Before you bite into a grilled cheese, you know if it’s going to be great or not. In a really good one, the cheese slowly oozes from the cut edges. The exterior of the bread is an even golden brown that is lightly buttered, but not too greasy. Pick it up and you can feel that the crust is crisp and supports a generous portion of melted cheese inside, yet it sags a bit. It’s salty, greasy, buttery, and comforting in all the right ways, but most importantly, it maintains the perfect crispness, because there are few things worse than a wet sandwich.
I take grilled cheese, pressed paninis, tuna melts, and all grilled sandwiches pretty seriously. I take my time, as Kenji suggests in this. Grilled Cheese RecipeGrind both sides of the bread. I cook the sandwich slowly so that the cheese melts in perfect harmony with the toasting of the bread, simultaneously reaching the desired state. I do this because good things are worth waiting for.
But there’s no point in going to all that trouble only to have my methodical, impeccably done sandwich turn into a soggy, soggy mess when I go to take the first bite.
This is what happens if you put a hot grilled cheese — or any grilled sandwich — directly on the plate right after cooking. Condensation forms at the bottom of the sandwich, killing all that careful crispness and leaving you with a sandwich that looks crispy on top, but is soggy, limp and sad when you pick it up. . This is a grilled cheese ruin experience.
To avoid this, you should let it rest on high for a few minutes before slicing into it. By setting just-cooked grilled cheese on a wire rack or other setup that allows air to circulate around the entire sandwich, steam escapes from the bottom. Can leave without leaving. I even had an old roommate who would elevate his grilled cheese by putting two chopsticks under it.
And for anyone worried about the sandwich getting too cold during this raised rest, don’t be. This extra step not only prevents the bottom from steaming, but it also gives the cheese a chance to cool enough, firm enough that once you cut it and cut into it, it’s much longer than the sandwich. Don’t rush out.
It’s a small extra step, but necessary for grilled cheese to reach its true heights.