9 Best Breads For Grilled Cheese Of 2023
Grilled cheese sandwiches are equal parts comforting and delicious. The crispy bread and the ooey gooey cheese is beloved by many.
In recent years, grilled cheese sandwiches have become elevated to include different types of ingredients.
They are no longer just the simple white bread and American cheese. Nowadays, chefs around the world have been customizing this classic sandwich in many different ways.
Because the grilled cheese sandwich has now been made in so many different ways, there is some variety allowed when choosing the sandwich components of cheeses and breads.
So, what are the 9 best breads for grilled cheese? The best breads for grilled cheese sandwiches are classic white bread, multigrain, sourdough, brioche, English muffins, ciabatta, pumpernickel, potato bread, and rye.
Keep reading to learn more about each individual bread, characteristics to consider before choosing a bread, as well as tips for making the perfect grilled cheese sandwich.
Qualities To Consider When Choosing A Bread For Grilled Cheese
When deciding on the perfect bread for your grilled cheese, there are a few qualities you have to consider to ensure you are picking the best possible option:
Texture
The texture of the bread is the first quality you have to consider when choosing a bread for grilled cheese.
The first reason texture is important is because you do not want your cheese or whatever other topping you include to fall through the bread.
This means you must have a bread that’s texture has no holes or cracks that could allow cheese to fall right through. For example, a bagel would not work as the cheese would fall all over the place.
You also want to ensure the texture of the bread is sturdy. As you cook grilled cheese on a stove, and then flip it over, you cannot have a flimsy or extremely thin piece of bread as it can fall apart on you.
Thicker bread works best for a grilled cheese, especially if you are including more ingredients than just a few slices of cheese. This ensures the integrity of your sandwich stays intact.
Toppings
Because grilled cheese sandwiches have evolved into something more than just the simple combination of bread and cheese, you now have to consider what kind of topping you want to include before choosing a type of bread.
The first thing to consider with toppings is what flavors they tend to invoke. You want to pick a bread that is going to complement the topping’s flavors, not clash or ruin them.
For example, if you are doing a BBQ chicken grilled cheese with some pepper jack cheese, bbq sauce, and red onion, you want to stay away from a rich and strong flavored bread like pumpernickel or rye bread as the flavors will clash.
If you were going with a ham, brie, and apple grilled cheese you would want to use possibly an English muffin or sourdough bread as the flavors complement each other well.
One other thing to consider with toppings is how many you plan on including before choosing your bread.
If you plan on keeping it simple with just some cheese, you can go with a less sturdy piece of bread like class white or multigrain.
However, if you plan on piling up the topping on your grilled cheese sandwich, you will want to pick a bread that can handle it like ciabatta or potato bread.
Tips for Making The Perfect Grilled Cheese
To make a perfect grilled cheese, you will want to incorporate some (or all) of these specific tips!
Avoid Butter, Use Mayo
Now many traditionalists may laugh at using mayo over butter when making a grilled cheese, but we think it makes a big difference…in a good way.
All grilled cheese needs some type of fat to get the outsides nice and crispy while also giving flavor, and traditionally this is where butter is used. It is spread on the outside of the bread before being cooked in the skillet.
However, when using mayo instead of butter you still get a nice crispy and golden brown bread but with a bit of tanginess that butter does not provide. It adds a delicious layer of flavor that you can’t get with butter.
Mayo also tends to burn much slower than butter and achieving the golden-brown crust is actually more doable than with butter.
Grate The Cheese
Many people think putting whole slices of cheese on the sandwich before cooking will suffice to get it perfectly melted.
Well, oftentimes when using whole slices of cheese the edges will get melted but the middle will still be hard. This is why grated cheese works best.
When you use grated cheese for a grilled cheese sandwich your cheese cooks much more evenly (and more quickly)!
This is a trick that is used in many restaurants that provides perfectly melted cheese every time. If you are looking for a beautiful cheese pull, use the grated cheese.
Pre-Toast Your Bread
Another trick that will make your grilled cheese taste like it was made at a diner is pre toasting your bread.
