Few foods deliver the carefree comfort of childhood quite like a cheese toastie. Beloved by diners of all ages, this sandwich makes a satisfying lunch, dinner, or afternoon snack — and requires only a few simple ingredients.
But choosing the right cheese isn’t always as simple as it seems. The best choice needs to melt smoothly while delivering plenty of flavour. Sometimes, the secret to getting both is using two kinds of cheese.
“The best cheese toastie usually combines a cheese that melts easily with one that brings a sharper, more pronounced flavour,” says GH Food Producer Tina Martinez.
Why you should use more than one type of cheese
You can use a single type of cheese in your sandwich, but mixing two or more has its advantages. “One cheese can provide creaminess and meltability, while another adds sharpness or a more distinctive flavour,” says Martinez.
Meltability
Perhaps the most important quality to consider is how well a cheese melts. After all, the sandwich’s signature feature is that ooey-gooey cheese pull.
“I think perfectly melted cheese is the key,” says chef, cookbook author and TV personality Eric Greenspan of New School American Cheese. “Cheese oiling off and breaking just ruins [the sandwich.] Simplicity demands perfect execution because there is nowhere to hide.”
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In general, younger, fresher cheeses melt more smoothly than aged, drier varieties. “You either want a cheese with high moisture, or a cheese that has had its curds manipulated to be susceptible to melting,” says Isabelle Brosen, Assistant Manager of Events & Education at Murray’s Cheese.
“You want a cheese that becomes creamy and cohesive when heated — not one that stays stiff, greasy or rubbery,” says Martinez. Good choices include mozzarella, Monterey Jack, fontina, Gruyère and young Cheddar.
The flavour factor
Many easy-melting cheeses fall on the mild end of the flavour spectrum, which is why it can be nice to add a bolder cheese to the mix.
For instance, “mozzarella is the best melter for cheese toastie. It’s not got a lot going on in flavour, though, so I’d normally add it with other cheeses to bring the funk,” says cheese connoisseur and Pick & Cheese proprietor Matthew Carver.
Feel free to experiment. “Consider how assertive the cheese is, too: a mild cheese can provide the base, while a sharper or more flavourful cheese keeps the sandwich from tasting flat,” says Martinez. She recommends a sharp Cheddar, flavourful Swiss or pepper Jack.
The best cheese toastie combinations
Now that we’ve covered what to look for, let’s talk dream combinations. Here are a few of the experts’ favourite blends:
- Mozzarella + strong Alpine + sharp Cheddar: “You cover all the bases here with moisture, meltability, and bold yet not overpowering flavours,” says Brosen.
- Blue cheese + goat cheese + grated Parmesan: “I love mixing in a blue for intensity and a goat for creaminess,” says Greenspan. He adds grated Parmesan on the outside for extra crisp.
- Stilton + mozzarella: Carver recommends adding a little mozzarella to soften Stilton’s famous bite. “The mozzarella helps to balance out some of that funk while also adding a bit of stringiness,” he says.
- Smoked mozzarella + mild Cheddar: “I love the high moisture and the surprise element of woody smokiness, but only use this in conjunction with other cheeses because I like the smokiness to be on the more mild end,” says Brosen. A mild Cheddar adds a familiar, creamy base.
- Raclette + Cheddar: Raclette melts as well as mozzarella, but has a more pronounced flavour, often described as rich, creamy, tangy, and slightly nutty in taste. “It offers the next best level of melting, but with a lot more flavour,” says Carver says. He suggests pairing it with Cheddar.
That said, you should find the combination that works best for you. The key is to find a balance between moisture content, meltability, and flavour profile. Get those elements right, and you’ll be that much closer to making the cheese toastie your younger self could only dream about.
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Richard Chachowski is an entertainment, travel, and lifestyle writer who has written for such publications as Parade, Allrecipes, Complex, Fangoria, and Looper, among many other outlets. He received his BA from The College of New Jersey and has been a professional writer since 2020. When he's not busy lounging around in an airline seat, he's likely to be found at home engrossed in a book, all the while fending off his ornery Shih Tzu, Molly.
Linzi joins the Good Housekeeping team as Kitchen Manager, looking after the brand-new, state-of-the art test and demo kitchens based in the heart of Leicester Square. With over a decade of experience producing food content for leading brands, she’s won awards for her recipes, battled Christmas dinners in July, and spent a lot of time pondering the next big food trend (no more pistachio, please!) Originally from the North East of Scotland, she lives in West London with her Italian husband and twin daughters, feeding them a variety of haggis and ragu - depending on the mood!
