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The American Grilled Cheese Sandwich Essay (2024)

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Re: The American Grilled Cheese Sandwich Essay (2024)

#51

Post by tclancy »

ssl-3 wrote: post #33
eitally wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I disagree, or rather I don't care if I'm wrong but there are likely millions on my side. I'm 49 years old, grew up eating grilled cheese (American cheese on Pepperidge Farms white bread), often with sliced onion or tomato, and mustard. I had never even heard of a melt until I was probably 35, and even so, I still call a doctored up grilled cheese sandwich a grilled cheese sandwich. It ceases to be grilled cheese onl…

Earlier today, I made a grilled cheese sandwich for myself. I started by getting a shitty frozen burrito out of the freezer. I then placed a slice of cheese on top of it and put it into the toaster oven for exactly 27 minutes. After that, I ate this grilled cheese sandwich.

I would subscribe to your recipe blog.

Re: The American Grilled Cheese Sandwich Essay (2024)

#52

Post by wao0uuno »

trashcan2137 wrote: post #4
js2 wrote: post #3

> This is not a column where I will carp and complain—about air-fryer grilled cheeses, or fancy gourmet grilled cheeses, or Kraft-single grilled cheeses, or the proper application of butter, or the appropriate pan, or the degree and nature of the condiments. To me, each grilled cheese is enough, and more than enough. In this world so full of slaughter and fire, where doubt and monstrosity abound, this much is clear t…

I never understood the appeal of grilled cheese and thought it's mostly because every time I see it it's made with toast bread (???) or brioche (hard to get a decent brioche here in Poland) but I can see a variation made with what I would call bread. Will give it a go.

Chałka will work just fine if you remove excess crumble. Lidl sells “butter” buns/rolls and those could work too. Get yourself two thick slices of decent cheese and some cheap processed kraft cheese slices. Put one slice of processed cheese between two slices of good cheese. Fry the whole sandwich in a little bit of butter until golden brown but not burned on both sides. Goes well with pickles, sour kraut, mayonnaise, ketchup, hot sauce etc.

Re: The American Grilled Cheese Sandwich Essay (2024)

#53

Post by dylan604 »

petepete wrote: post #37
dylan604 wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I never understood the appeal of grilled cheese What's so hard to understand? It's cheese. It's melted. It's breaded. Why are cheese sticks so popular? They're cheese. They're melted. They're breaded. Why are quesadillas so popular? They're cheese. They're melted. They're breaded.

I don't think cheese sticks or quesadillas are all that popular in Poland. I've never had a cheese stick or seen one in a supermarket (UK). I assume from your description it's like a fish finger but filled with cheese.

That sounds like a Poland problem not a my problem to bend a phrase. However, you have cheese in Poland? You can melt cheese in Poland? You have breading in Poland? Why have you NOT made a breaded melty cheesy thingy yet? Like seriously, go become the first person in Poland to do this and become a national hero.

Re: The American Grilled Cheese Sandwich Essay (2024)

#54

Post by strken »

ssl-3 wrote: post #34
strken wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We call the entire genre of toasted sandwich a toastie. A grilled cheese would thus be a cheese toastie, the addition of tomato would make it a cheese and tomato toastie, and so on. As a non-grilled-cheese speaker, I don't intuitively understand why you can't have a grilled cheese and tomato. Words do mean things, but why is "cheese and tomato toastie" an allowable variation while "grilled cheese and tomato" is banne…

Oh. That's easy enough. It is completely improper to add tomato to a grilled cheese sandwich. It's not that the two things don't fit together; indeed, they do fit together beautifully. But combining them all into one sandwich is absurd. And by absurd, I mean something loosely akin to: Ketchup is good. Fries are good. Steak is good. All of these things can fit together very well in one meal. And while it's OK to put k…

I think you're seeing a compound word because it's part of your native dialect, whereas I'm seeing each word independently.

If you think about "grilled", "cheese", and the silent "sandwich" as different words composed together, then it should logically follow that you can use anything you want as a sandwich filling and then grill it.

Radical sandwich anarchy!

Re: The American Grilled Cheese Sandwich Essay (2024)

#55

Post by enobrev »

sublinear wrote: post #38
enobrev wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a near-fifty year old who has been making sourdough for 6 years, makes homemade mayo with a grated garlic clove and freshly squeezed lemons every couple weeks, and keeps a stash of fine cheeses readily available for all occasions - I'm with the 4 year old. White bread, 2 slices of american, butter - it's hard to beat the sheer comfort, texture, flavor, gooeyness, and simplicity of the classic.

There is a middle ground that isn't so pretentious. I still need it to have bacon, parm, and a side of tomato soup. I toast it in a pan to avoid crumbs. Everything else beyond that point truly is another sandwich.

My wife recently reminded me of something I made for her while she was sick last winter - Grilled cheese on sourdough (with roasted garlic mixed into the cheese) toasted to a crisp and cut into croutons for a home-made tomato soup.

Re: The American Grilled Cheese Sandwich Essay (2024)

#56

Post by ssl-3 »

strken wrote: post #54
ssl-3 wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Oh. That's easy enough. It is completely improper to add tomato to a grilled cheese sandwich. It's not that the two things don't fit together; indeed, they do fit together beautifully. But combining them all into one sandwich is absurd. And by absurd, I mean something loosely akin to: Ketchup is good. Fries are good. Steak is good. All of these things can fit together very well in one meal. And while it's OK to put k…

I think you're seeing a compound word because it's part of your native dialect, whereas I'm seeing each word independently. If you think about "grilled", "cheese", and the silent "sandwich" as different words composed together, then it should logically follow that you can use anything you want as a sandwich filling and then grill it. Radical sandwich anarchy!

Sandwiches can contain anything, just like a taco can. Everyone knows that.

But when a sandwich contains cheese along with other additional internal ingredients, the act of grilling it is metamorphosical. In this irreversible process, it ceases to be a sandwich and becomes a melt.

So while a tomato and cheese sandwich can be an amazing and delicious thing, a grilled tomato and cheese sandwich is impossible.

To say that it is any other way would be like saying that a caterpillar and a butterfly are the same thing.

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