Air Fryer Grilled Cheese Sandwich
Let me offer up a grilled cheese image for you to set the mood...
^ from: delish.com - A grilled cheese is simple but is very tasty.
If you are fairly new to using an air fryer, it is best to start slow. So my first food/drink/cooking post on "John's Creative Space" involves a grilled cheese sandwich. I need to give you some back story before I share the cooking instructions.
I actually started to make a grilled cheese sandwich in a toaster oven before I tried making one in an air fryer. I followed instructions to an online video and applied them to the air fryer. I made two grilled cheese sandwiches in the toaster oven; one of them had bits of cocktail shrimp I chopped up. When I flipped over the sandwich that had the chopped cocktail shrimp, I had trouble flipping it over, and it came out wilted. It was still tasty.
I had used my PowerXL Air Fryer to make another grilled cheese sandwich. What I loved about the air fryer was that I could open the air fryer basket while it was cooking, and the air fryer would stop until I put the basket back into the air fryer. I also had to learn how to flip over the cooked food for meals that require flipping over or shaking the contents of the air fryer. One thing I learned about the air fryer is that it doesn't take long to toast bread. So some air fryer meals involving bread can be completed sooner than you think. As I became more experienced with the air fryer, I began being more fond of air frying food instead of microwaving them.
Now that you have some back story, let me get to the main point of this blog post. I am going to explain the main method followed by an improvised method.
Air Fryer Grilled Cheese Sandwich - Plain.
When making a grilled cheese sandwich from the air fryer, the key is to try to get the bread nicely toasted. A good way to add some flavor to the bread is to either spread mayonnaise on the bread or butter on the bread. I used butter in my cooking. Follow my lead.INGREDIENTS NEEDED:
- • two pieces of bread
- • butter or mayonnaise
- • a slice of cheese (your choice of flavor)
- • (OPTIONAL) either aluminum foil or air liner paper - to make cleanup easy
- • (RECOMMENDED) a spatula for flipping
INSTRUCTIONS:
1.) It is recommended to put in aluminum foil or air fryer liner paper for easier cleanup. So put in aluminum foil or air fryer liner paper in the inside of the air fryer basket. A lot of people suggest you pre-heat the air fryer. This recipe does NOT involve pre-heating the air fryer.
2.) The first part of this can be a bit sloppy as you prepare the bread to be toasted in the air fryer. Spread mayonnaise or butter on both sides of the bread- the bottom side and the top side. You are going to do this for both slices of bread. Place the bottom side of the bread into the air fryer basket.
2.) On the bottom bread slice in the air fryer basket, place a slice of cheese on top of it. Again- it is your call as to what flavor cheese slice you use. I used American cheese for mine.
3.) Place the top bread slice on top of the bottom side in the air fryer.
4.) Bread toasts fairly quick in an air fryer. Depending on your air fryer, your cooking times may be different from mine. This was one of my very first air frying attempts, so I went with a high temperature to cook at. I cooked my grilled cheese sandwich at 400°F for eight minutes, flipping halfway. At the halfway mark, open the air fryer basket. The air fryer will stop until you put it back in. While it is out, flip over the grilled cheese sandwich with a spatula. Once you flip it over, put the air fryer basket back into the air fryer to finish cooking. Be careful not to wilt the sandwich or make a mess trying to flip over the sandwich.
5.) Once the air fryer is done cooking the grilled cheese sandwich, lift it out of the air fryer basket using a spatula. Place it onto a plate or a paper plate and enjoy!
You can cut the sandwich in half with a knife or break it down the middle with your hands. You can sense the cheese strings if you pull the sandwich apart. The sandwich will be a cheesy delight for you to eat.
Air Fryer Grilled Cheese Sandwich - Tuned: Grilled Cheese Shrimp Sandwich.
