Banish Soggy Grilled Cheese with This Easy Hack

I take my grilled cheese, tuna melts, and croque madames very seriously. I butter the bread, not the pan, and use a grill press to ensure that both sides are griddled to a crisp, even golden brown.

I cook the sandwich slowly so that the cheese melts properly inside and because good things are worth waiting for. 

But there’s no point going to all that trouble just to have your meticulously made sandwich sog out before you get to eat it.

Because that’s what happens if you put a piping hot grilled cheese directly on a plate. Condensation builds up beneath the sandwich, undoing all your careful crisping and giving you a sandwich that might still be crisp on one side but is limp and unpleasantly moist on the other.

I’m not the only one who hates The Sog. It’s a matter of ongoing discussion with Executive Editor Hannah Crowley, who combats the enemy by simply tilting her sandwich slightly so that one end is on the rim of the plate and the other is on the main flat part, providing a bit of air flow underneath to whisk away moisture.

This helps, but the ends of the sandwich that touch the plate will still get a bit soggy, and the middle can sag, making the insides of the sandwich ooze out. (You also have to have a plate that has a significant drop between the rim and the flat part.)

I suppose if you were really serious, you could eat all of your toasted sandwiches off of a small wire rack set inside a quarter-size sheet pan—great support, maximum air flow. But that seems like a pretty clinical way to treat comfort food. (Although it's a good solution for a crowd!)

In my house, we came up with a solution that’s just as good and way simpler. Better still, it uses a simple tool that most people already have: chopsticks. 

All you need to do is set two chopsticks parallel to each other on top of a plate. Then, once your sandwich comes off the heat, lay it on top of the chopsticks. (If it’s a particularly thick sandwich, like a Reuben, you might need to use a third chopstick to keep the middle from sagging!)

You’ve got yourself a minirack—and one that’s more adjustable and easier to clean than a wire rack. 

Better still, you’ve got peace of mind—and sandwiches (or toast!)—that will remain perfectly crisp for as long as possible. Keep the sandwich on the chopsticks until you’re finished eating for maximum crispness.