PrintGrilled Cheese Throwdown
Don't ask me why, but April is National Grilled Cheese Month, and to celebrate, the Food Network ran Bobby Flay's exciting Grilled Cheese Throwdown this past weekend. Flay took on New Jersey's own Pop Shop in a sandwich battle for the ages.
The Pop Shop, which offers 31 different grilled cheese variations on their menu, put up a good fight with their sandwich called "The Calvert"--jack cheese, roasted turkey, bacon, avocado, and house dressing (balsamic mayo) on foccacia. Flay countered with his delicious-sounding Grilled Brie and Goat Cheese with Bacon and Green Tomato sandwich. In the end, Flay's sandwich won by a hair, with the judges saying it was a tough decision and that there were no losers.
Though the Pop Shop's sandwich goes a bit beyond the realm of grilled cheese and into more general grilled sandwich territory, there are certainly a couple of clear takeaways here:
Grilled cheese sandwiches are better with bacon.
Though it's not my personal preference, it's clear that bacon was the best supporting actor here. Indeed Flay's recipe for Mac 'n' Cheese in another recent Throwdown featured pancetta, bacon's non-smoking cousin. This is no coincidence.
Grilled cheese sandwiches have long moved beyond Wonder Bread and Velveeta.
Though those two bedrocks of American processed food arguably make for a delicious grilled cheese sandwich, it's clear that we as a nation are (smartly) moving beyond those ingredients in our quest for the perfect grilled cheese. Brie, Gruyère, and Fontina (among others) have replaced the orange stuff, and interesting flavor and texture complements like green tomatoes make occasional cameos as well. Tom Colicchio's 'Wichcraft restaurants serve a mean grilled fontina with black trumpet mushrooms and white truffle fondue on Pullman white bread.
Also this month, LA's Clementine is holding an election for Commander in Cheese, "the Highest Sandwich in the Land." Grilled Cheese Primaries are going on now at the restaurant, and the final vote will be held on "Super Cheesedays," April 28-30th. The voter guide they've created is especially hilarious; I highly recommend downloading the pdf and taking a look. (Make sure you catch the Partisan Cheese Measures up for vote.)
What about you? What's your grilled cheese recipe to end all others? American cheese or something more interesting? White bread or artisanal Pullman? Bacon? Tomato?
About the author: Jamie Forrest publishes Curdnerds.com from his apartment in Brooklyn, New York, where he lives with his wife, his daughter, and his cheese.
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27 Comments:
homemade sourdough with Fresh(!) homegrown tomato's gryueyre cheese and a little mustard.
huney_bumper at 2:52PM on 04/15/08
i like my grilled cheeses from Waffle House, with pickles on the side.
french tart at 2:56PM on 04/15/08
In my opinion if there's anything on there besides cheese, it then becomes a ______ melt.
i like to mix my butter with grated or shredded parmesan to give it that extra tasty layer. the wider the bread the better. i think the cheese all depends on your mood.... sometimes you're down for brie, sometimes smoked gouda, sometimes you just need some orange kraft singles.
Tenbucc2 at 3:01PM on 04/15/08
Yeah. Seriously. I would have been disappointed in either -- grilled cheese should be simple. When I want grilled cheese, I want two things: gooey cheese, and crisp, buttery bread. Everything else just gets in the way.
onalark at 3:13PM on 04/15/08
i like grilled cheese with a slice of tomato in the middle. or a few slices of apple. hmm...
chlamers at 3:22PM on 04/15/08
one of the first sandwiches my mom taught me to make was a grilled cheese and bacon sandwich. I'm glad she had a part in continuing our family's history of heart disease!
...mmmmm soooo tasty..melty cheese & bacon....mmmmheart attack....
I'd rather die with a bacon cheese sandwich in hand than a pita, tomato bean & sprout.
bisbee at 3:42PM on 04/15/08
Grilled manchego with chopped dried peaches and apricots has been a recent favorite of mine.
Shelby at 3:43PM on 04/15/08
The French Laundry Cookbook grilled cheese recipe along with the equally glorious tomato consomme is AMAZING, if a bit belabored (but that is half the reason you cook from the French Laundry Cookbook).
I can't post the recipe, but Carol at French Laundry at Home has a post where she makes it so you can get the idea.
http://carolcookskeller.blogspot.com/2007/07/soup-and-sandwich-grilled-farmhouse.html
chasgoose at 4:12PM on 04/15/08
Using mayo on the outside of the bread, instead of butter, works wonders. It doesn't taste mayonnaise-y at all, but it vastly improves the texture of the sandwich.
eliah at 5:47PM on 04/15/08
i love grilled cheese with tomatoes (first fell in love with them as "toasties," practically the national snack of south africa). @tenbucc2, i totally agree w/your wider bread = better bread sentiments.
while nothing beats a classic grilled cheese, my favorite spots for a fancy-pants g.c.: tillman's in the flatiron district (truffle butter and carmelized pears) and phoebe's in williamsburg, brooklyn (three different kinds featuring, variously, pesto, olive tapenade and apples). wow, despite a heavy dinner, i'm getting hungry again...billyburgwife at 9:56PM on 04/15/08
@eliah beat me to it... I started using mayo on the outside of the bread instead of butter a couple of years ago and I love it.
deeoh1 at 8:29AM on 04/16/08
provolone on rye bread
carriebwc at 10:17AM on 04/16/08
Extra old cheddar on artisan whole wheat bread. Shredding the cheese instead of slicing it makes for a much better melted texure. And nice salted butter for the outside..but not too much!