Simply put your bread in the toaster for 1-2 minutes, just quick enough to give it a slight crunch but not long enough to let it start browning.
You also could lightly toast it for the same time (on both sides) in the pan—just make sure to avoid any color on the bread before adding your toppings.
This will help your grilled cheese stay extra crispy without burning the outside of the bread.
Cook Low and Slow
To have a perfect grilled cheese, you need to have a bit of patience when cooking the sandwich.
We know it can be tempting to crank the heat up on the stove to get your grilled cheese cooked as fast as possible, but keeping the burner on medium-low will produce a better crunch, fully melted cheese, and toasted (not burnt) bread.
You also can keep the burner extremely low and cover it with a lid to help melt the cheese.
Again, patience is key for a perfect grilled cheese.
The 9 Best Breads For Grilled Cheese Of 2021
Now that we have looked at the qualities to consider before choosing a bread for your grilled cheese as well as tips for making the perfect sandwich, here are the 9 best breads for grilled cheese!
| Rank | Product | Best Feature |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Wonder Bread Classic White Bread | Best overall bread for a grilled cheese |
| 2. | Rudi's Organic Multigrain Bread | Mild, nutty flavor |
| 3. | San Francisco Boudin Bakery Sourdough Loaves | Bright sourdough flavor |
| 4. | Alfaro’s Artesano Brioche Bakery Bread | Nice thick slices that hold up well |
| 5. | Thomas Original English Muffins | Excellent snack size |
| 6. | Schar Ciabatta | Crunchy exterior with spongey interior |
| 7. | Mestemacher Pumpernickel Bread | Rich, malty flavor |
| 8. | Martin's Potato Bread | Fluffy texture, perfect for grilling |
| 9. | Dave's Killer Bread Organic Righteous Rye Bread | Delicious earthy rye flavor |
1. Wonder Bread Classic White Bread
If you are a traditionalist and enjoy the classics, Wonder Bread Classic White Bread is the bread for you.
This bread is not too thick.
It is actually on the thinner size compared to some other breads on the list, and pairs best with the simplest ingredients.
Not only because of the integrity of the bread but also because of the flavor.
It is extremely doughy and moist and has a prominent flavor and texture, even being a “simple” kind of bread.
If you are looking to make a classic grilled cheese with a few slices of American cheese and butter on the outside of the bread, this is your perfect choice.
Stay away from multiple ingredients or complicated flavors as the bread will not hold them all or complement unique flavor combinations.
2. Rudi’s Organic Multigrain Bread
Multigrain bread is a pretty versatile choice when it comes to making a grilled cheese sandwich.
You can taste the seeds a bit, but overall the flavor and texture of multigrain bread is pretty mild.
Because of this, you can use quite a bit of different ingredients without worrying about the clashing of flavor.
Multigrain bread does tend to be on the thinner side, so it does do well with just a few ingredients; you do not want to overdo it or you risk it falling apart on you when the sandwich is flipped.
When thinking of toppings you want to include, though multigrain bread is pretty versatile, we recommend using this type of bread when wanting to include meat like bacon or ham.
Use a piece of breakfast meat, some tomatoes and cheddar or swiss cheese and you have yourself a delicious and unique grilled cheese sandwich.
3. San Francisco Boudin Bakery Sourdough Loaves
San Francisco Boudin Bakery Sourdough is one of the most delicious and versatile breads for grilled cheese sandwiches on our list.
Sourdough bread is yeasty, sour, and mildly acidic and works well with just about any toppings and flavor combination.
Sourdough bread tends to be fairly sturdy as well so it can handle sauces and condiments without losing its crunch or falling apart.
Try making a BBQ chicken grilled cheese sandwich on sourdough bread. Spread a little bbq sauce on the inside, pile up cooked chicken red onion, and pepper jack cheese to make a delicious and unique sandwich.
You also could go really simple and classic with sourdough bread–just some cheddar or American cheese cooked with mayo on the outside of the bread. Pair this grilled cheese with some tomato soup and you have yourself a classic meal.
