Grilled Cheese Sandwich
It is hard not to love a grilled cheese sandwich, there is just something about the combination of crunchy, toasted bread and gooey, melted cheese that brings up a sense of comfort, satisfaction, and saliva. Especially if you have a hot bowl of tomato soup to dip it in!
Being a simple combination, it’s a wonder how you can possibly improve on such perfection, well as a matter of fact there are many ways to turn an ordinary grilled cheese into an extraordinary bite, and that is what I will be looking at today.
I will be taking a close look at a video from Epicurious called 4 Levels of Grilled Cheese, where Bianca, an amateur cook, Daniel, a home cook, and Remy, a professional chef, where each of these three chefs made their version of the warm, cheesy American classic. I will be making all 3 of the grilled cheeses featured on the show, taste them all, and let you know which one I like best!
But before I go into each recipe, let’s break down exactly what makes each sandwich our chefs made unique.
The Bread
Bread is, without question, the foundation for any good sandwich. I don’t think there is a wrong type of bread to use for grilled cheese, but ideally you want something that has enough stability to hold onto the cheese and also a nice flavor. Also, for grilled cheese you want to stick with the center cuts of the bread, less so of the butt ends.
Bianca used a pre-sliced grocery store whole wheat bread. White bread or wheat bread, it’s more of a preference of flavor, but pre sliced bread often has some preservatives and other things added to maintain shelf life.
Daniel used a country loaf that he sliced himself, and by buying the loaf whole it will have less of the preservatives that pre-sliced bread tends to have. Also, by slicing the bread himself, Daniel is able to control how thick he wants his bread to be.
Remy used a homemade sourdough loaf, and since he made his loaf then he knows exactly what went into the bread. In addition, the sourness of the sourdough will pair nicely with the cheese.
The Cheese (Cue angels singing)
Of course cheese is a crucial component of a grilled cheese, it’s literally in the name! When choosing cheese for a grilled cheese, you want something that will melt quickly so the cheese will melt without risk of burning the bread, and of course you want the cheese to be flavorful.
Using one kind of cheese for a grilled cheese is fine, but using two or more kinds of cheese will give you a flavor boost like no other!
Bianca used pre-sliced American cheese and yellow cheddar. The two cheeses work in tandem in a way, the American cheese provides meltability while the cheddar gives a nice sharp flavor.
Daniel used a yellow sharp cheddar cheese, a white cheddar, and a Gruyere. All 3 of these cheeses have good flavor and work really well together.
Remy used mostly Emmental and a bit of parmesan cheeses. Emmental melts really nicely and has a good flavor to it while the parmesan adds a nice level of saltiness to the sandwich.
Mix-ins and Toppings
Sure, all you need to make a classic grilled cheese sandwich is bread and cheese…and some butter, but adding some other ingredients can make for a nice flavor contrast as well as providing additional textures, in some cases. Let’s see what our chefs added to their grilled cheese to make them more personal.
Bianca sauteed some onions and added those into the sandwich, the onions don’t really caramelize in the sandwich but do add some additional flavor to the sandwich.
Daniel, claiming that he has a sweet tooth, decides to add blackberries to his sandwich…no, that is not a typo. The tart and sweet flavor of the blackberries supposedly complimenting the cheese well.
Remy layered some prosciutto cotto, or thinly sliced ham, into his sandwich for a bit of a meaty flavor. He also topped his sandwich with a bechamel sauce (A French sauce made with butter, flour, and milk) that contained the same cheeses that he put in the sandwich, and even poked a hole into one of his bread slices that he added an egg yolk to for even more richness, turning the sandwich into more of a Croque Madame.
Cooking Fats
Both Bianca and Remy spread butter onto their bread prior to cooking, butter is classic for grilled cheese because the milk proteins caramelize a bit to give a toasty flavor to the sandwich.
Daniel, however, took out the butter and instead spread mayonnaise onto his bread, as if the blackberries weren’t enough. The mayonnaise spreads much easier than butter, but also has a higher smoke point so he’s at less risk of it burning before the cheese melts.
Cooking Techniques
When it came to cooking, Bianca assembled her sandwich fully then added it to a pan and waited for both sides of the bread to get golden. Unfortunately, her cheese did not end up melting.
Daniel placed the two pieces of bread mayo-side down and laid his cheese and blackberries on top. This is a great way to cook grilled cheese, because it allows both sides of the bread to toast evenly and allows the cheese to melt quickly.
