How To Make A Chilli Cheese Toastie

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With all of the product development and recipe testing we do comes a serious amount of eating. We've had chilli in just about every way imaginable. Once in a while (if we're really lucky) and absolute gem of a recipe comes shining through so bright that it obliterates any food fatigue we might be feeling.

This, my friends, is one of those recipes.

There are so many great things about this sandwich. It takes 10 minutes to knock together. It's lunch, it's brunch, it's supper and it's a snack. All of the ingredients have a long life or can be kept in the freezer until you want them, and the choice of bread and cheese is totally down to what you want to use.

Let's start with the bread. I usually go one of two ways. Thick sliced, white, supermarket bread or crusty, white sourdough from your local bakery. The supermarket bread is going to give you a softer, crispy bite while the sourdough will be a little more sturdy and crunchy.

Next thing to think about is your choice of cheese. You can't really go wrong here but there are a couple of things to consider. Flavour and melt. I've gone for a really tasty, strong cheddar here which is going to shine through under the chilli. Cheddar melts well, but you won't get the insane cheese pull that mozzarella gives you. You want to go for a low moisture mozzarella like the pre-grated stuff you get in the supermarket (this also freezes really well so you can have it ready to go in the freezer). Blend these two cheese together and you're nearly ready to go.

While you are heating your chilli, liberally and evenly cover one side of both pieces of bread with some good quality salted butter. Don't be shy, butter is you best friend here. Flip the bread over so it's butter side down on the board.

For maximum melt, it's important to have cheese in contact with both pieces of bread. This way it will be closest to the heat source and will melt more easily before the bread burns. Layer half of the cheese onto a slice of bread, followed by the chilli and topped with the remaining cheese.

Place a non-stick frying pan over a medium heat. If in doubt, start lower as you want to give the cheese time to melt evenly without overdoing the bread. Find something flat you can use to weight down the toastie. A plate with something heavy on top works great, or you can apply constant pressure with a pan lid or a large spatula. This will help give you an even toast across the bread.

After 2 or 3 minutes, flip the toastie over and repeat on the other side. You can continue to toast and flip until you've achieved the perfect golden crust.

Slide your grilled cheese out onto a chopping board and slice in half. I usually eat mine with lots of pickles and hot sauce to cut through all the buttery, melted cheese.

This is an absolute no-brainer of a recipe for your Chilli Blocks. You can have sliced bread and cheese in your freezer ready to go for any occasion.

Bread? Good. Meat? Good. Cheese? Good.

Chilli Grilled Cheese (Serves 1)
Cooking time: 15 minutes

1 Block Chilli (2 if your bread will allow it!)
2 Slices Sourdough
45g Mature Cheddar
35g Gouda or Mozzarella
Knob of butter

We like to serve ours with a whole gherkin and slightly too much hot sauce!

Method

1. Heat your chilli in the microwave or on the hob
2. Grate both cheeses and mix together
3. Heavily butter one side of both slices of bread and place butter side down on your board
4. Add half the cheese to one slice, followed by the hot chilli and top with the remaining cheese
5. Place the second slice of bread on top, butter side up
6. Carefully place the sandwich into a non-stick frying pan on medium heat
7. Weigh the toastie down with a plate, pan lid or press with a spatula
8. After 2 or 3 minutes, flip the toastie and repeat on the other side
9. Repeat until both sides are golden brown and the cheese is fully melted
10. Cut in half and serve with a gherkin on the side