This is one of my local haunts. It’s a burger and beer place. But one day, we ordered the
grilled cheese sandwich off the kids menu, and I was like, WHAT IS THIS? Did they make
a grilled cheese out of a pancake? Oh, derp, it’s a smashed hamburger bun, and it’s
crazy delicious. It’s like a cross between a panini and pastry.
This is Brandon Humphries showing us how it’s done. That’s clarified butter he’s rolling
onto a brioche hamburger bun. A slice of Swiss and two slices of cheddar on the inside, and
then he smashes it on the griddle with a weight. Brioche is buttery and a little sweet, so
when it gets intense heat like this, it goes really brown and crispy, which is why this
sandwich tastes almost like a pastry.
He flips it after three minutes, and the reason he cuts it before it’s done cooking is so
the cheese from the two halves will melt together again. Then comes some fancy stuff.
“After the weight is done with the press, we get a good press on the grilled cheese,
we add a dome and do a little steam around the dome to ensure more moisture and the melting
of the cheese.”
That’s just water that he squirted around there. And I guess it’s seeping underneath
the dome and steaming the sandwich a bit? Certainly, if you’ve ever made a good basic
grilled cheese sandwich at home, you know that covering it with a lid helps the cheese
melt all the way through before the bread burns.
Speaking of cheese, about a minute later, off it comes, and look at that stringy cheese
oozing out as he pulls the halves apart. He got that by cutting the sandwich and then
cooking it some more, so the cheese melted back into itself. Honestly, that has no business
just being on the kids menu. It’s like they’ve discovered a whole new food. It’s just so
special, so good.
I’m gonna try to adapt it for the home. I had to go to the fancy grocery store to
get brioche buns. Cut that in half, and I’m just gonna do one slice of cheddar and a slice
of Swiss. I don’t like quite so much cheese, but you do you, friend. Now, here’s my trusty
10-inch nonstick skillet. Gonna pre-heat it on medium, or maybe just a little south of
medium. I’m gonna need a weight and that is literally a brick that I found in my backyard.
I’ll wrap it in foil, for hygiene.
Melt a little butter in the pan. I’m not gonna bother clarifying butter like they do
at Ocmulgee. They have a really hot grill, so they need to worry about the milk solids
burning. That’s why they take them out, I don’t think that we need to.
When the butter’s looking a little fizzy, I’ll lay in the sandwich, and on goes the
brick. Really smash it in. I don’t think you need to do anything fancy with domes or
steam. Between the brick and the walls of this pan, this is a pretty enclosed cooking
environment. You can see the cheese melting easily there, maybe a little bit too much.
I cooked it five minutes on the first side, probably too long, though boy, look at that
gorgeous color. Then rather than using a dome, I’m just covering it back with the brick
again and cooking for another three minutes. Really pretty color on both sides, super crispy.
I’m just cutting after the cooking is over, because I don’t really care if my cheese
oozes. As you can see, because I cooked it few minutes longer than Brandon did, the cheese
melted right out the sides. It’s hard to call that mistake though, because it resulted
in these crackery bits of fried cheese around the edge. I’ma call that a happy little
accident.
OK, now I’m gonna try to take this recipe off the kids menu, as it were — make it
a little more grown up by dabbing some balsamic vinegar into both sides of the bun. Slice
of Swiss, and then a few spinach leaves, cheddar on top, and then I’ll fry that one as before.
My pan is a little hotter at this point, so I can try cooking it for less time. That was
three minutes on side A, two minutes of side B and you can see I lost a lot less cheese
out of the sides this time.
You know how grilled cheese and salad is a great combination? Well, this is that, except
all in one bite. I’m sold.
Now let’s try a more substantial version. A good layer of mustard goes on the top bun,
then some dill pickle slices on the bottom. Two slices of Swiss cheese, no cheddar, and
then some Serrano ham, two slices. You could use prosciutto instead. Now what we’ve got
going here is basically a super-thin Cuban sandwich. I’m just looking to see that cheese
melting before I flip these. That was four minutes for side A, and two on side B. And
I am very, very excited to eat that.
But let’s make one more, this one’s for Lauren. She loves breakfast sandwiches. Beat
one egg in a bowl, put in a little pepper and a pinch of salt. Then, in some butter,
we’re gonna make a little half-omelet. Pour it in and stir it until an even curd forms,
tip the pan around to let egg run into the gaps, and I’m being sure to shape this into
a half-moon. I’ll flip it over onto itself so I’ve got a quarter omelet, and it should
be really runny inside, because it’s gonna get cooked again, and you don’t want it
too dry in the end.
Butter, bottom bun, and this time I’m gonna use grated cheddar because I don’t want
too much cheese, but I do want it on both sides. Omelet, cheese, top bun, and with this
one you gotta gently lay the brick on. If you pressed down on it, it would squeeze the
runny egg right out of the sides. Three minutes on side A, two on side B, that seems to be
a reliable timing, and good morning, friends! Yeah, if you pull the omelet when it’s too
runny, it’s gonna be perfect after you grill it in the sandwich.
Which one of these beauties am I gonna eat? Who am I kidding, it’s gonna be the Cuban.
Ham and cheese and pickles and mustard on fried, sweet bread. That is everything I want
in food, right there. But let your imagination run wild. Just take this concept. The smashed
brioche grilled cheese. **** the cupcake shops; this should be the new fad, and we can all
thank the folks at Ocmulgee Brewpub in Macon, Georgia. #notanad, I just like that place.