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The secret to making the perfect grilled cheese sandwich (plus five of the best to try)

Bianca Hrovat
Bianca Hrovat

There is nothing quite so satisfying as biting into a warm, grilled cheese sandwich and watching as the crispy, golden exterior makes way for a long, stretchy pull of melted cheese.

Alex Grenouiller shows the pull of a great grilled cheese sandwich at Penny’s.
Alex Grenouiller shows the pull of a great grilled cheese sandwich at Penny’s.Brook Mitchell

The staple sandwich, which has mesmerised diners since the Great Depression, has achieved such a state of reverence in its origin country of the United States they’ve dedicated a day to it: National Grilled Cheese Sandwich Day, on April 12.

To celebrate this hallowed day, Sydney’s patron saint of cheese toasties Penny Lawson (of Penny’s Cheese Shop at Potts Point) has generously shared her secret to creating the ultimate grilled cheese.

The self-professed “curd nerd”, who serves as a cheese judge across Australia, has earned a cult following for her cheese toastie ($15): A complex and ever-evolving blend of up to seven cheeses, served on sourdough from PiOik Bakery.

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Penny Lawson with her seven-cheese creation.
Penny Lawson with her seven-cheese creation. Christopher Pearce

The current iteration features cheddar, sfogliato da mucca (a pasta filata cheese), Gruyère, raclette, queso oaxaca and smoked scamorza. But this is not cheese for the sake of cheese - each serves its own purpose, from the foundational savouriness of the cheddar, to the sweet nuttiness of the Gruyère, to the theatrical pull of the raclette.

“Each cheese brings a different element to the party,” Lawson explains.

There are just 50 grilled cheese sandwiches made at Penny’s each day, and on weekends they frequently sell out before noon. Among its fans is UK actor Liam Neeson, who received a Penny’s Cheese Shop care package while in hotel quarantine during the height of the COVID pandemic.

“He was very appreciative,” says Lawson. “He wrote us a lovely note that said it was the best cheese toastie he’d ever had. It was a real thrill!”

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Even Liam Neeson is a fan of the famous grilled cheese sandwich at Penny’s.
Even Liam Neeson is a fan of the famous grilled cheese sandwich at Penny’s.Brook Mitchell

Ready to up the ante at home? These are Lawson’s top tips.

Recycle your cheese rinds

Ground cow’s milk cheese rinds are an unlikely addition to the cheese blend at Penny’s. They were first introduced as a way to reduce waste in the kitchen, before Lawson realised the deep flavours of umami they brought to her cheese toastie.

Choose your bread carefully

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Lawson swears by the sourdough at PiOik Bakery. It’s a blend of rye and wholewheat that undergoes a three-day fermentation process to create a chewy, flavourful loaf. Lawson advises using day-old bread for the perfect texture.

“It has a better Maillard reaction [when placed on the pan], you get a nicer browning and crispiness,” she says.

Ditch the mayo and the butter

The secret to creating the perfect golden, crusty exterior is not (as famously reported by New York Times writer Julia Moskin) the liberal spreading of mayonnaise (or butter) on the pan-side of each bread slice, claims Lawson.

“Never put mayonnaise on the outside of a toastie,” she urges.

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“It might look good in a photo, but the flavour of warm mayo is awful.”

Rather, Lawson lightly spreads a small amount of the cheese mixture on the sandwich exterior before pan-frying.

Five to try

  • Penny’s Cheese Shop
    Cheese blend toastie, $15
    Cheddar, sfogliato da mucca, gruyere, raclette, queso Oaxaca and smoked scamorza
    127-139 Macleay Street, Potts Point, pennyscheeseshop.com.au
  • Kosta’s Takeaway
    Nice ‘n’ cheesy, $13
    Graviera, provolone and scamorza
    412 W Botany Street, Rockdale, kostastakeaway.com
  • Frank’s Deli
    Three-cheese melt, $16
    Cheddar, pecorino romano and provolone
    279 Bronte Road, Waverley, franksdeli.com.au
  • Tuga Pastry
    Three cheese truffle toastie, $17
    Provolone, Swiss and mozzarella
    Shop 10, 112 McEvoy Street, Alexandria, tugapastries.com.au
  • La Boite a Fromages
    Cheese toastie, $10
    Bechamel, comte, emmental and gruyere
    397 Sydney Road, Balgowlah, laboiteafromages.com.au

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Bianca HrovatBianca HrovatBianca is Good Food's Sydney-based reporter.

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Original URL: https://www.theage.com.au/goodfood/sydney-eating-out/the-secret-to-making-the-perfect-grilled-cheese-sandwich-plus-five-of-the-best-to-try-20230412-p5czvv.html