Smažený sýr, also called "smažák," is very popular in the Czech Republic. It's a classic found on the menu in nearly every restaurant. Czech fried cheese is easily made at home.
➜ What Is Czech Fried Cheese?
Czech fried cheese, known as Smazeny syr, is a slice of semi-hard cheese, about ½ inch (1 cm) thick. The slice is coated with flour, beaten eggs, and breadcrumbs, then pan-fried in a thick layer of fat.
Think of fried cheese as a main course, and either French fries or various types of potatoes (boiled, mashed, crushed, parsley potatoes) are served as a side dish.
The traditional condiment served with fried cheese is „tatarská omáčka", a Czech tartar sauce.
➜ Pronunciation
According to IPA, smažený sýr is pronounced as [ˈsmaʒɛniː ˈsiːr].
Here is a short audio clip on how to pronounce "smažák" and "smažený sýr":
➜ Which Cheese Is Best for Frying?
In terms of taste and melting point, the most common choice of Czechs is Eidam (Edam) or Gouda with a fat content of up to 30 %. These are semi-hard types of Dutch cheese.
The following types of cheese are also very well suited for coating and frying: Monterey Jack, Mozzarella, Swiss Gruyère.
How To Make Czech Fried Cheese
- Prepare three bowls, put the flour, beaten eggs and breadcrumbs in each bowl.
- Coat a slice of cheese first in a bowl with flour, then with eggs and finally with breadcrumbs.
- For a perfect result, repeat steps 3 and 4.
- Fry the coated cheese slices on both sides in the fat until golden brown.
✅ You'll find the exact amount of ingredients below in the recipe card, which you can also print out.
TIP: Dip the cheese in cold water before coating if you want the flour to stick to the cheese better.
➜ The Cheese leak out. What now?
If you don't want the cheese to ooze out during frying, coat it twice in the beaten eggs and breadcrumbs - the crust will be thicker then.
I didn´t double the coating, you can see the sides of the 'smažák' have leaked out a bit - but it doesn´t affect the taste of smažený sýr at all!
➜ Useful Tips
- You don't need to go to a restaurant to enjoy fried cheese, it's often served as a street food - "smažený sýr v housce" (fried cheese in a bun).
- Tartar sauce is the typical dipping sauce served with smažený sýr. Make it beforehand so that it's all ready when the cheese is finished.
- Slovaks, our south-eastern neighbors, know smažený sýr as „vyprážaný syr".
Best Sides for Fried Cheese
- Crushed potatoes - šťouchané brambory as a side dish
- Tartar sauce - tatarská omáčka or tatarka as a condiment
- Parsley potatoes - easy done in no time!
- Fried Hermelín - smažený Hermelín
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📖 Recipe
Smažený sýr - Czech Breaded Fried Cheese
Tap or hover to scale
Ingredients
- 4 slices semi-hard cheese ⅓-1/2-inch thick Gouda, Edam, Monterey Jack, Mozzarella, Swiss Gruyère
- ⅓ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup breadcrumbs
- 2 eggs
- ⅛ salt
- fraying fat lard, Canola od sunflower oil
Instructions
- Heat a thick layer of fraying fat in a pan.
- Beat 2 eggs lightly with a fork, and add ⅛ salt.
- Prepare 4 slices semi-hard cheese ⅓-1/2-inch thick. Firstly, coat the slice in the flour, then in the beaten eggs, and lastly in the breadcrumbs. After dredging the cheese in flour and breadcrumbs, always shake off the excess coating. Repeat with all cheese.
- Turn the pan temperature to medium and fry the coated cheese on both sides, each for about 3-4 minutes, until it turns golden brown.
- Serve the cheese immediately with a potato side dish and the tartar sauce as the condiment.
Notes
- The basic recipe makes 4 servings.
- SERVING: Serve with boiled potatoes or mashed potatoes. Sometimes the fried cheese is served with French fries, but I think it is "too much" fried food on one plate. Add a small cup of tartar sauce (Czech Tatarská omáčka) to the plate.
- If you are based in the US, the best cheese for frying is Monterey Jack, Mozzarella, Swiss Gruyère
- The combination of hot cheese in a crispy crust and tartar sauce stands out the best when served as soon as possible after frying. The longer you let the cheese cool down, the chewier it becomes (no worries, it will still taste great).
Blazena says
My grandson John loves smazeny syr, it is typical Czech meal. It is served best with tartar sauce, I always make my own!
Karel says
Smazeny syr is full of carcinogens!!! That's why Czech people die prematurely.
Petra Kupská says
Whoops, I've lived in the Czech Republic for over 40 years and I can say with peace that fried cheese is not a reason for Czechs to die prematurely, really.
Muah says
I think it’s the alcohol, Karle.
Jana L. Bara says
Hello Petra,
I love your recipes and your food presentation.
I grew up with that food during the 1950s and 60s.
I just wanted to tell you why Czech cooks breaded and fried everything available, including mushrooms.
We did not have much meat available and what was there was for a goulash or some dish that would stretch. I remember standing in the line in front of "Masna" as a child and when my mother took my place after an hour or so, she ended up with half a kilo of
Chinese pork belly that stank of fish... Anything fried (in pork fat) was a festive (wedding) dish and it is still that for me.
Thank you,
Jana
Anicka Cooklikeczechs.com says
Thank you for your comment and sharing memories, Jana!
Greetings from the Czech Republic.
Marian Minar says
N. American cheese has tendency to ooze out quite a bit. To alleviate that, I put the double breaded cheese slices in the freezer for 30-40 minutes.
Marian
Ruthie Rainbow says
How were the side potatoes cooked? I'm a curious individual.
Petra Kupská | Cook Like Czechs says
The side potatoes were cooked, then drained, reserving about two tablespoons of the cooking water (or you can leave a bit of the potato broth in the pot). Then they were mashed with that liquid. For extra flavor, you can also stir in some chopped spring onion or bacon. Hope that helps!
Patrick says
My dad recommends Hermelin cheese, like Camembert.
Petra Kupská | Cook Like Czechs says
Yes! Hermelín is so good just watch out for that super runny center!