How do you make the perfect grilled cheese sandwich?

[Doctor Amadeus]

Please no novice on this one, only serious grilled cheese experts on this, and I am talking from personal experience, what are the key ingredients and process for the perfect grilled cheese?

What kind of cheese?

What kind of bread?

And how much does YOUR Grill cheese cost?

[Valkrysa]

At BlizzCon they had a pretty great vendor behind the main stage area that did mac n' cheese grilled cheese

[Xandrigity]

My favorite currently is one with pimento cheese

[Gamdwelf]

All kinds of bread work good, I prefer cheedar and montery jack style cheeses.

Mayo for frying works really well. Small about of butter to help the cheese melt.

Don't worry about the cost its minimal if you are making yourself.

[timberx]

All kinds of bread work good, I prefer cheedar and montery jack style cheeses.

Mayo for frying works really well. Small about of butter to help the cheese melt.

Don't worry about the cost its minimal if you are making yourself.

*Barf*

/10barfs

[GennGreymane]

First

get some good butta

then get some good bread

then get some good cheese

then get a good pan

then put the good butta in the pan

then turn on the flame on your nice as hell stove to make it hot as fuck

then put piece one in the butta, then put the good cheese, then put the next piece of good bread

cook for a good amount of time

eat the good grilled cheese

[Deleted]

Buns are superior to bread for grilled cheese.

[YuneKirby]

Buns are superior to bread for grilled cheese.

Buns have an outer crust that makes makes them not grill as well.

[Deleted]

Buns have an outer crust that makes makes them not grill as well.

Puff paste buns too? :>

[Detritivores]

http://meltbarandgrilled.com/melt-challenge/

or go home.

[Jester Joe]

I heard Boub is a real grilled cheese expert.

[Gamdwelf]

*Barf*

/10barfs

Don't knock it until you try it.

[Doctor Amadeus]

First

get some good butta

then get some good bread

then get some good cheese

then get a good pan

then put the good butta in the pan

then turn on the flame on your nice as hell stove to make it hot as fuck

then put piece one in the butta, then put the good cheese, then put the next piece of good bread

cook for a good amount of time

eat the good grilled cheese

LMFAO best instructions I have even seen, or possibly the worst recipe ever.

[FeralSynapse]

Eh, I just use the toaster oven, no butter needed. You still get the crunchy bread, etc with less fat.

Slices of cheese + whatever else you want on "medium" for me = mess free grilled cheese.

[Deleted]

http://www.spud.ca/pictures/ProductPhotos/BR972_l.jpg
This >>>> grilled cheese.

You can cut it open and then put cheese on it or jelly

[Gamdwelf]

Eh, I just use the toaster oven, no butter needed. You still get the crunchy bread, etc with less fat.

Slices of cheese + whatever else you want on "medium" for me = mess free grilled cheese.

Then its not a grilled cheese sandwich if you don't grill it.

[Jester Joe]

You know what, I think Boub is like, in hibernation or something, so I went and found his post for you. You should be thankful!

It's my time to rise and shine. 7 Years on this website talking about stuff I know nothing about, but today is different, today I rise and shine.

Unless you buy http://www.amazon.com/Breville-BGR82...dp/B003SIN0BC/ you're better off sticking with a pan. Cast iron is sexy and is the new shit on the interweb but unless your burner at home has insane BTUs and packs a lot of heat, you're better off with a good set of heavy'ish non stick pan like http://www.amazon.com/Calphalon-Unis...dp/B004RIY4J4/ - Just make sure you don't burn shit, keep your pan around 175° celsius for delicate bread like thin sliced soft breads, or if you have garlic bread with chunks of garlic in it that could burn if you go higher. You can go up to 230°F for big slice of french bread and stuff like that, the goal is to get a decent heat/sear on the bread to actually get the nice toasted flavor.

Now butter. You always butter the bread, not the pan, mostly because you want the tasty milk solids suspended in the butter to caramelize on your bread and be delicious. Stick to lower heat (175°C or so) if you butter your bread because it's pretty easy to go past the smoke, and because the goal with butter is more to caramelize it slowly'ish than to sear. However, if you keep the heat high enough you can actually skip the butter altogether on the bread and still have something really good, if you're into the healthy side of things.