4. Alfaro’s Artesano Brioche Bakery Bread
Alfaro’s Artesano Brioche Bread is a fantastic option for those who want a fancier experience with their grilled cheese sandwiches.
It is on the thicker side so it can hold a lot of ingredients and can handle sauces and condiments without becoming soggy or falling apart.
One important thing to keep in mind is that brioche bread does tend to have a mild sweetness to it.
This can either complement or ruin your grilled cheese, so be careful when choosing your toppings.
You want to pick toppings and cheeses that will complement the sweetness of the bread. Try making a grilled cheese with brie, ham, and apple slices.
You also could make one with goat cheese, fig jam, and prosciutto and it would complement the brioche well.
You want to stay away from bright yellow cheeses like American or Cheddar as they will not complement the brioche very well.
5. Thomas Original English Muffins
Thomas Original English Muffins are great for those who like lots and lots of cheese on their sandwiches.
They are on the smaller size compared to some other options on the list, but that actually can play in your favor.
The small size of the English muffin makes it an excellent snack or side option to be paired with soup, but the texture of the English muffin is why this type of bread makes for an excellent choice for a grilled cheese sandwich.
The inside of an English muffin is textured with a ridge-like surface that allows for cheese to get into those small nooks and crannies. This means every bite will be extra cheesy with an English muffin.
English muffins also are relatively mild in flavor and can work well with just about any flavor combination.
Try adding mozzarella, tomato sauce, and pepperoni for a pizza grilled cheese, or stick with the classic and simple American or cheddar cheese.
6. Schar Ciabatta
This ciabatta bread makes a great option for an elevated or gourmet grilled cheese.
The texture of the ciabatta bread is wonderful. It is relatively spongey with a harder exterior that makes the cooking process a breeze.
Because it is a bit of a fancier piece of bread, you can include more elevated toppings for your grilled cheese. Try adding a bit of pesto, mozzarella cheese, and sun-dried tomatoes for an Italian take on a grilled cheese.
Ciabatta would also be delicious with sliced peaches, burrata, a bit of prosciutto, and balsamic glaze.
7. Mestemacher Pumpernickel Bread
Mestemacher Pumpernickel Bread works best with grilled cheese that has bright and fruity flavors.
Pumpernickel bread is extremely dark with a rich and malty flavor; therefore, it needs lighter ingredients to complement the bread.
It also can be quite rough in texture, therefore lighter ingredients work best.
This pumpernickel bread comes in a loaf, not sliced, so you can control the thickness of your bread. With this type of bread, you want to make sure to cut extremely thin slices to ensure the bread gets nice and crispy.
Try adding chutneys or jellies to these kinds of grilled cheese. Add swiss or provolone, ham, and a bit of fig jam or jalapeno jelly for a rich and delicious sandwich.
8. Martin’s Potato Bread
Martin’s Potato bread is for those who love an indulgent, rich, and greasy grilled cheese sandwich.
Martin’s potato bread is extremely dense, soft, fluffy with a slightly starchy taste to it. It is a decadent option for making a grilled cheese sandwich.
The slices do come a bit on the thick side, therefore you want to include enough ingredients so the potato bread does not take over the flavor of your sandwich.
However, this means you can use strong-flavored foods with this type of bread like bacon, gruyere cheese, and sauerkraut.
Try adding dijon mustard, gruyere cheese, and a bit of sauerkraut to your potato bread grilled cheese for a delicious and decadent sandwich.
9. Dave’s Killer Bread Organic Righteous Rye Bread
This rye bread from the folks over at Dave’s Killer Bread is quite dense and strong in flavor. Like pumpernickel, some people love it and some people hate it.
It is on the thicker and denser side, therefore it can handle both condiments and sauces but multiple ingredients as well.
Rye bread tastes rich, malty, a bit earthy, and mildly sour; it is quite a unique taste. Because of its unique taste, you want to be specific with the type of ingredients you choose.
Rye bread works great with more potent flavored cheese. Try adding soft blue cheese and muenster, caramelized onions, and mushrooms and you have yourself ingredients that will pair extremely well with the dark and malty bread.
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