Now let's improvise the grilled cheese sandwich recipe. You are applying the same method to making a grilled cheese sandwich, but you are also adding pieces of chopped meat to make it a more interesting grilled cheese sandwich. My first air fryer grilled cheese sandwich had pieces of chopped cocktail shrimp to it. You may also add something like chopped grilled chicken or maybe some small pieces of beef. However, to keep things simple, I will add cocktail shrimp to the recipe. I am adding this recipe to prove you can get creative with your meals. So enjoy this one!INGREDIENTS NEEDED:
- • two pieces of bread
- • butter or mayonnaise
- • a slice of cheese (your choice of flavor)
- • cooked cocktail shrimp, preferably from a cocktail shrimp ring bought from a grocery store
- • (OPTIONAL) your choice of seasoning for the cocktail shrimp
- • (OPTIONAL) either aluminum foil or air liner paper - to make cleanup easy
- • (RECOMMENDED) a spatula for flipping
INSTRUCTIONS:
1.) It is recommended to put in aluminum foil or air fryer liner paper for easier cleanup. So put in aluminum foil or air fryer liner paper in the inside of the air fryer basket. A lot of people suggest you pre-heat the air fryer. This recipe does NOT involve pre-heating the air fryer. Since this recipe involves cooked cocktail shrimp, it is best you refrigerate your cocktail shrimp and not freeze it. If the cocktail shrimp you are using is frozen, you will need to thaw it.
2.) The first part of this can be a bit sloppy as you prepare the bread to be toasted in the air fryer. Spread mayonnaise or butter on both sides of the bread- the bottom side and the top side. You are going to do this for both slices of bread. Place the bottom side of the bread into the air fryer basket.
3.) On the bottom bread slice in the air fryer basket, place a slice of cheese on top of it. Again- it is your call as to what flavor cheese slice you use. I used American cheese for mine.
4.) Take out some pieces of the cooked cocktail shrimp (I used four) and remove the tails of the cocktail shrimp. Then proceed to chop up the cocktail shrimp into pieces. Spread the chopped pieces of the cocktail shrimp on top of the cheese. If you want to season the shrimp, now is the time to do it. You can use any sort of seasoning you choose. Among seasoning options- salt, black pepper, lemon pepper, garlic powder, paprika, or whatever seasoning you prefer if you want to season the shrimp.
5.) Place the top bread slice on top of the bottom side and the shrimp in the air fryer.
6.) Bread toasts fairly quick in an air fryer. Depending on your air fryer, your cooking times may be different from mine. This was one of my very first air frying attempts, so I went with a high temperature to cook at. I cooked my grilled cheese sandwich at 400°F for eight minutes, flipping halfway. At the halfway mark, open the air fryer basket. The air fryer will stop until you put it back in. While it is out, flip over the grilled cheese sandwich with a spatula. Once you flip it over, put the air fryer basket back into the air fryer to finish cooking. Be careful not to wilt the sandwich or make a mess trying to flip over the sandwich.
7.) Once the air fryer is done cooking the grilled cheese sandwich, lift it out of the air fryer basket using a spatula. Place it onto a plate or a paper plate and enjoy!
Remember that this sandwich is the same as with the previous one but with cocktail shrimp. What you will get is not only the taste of the grilled cheese sandwich, but you also will be tasting shrimp with a cheese taste (and any seasoning you may have applied). Using store-bought material may seem cheap, but this is a simple way to level up a basic grilled cheese sandwich. This was meant to be a basic meal to prepare with a few advanced parts.
Other Considerations/Advanced Techniques.
If you become more advanced using the air fryer, you can try putting in something like grilled chicken pieces, beef crumbles, bacon bits, or anything like that to add to the grilled cheese sandwich instead of cooked cocktail shrimp. You may also want to try adding mixed vegetables if you are inclined. You be the cook- customize to your heart's delight!This is my first cooking post on "John's Creative Space." I will learn from this and try to come up with more complete and comprehensive posts in the future when I discuss food recipes. I will end this post for now. If you enjoy my work, please Subscribe/Follow my blog(s) in any capacity if you love my work and want to support me any way you can. Share my blog post(s) with others if you enjoy my work. Thank you for reading! Take care and be well.
Visit my JohnMarineDesigns Weebly site, subscribe to My Blog(s), and/or Follow on Bloglovin! Let's connect: | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Contact Me via E-Mail | Contact Me via Discord | Donate to Me (voluntary) |
Get Social With Me! | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Facebook (Friends) | Facebook (Fans) | YouTube | ||||
LinkedIn (professionals only) | TikTok | Discord |
Support My Creative Works! | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
JMDesigns | JMDesigns on Payhip | John on Envato | ||||
Patreon | Soundcloud | Bandcamp | ||||
Twitch | OpenGameArt | TurboSquid |