Any cheese works, grating them is better because it lets thing melt a LOT easier. Don't overheat some of the hard cheese like gruyere or manchego because they will always have hard time melting and actually will separate into a weird greasy mess if you overheat them. Good cheese are obviously cheddar and all the go-to-basic stuff, if you want to go fancy anything goat based (goat gouda, etc) will tend to be pretty amazing.

You can add other stuff and still called it a grilled cheese, it's an american thing, but getting butt hurt over it means you have way too much free time and you should be using it to be making more grilled cheese. Technically a grilled ham and cheese starts to enter the realm of croque monsieur and my french ass doesn't get butthurt about it and still calls it a grilled cheese.

Last thing, make sure you add some acidity to that to cut all the fat/richness from the cheese. Tomato is the go to topping but I'm not a huge fan, you can have pretty decent results with anything balsamic vinegar based, and if you're not into acid you can get really good and creamy result by mashing an avocado with just salt/pepper/tiny bit of garlic and using it as a spread inside the sandwich after grilling. Just keep the cheese on one side, have random meat as a barrier, and you have a non sticky cheese free side that can get extra toppings after cooking (baby spinach, avocado, etc)

That's about it. I'm glad this website is finally talking about the things that matter in life.

[SemperIvXx]

Then its not a grilled cheese sandwich if you don't grill it.

Does anyone actually grill their grilled cheese? Pretty much all the responses so far involve a pan and some fat, aka frying it or sautéing it I guess.

Anyway, bread you need something crusty to set off the melty gooey cheese. I like sourdough. Then you need sharp cheddar cheese. SHARP! On this issue there can be no debate. Butter one side of the bread while heating your pan. Throw that piece butter down into the pan, it should sizzle. If it doesn't your pan isn't hot enough, toss it out and start again dummy.

Once the sizzle goes for about 20 seconds, start piling your cheese on the piece in the pan. You want enough cheese that it oozes over the side into the pan creating the delicious crusty fried cheese part on the outside. But not so much that you can't get the sandwich to stick together. Butter the other piece of your bread, put it in buttered side up and flip that sucker. Smush it so the cheese oozes out and the former top piece of bread toasts nicely, you can also weight it if you have one of those kitchen presses. Eat.

Cost? I have no idea. Whatever the cost it's worth it. Optional add ins that are delicious but, at least in my opinion turn it into something other than "grilled cheese": apples, bacon, some kind of meat. I also like a good spicy mustard and grilled cheese sandwich.

[lucred]

Personally, I prefer the bacon grease + butter approach:
Melt enough bacon grease in a pan to coat one side of two two slices of sourdough bread, then fry the bread until the first side is toasted.

Once the bread starts to toast, flip the two slices and add butter to the pan.

Add cheese + any other toppings you like (I just use cheddar + jack cheese) to one slice of bread and place the other slice toasted side down on top.

Once the second side of the bottom slice is toasted, flip the sandwich and place a lid on the pan, by the time the cheese is melted, the second slice should be fully toasted and the sandwich is ready to eat.

[Fencers]

what are the key ingredients and process for the perfect grilled cheese?

A cheese that melts well, hearty bread, a cast iron skillet and high quality butter.

What kind of cheese?

Gouda. Sharp cheeses perform poorly when melted. Gouda is the ideal cheese for melting in the method of a grilled cheese sandwich. It's related to the Ph levels of the cheese and how the composition of the cheese breaks down as it melts.

Gouda is perfect for this purpose.

What kind of bread?

In order for the grilled cheese to not 'deflate' a bread with few air pockets is best. A thicker bark or crust also helps maintain the shape and integrity of the sandwich.

"Country" or "Pullman" style bread is the best choice. It holds up well and can be cooked for a relatively long time without falling apart. Grilled Cheese is not made quickly- slowly cooking the bread is the key maintaining a crispy crust and gooey center without the cheese breaking down poorly.

And how much does YOUR Grill cheese cost?[/B]

I don't know. Whatever is the percentage of a few slices of Gouda, bread and butter.

Why would cost be question here? Odd.