How to Make the Perfect Grilled Cheese
Children please have your parents help you with this one.
- What you Need:
- 2 Slices of Bread (I like Wheat, but Use your Favorite)
- 2 Slices of Cheese (American is Traditional, But I have been using shredded mozzarella)
- Spreadable Butter (or Margarine, I Like Country Crock)
- Butter Knife
- Spatula
- Frying Pan
This Grilled Cheese sandwich was taught to me by my father. You are able to get a golden brown Grilled Cheese without the bread being soaking wet with butter (although the butter drenched ones are pretty tasty, I will describe that one another time).
First place your frying pan in the eye of the stove and set the heat slightly above the half way mark. This heat will allow your sandwich to cook slowly so your bread doesn’t burn before the cheese has a chance to melt. Let the pan heat up while you prepare your sandwich.
Next you will want to take the two sliced of bread and place both pieces of cheese between them. If you try to assemble your sandwich on the frying pan, you will loose precious cooking time that the cheese will not have to be able to melt thoroughly.
When you are sure that your pan is good and hot, take your butter knife, and load it with a nice blob of butter (between 1 & 2 tablespoons worth). Scrape the butter into the hot pan. Now when you do this the butter will immediately start to melt. It is normal for a lot of steamy smoke to rise from the pan. Just turn on the fan and open a window. Give the butter a chance to melt. While I wait for it to melt, I usually tilt the pan and try to get the butter to the center of the pan. This will make it easier for me to place the bread on top of as much butter as possible.
Place your ready made sandwich on the melted butter and wait. I usually listen for the sizzling. When it stops, I give it a few more seconds then I slide the spatula underneath. Don’t flip it back into the pan. You need more butter. I hold the sandwich with the spatula in one hand and scrape another blob of butter into the pan with the other. Wait for the butter to melt (again, I tilt the pan slightly, allowing the butter to move to the center of the pan).
Now flip the sandwich over (the sandwich may try to fall apart on you, so be careful) so the other side get some butter and a little cooking.You will most likely notice that the sandwich is not quite brown on the first side. This is OK.
Once you are satisfied that the sizzling is done on the other side, feel free to turn the sandwich back over. By now the cheese has started to melt to the bread and the whole thing will hold together on its own. From this point on, it is up to you as to how brown the bread gets. Keep turning the sandwich every 20-30 seconds until you are happy with what it looks like.
(Kids don’t try this at home) If you are daring, you might try to flip the sandwich (after the cheese is holding it together) with only the pan. Take the handle of the pan and shake the sandwich along the surface of the pan. Snap the pan up slightly forcing the sandwich into the air, hopefully flipping it over and back into the pan.
