How To Add A Sweet Heat To Your Grilled Cheese With One Ingredient

A grilled cheese doesn't need much more than good cheese, the right bread, and some butter or mayo for grilling. The sandwich is an enduring classic because of how well these three elements combine to give you a perfect bite that's crispy, gooey, cheesy, and buttery. It also makes real estate on a grilled cheese precious, so you don't want to add just anything and turn it into a regular cheese sandwich. Instead, many argue that the only components you should be adding to a grilled cheese are those that highlight the three main ingredients.

Hot honey is one such ingredient that should be on your next grilled cheese. While the condiment is now used on everything from pizza to cocktails, its punchy hot-sweet notes truly shine in a grilled cheese. The contrast with the creamy cheese and crispy, fat-soaked bread is perfect, and the spice of the hot honey helps cut through the sandwich's richness. The sweet shift in flavor may inspire you to experiment with different cheeses in your grilled cheese, and you can even choose from a few ways to incorporate the hot honey in your sandwich. The only thing to watch out for is not to let the sweet syrup touch the skillet because it'll burn and turn bitter. Apart from that, there's not much to do but head into the kitchen and make yourself a hot honey grilled cheese. It's swiftly become one of our favorite takeaways from the swicy food trend.

If you don't mind the mess, drizzling hot honey over a freshly-made grilled cheese is the best option. When you bite in, the sweet-spicy notes hit first and are quickly soothed by the creamy cheese. There's also something quite special about crispy, honey-soaked bread. However, prepare to get your hands covered in honey (which is not necessarily a bad thing). You can also prepare a side of hot honey to use as a dip with the grilled cheese.

Adding it between the unmelted cheese while assembling your sandwich risks the honey spilling out into the hot skillet and burning, especially since you should flip your grilled cheese multiple times to achieve that perfect balance of golden crust and melted cheese. Instead, add it to the sandwich right after you take it off the skillet. Quickly open the bread slices (being mindful of the temperature), slather hot honey in between, and close while the cheese is still melted. That way, the sandwich should stick back together.

When using hot honey, it's best to deploy a cheese with flavor that can hold up against the spicy sweetness. This means something like mozzarella, with it mild creamy taste, is not the best option for a hot honey grilled cheese. Instead, lean towards sharp cheddar, brie, or even pepper jack. Fresh options like tangy goat cheese or salty feta work well, too. For a truly decadent version of the sandwich, use a blend of aged and fresh cheese, and make a smashed croissant grilled cheese with hot honey.