PeanutButter at 11:36AM on 04/16/08
To me, a grilled cheese, without a little mustard is just lacking. All the suggestions sound wonderful, but I had to address those who dismiss anything other than cheese, bread and butter.
Mares2 at 1:48PM on 04/16/08
I'm not sure about those grilled cheese primaries. Any political system that includes a cheesesteak and a reuben among the candidates for top grilled cheese is far too corrupt to warrant my participation. Seriously, most of those sandwiches are melts or _____ with cheese.
sloppy at 2:25PM on 04/16/08
Go to thepioneerwoman.com and check out her food site for Pioneer Woman's Favorite Sandwich. What a wonderful combination of butter, bread, cheese, and mustard (in the Sepcial Sauce.) My first try I used pepper jack cheese instead of the provolone and green chilies. which worked fine. Her pictures and easy instructions inspired me to try something other than the white bread and yellow cheese combo.
Suzzanne at 8:32PM on 04/16/08
goddamn, i love a grilled cheese sandwich. i'm bummed that i've only just now learned about this, because i would have been eating way more sandwiches all month.
my favorite grilled cheese is a toss up between this one and this one.
and yes, bacon always makes it better.
thursdaynightsmackdown at 5:30PM on 04/18/08
Being a cardiac bypass survivor times 2, I really watch my fat intake. Well, I really like grilled cheese sandwiches to accompany my tomato soup, so I have modified a few things and have still come up with an acceptable version. Kraft Fat-Free singles are the closest i've been able to find to the real fat-laden thing so I take two slices and put them in between whole wheat bread that I've brushed with olive oil. The cheese melts nicely and isn't rubbery. If you've got a cholesterol problem, try a grilled cheese sammich this way and change your way of eating. Since i've changed my eating style to lo fat and I go for daily walks, I have dropped from 191 down to 137 lbs and have not felt deprived at all.
susitee at 11:42AM on 04/21/08
My former sister-in-law taught me to spread the inside of the bread with mustard. What a revelation! At our house, we prefer Plochman's, which is a nice stone-ground German mustard spiked with horseradish.
For extra kick, I often add minced raw garlic. (Fun story: once, when our house was invaded by sand fleas, I found out that fleas hate the taste of garlic. So I made everybody eat a grilled-cheese-and-garlic sandwich every day for about a week. Family was happy, fleas decamped, and we didn't have to flea-bomb the house. But I digress...)
Everybody's suggestions are fascinating, but I (reluctantly) agree with the cheese-only purists - when I make a grilled cheese sandwich, I want a hit of salt, butterfat, crunch and teh savory.
gentlyferal at 12:39PM on 04/21/08
Though I love my Wonder Bread and 3 Kraft Singles, I graduated to Havarti and a thin slice of turkey on rustic white bread, toasted and dipped in olive & garlic salsa.
elswinger at 1:33PM on 04/21/08
Grown up version - Really sharp cheddar, Brownberry whole wheat bread, put open faced in toaster oven on "Toast" till it dings, then smoosh together.
Childhood memory version - Pepperidge Farm white bread, Kraft singles, made in a small nonstick skillet with Parkay spread on the outside. I used to eat the middles and dip the crispy margarine crusts in my chocolate milk.
akk328 at 1:37PM on 04/21/08
My dad's specialty was a split-cheese sandwich- lightly toast white bread, make a slit almost to the bottom but keep three edges intact, spread inside with mustard and slip in sliced imported swiss cheese and then pan-fry in butter. Quite delicious to this day!
deefine at 3:11PM on 04/21/08
i like to mix in some garlic powder with the butter on the outsides of the sammich. then fry it on high heat so it almost burns. so tasty!
boltchloer at 5:43PM on 04/21/08
At least three cheeses,and try putting fresh tomato and sweet onion in before grilling..and being from the south mayo as always...
tigger at 5:55PM on 04/21/08
And I forgot...try it with Rye sometime....
tigger at 5:56PM on 04/21/08
Purists don't look, but when I was little my favorite was a "pizza grilled cheese" sandwich: marinara sauce and mozzarella on Jewish rye, buttered and fried. It might not be a "real" grilled cheese, but it comes darn close to my favorite comfort sandwich.
natty at 3:39AM on 04/22/08
third on the outside mayo tip.
avisualperson at 6:47PM on 04/22/08