at a restaurant, they're served piping hot from the fryer. But with every minute they spend in the delivery vehicle, they cool off a few degrees. Any steam that's trapped between the cheese and the coating condenses back into water, and it's absorbed into the crust.

Some restaurants that specialize in fried food have found a way to help. They use ventilated containers for delivery. While this technique allows the steam to escape outward instead of permeating the coating, it also makes the food cool faster. And room-temperature mozzarella sticks are just not very appetizing. So what can you do?

One solution, of course, is to not have this food delivered at all. Instead, you might want to keep some frozen cheese sticks on hand, or try making your own with our Gooey Stringy Mozzarella Sticks recipe. If you do order them and want to make the best of it, there are a few things you can try. While it might be your first instinct, don't microwave them in a Styrofoam container — doing so can release toxins and is one of the biggest mistakes everyone makes when reheating food. Instead, pop them into an air fryer, which will allow hot air to circulate around them and help dry out the coating again. It's best to eat them all in one sitting, but if you have leftovers, you can also store them with paper towels to avoid soggy leftovers. The goal is to have soft, melty centers and dry, cripsy coatings every time.