Remy also assembled his sandwich before he began cooking in a pan, but finished his sandwich in the oven to ensure that the cheese melts nicely and to ensure that the egg yolk on top has a chance to cook.
When combined, all 3 methods for making grilled cheese sandwiches should make for the crispy, cheesy, gooey delight that we all love.
Now I will attempt to make all 3 recipes myself. I will also share the recipes for the chefs down below in case you wanted to try any of them out for yourself!
Level 1 Grilled Cheese (Bianca’s Recipe)
Makes 1 sandwich
1/4 of an onion, finely chopped
Vegetable oil
Soft butter, for spreading
2 slices of pre-sliced whole wheat bread
2 slices American cheese
2 slices sharp yellow cheddar cheese
-Heat up a little bit of oil in a nonstick pan, then add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions have softened and turn a light golden color. Remove to a bowl and set aside.
-Spread a bit of butter onto one side of each bread slice, then lay on a slice of each cheese. Sandwich the two halves together.
-Wipe out the skillet used for the onions, then add the sandwich and cook for about 10 minutes, flipping occasionally, until the bread is nice and golden and the cheese is melted.
Level 2 Grilled Cheese Sandwich (Daniel’s Recipe)
Makes 1 sandwich
6 fresh blackberries, cut in half
2 teaspoons sugar
Mayonnaise, for spreading
Two 1-inch slices of a country loaf
1 ounce sharp yellow cheddar cheese, thinly sliced
1 ounce sharp white cheddar, thinly sliced
1 ounce gruyere, thinly sliced
-Place the cut blackberries in a bowl and toss with the sugar. Let those sit and macerate at room temperature for about 30 minutes, or until the juices start coming out.
-Spread a thin layer of mayonnaise onto one side of the bread slices, then lay those into a nonstick pan over medium heat. Lay each of the cheese slices on the bread, trying to get as even of a layer as possible, then spread the macerated blackberries onto one of the slices.
-Let the sandwich cook undisturbed for about 2 minutes, or until the cheese begins to melt and the bread starts to turn golden. Invert the non-blackberry half of the sandwich on top of the other, pressing down to adhere, then continue to cook for another minute or so, flipping regularly, until the bread is toasted to your liking. Let the sandwich cool for about 3 minutes before slicing.
Level 3 Grilled Cheese Sandwich (Remy’s Recipe)
Makes 1 sandwich
1 tbsp unsalted butter, plus more that’s softened.
1 tbsp flour
1/4-1/2 cup of milk
3 ounces shredded Emmental cheese, divided
1 ounce grated parmesan cheese, divided
2 thick slices of sourdough bread
2 thin slices of prosciutto cotto (ham)
1 egg yolk
-Heat the oven to 350 F/180 C
-To make the bechamel sauce, heat up the butter in a small frying pan until melted. Add the flour, then cook while whisking for about a minute. Add 1/4 cup of milk, and let it simmer for a few minutes until thickened. Add half of each cheese, then whisk until the cheese is melted and the sauce is smooth. Set aside.
(I aimed for a thick, spreadable consistency, almost like frosting, but if you want it thinner then simply add more milk)
-Spread some butter onto one side of the sourdough slices, then use a 2-inch round cutter to cut a hole in the middle of one of the slices. Flip, then divide the remaining cheese among the bread, then top with a layer of ham and then bring the two halves together.
-Heat a large cast iron skillet or other frying pan over medium heat, then add the sandwich, hole-side down, and let it cook for 3-4 minutes, or until that side of the bread starts turning golden. Take off heat, then flip the sandwich so that the cut side is facing up. Spread a layer of the bechamel sauce you made earlier on top, avoiding the hole, and lastly lay an egg yolk inside the hole.
-Transfer to the oven and cook for 3-4 minutes, or until the top is golden and the cheese is melted.
Ok, having made and tasted all 3 sandwiches, it is time for me to declare the results.
This sandwich tasted like a classic grilled cheese that we’d eat as kids, with a bit of an added caramelized flavor from the onions and sharpness from the cheese.
The bread was crunchy and golden, the combination of cheeses was a very nice touch, but the blackberries…yeah, sadly those were just too strange for me.
The ingredients were simple, but the combination of flavors and textures were out of this world. Crunchy bread, gooey cheese, a bit of a salty meaty flavor from the ham, and that egg yolk that soaks into the bread with rich goodness.
Yes, sir, I’m going to say that the level 3 grilled cheese was by far the best!
