If you’ve never made a grilled cheese using brie, you haven’t quite lived yet. This Brie Grilled Cheese is easy to make and bursting with flavour!
Brie makes the perfect sub in a grilled cheese because it has a low melting point, meaning it goes soft and gooey at just the sight of something hot. It’s subtle flavour also makes the perfect base to add in extra flavour. Speaking of extra flavour…
Brie and Caramelized Onions
Sure, you could just whack some brie between two slices of bread and fry it up, but when you add caramelized onions into the mix things just get 10x more glorious. Think this as a cheese and onion sandwich, but slightly sweeter and more gooey.
Caramelized Onions
Caramelized onions are a labour of love, but the end result is so worth it and SO much better than store bought caramelized onions. I recommend making a big batch in advance, just to make the time worth it. That we you can just chuck ’em in the sandwich and off you go.
What else could I add to a brie grilled cheese?
Brie actually welcomes a lot of different flavours. Most jams or chutneys work well in this sandwich, cranberry sauce and blackberry jam are my personal faves! You could even add in apple to make an apple brie grilled cheese. Bacon is also always welcome to balance out the sweetness with a little saltiness. Check out my Brie, Bacon & Cranberry Grilled Cheese on my other blog if you fancy! 🙂
Can I sub Camembert?
Camembert has a very similar texture to brie and also goes gorgeously gooey at the sight of heat. It does have a slightly more pungent flavour, but if you know you like it then for all intents and purposes it makes a great sub, yes!
Brie Grilled Cheese
Do I have to remove the rind from the brie?
If you’ve got the time and patience you can, but I personally never feel like it’s worth it. You usually end up removing half of the brie along with it. Plus the rind tastes perfectly fine and blends in with all the gooey goodness. You won’t even notice it’s there 😉
Fresh Thyme
I love adding a few pinches of fresh thyme, it pairs gorgeously with both the onions and the brie. But this is completely optional – still delicious without!
Process shots: add buttered bread to pan with heat OFF and add brie (photo 1), top with onions & thyme (photo 2), add buttered bread (photo 3), turn on heat and fry both sides (photo 4).
And there we have it! All my top tips for the best brie grilled cheese.
What to serve with a Brie Grilled Cheese?
- Crisp/Chip Recommendation: I love Bacon flavoured crisps with this (namely bacon frazzles!!)
- Side Recommendation: Perfect in a soup and a sandwich combo with Tomato Soup!
Alrighty, let’s tuck into the full recipe for this brie grilled cheese shall we?!
How to make a Brie Grilled Cheese (Full Recipe & Video)
Brie Grilled Cheese
Equipment
- Large Non-Stick Pan & Wooden Spoon
- Sharp Knife & Chopping Board
- Spatula/Turner
Ingredients
Grilled Cheese
- 8 small-medium slices of White Bread (Sourdough works great)
- 1x 9oz/250g round block of Brie, sliced into 12 wedges
- few pinches of Fresh Thyme (optional)
- Butter, as needed
Caramelized Onions
- 1lb / 500g Onions
- 1 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
- 1 tbsp Brown Sugar
- 1/2 tbsp Olive Oil
- 1/2 tbsp Butter (or more oil)
- Salt & Black Pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Caramelized Onions: Add oil and butter to a large non stick pan over medium heat, then add in onions. Fry for around 15mins, or until they start to soften. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper. Turn heat to low-medium then continue frying until they start to naturally caramelize and turn golden (another 10-15mins). Add in balsamic vinegar & brown sugar, turn to low heat and continue frying until soft, deep golden and sticky (15mins+). Don't let then catch on the pan and go crisp at any point, low and slow is the aim of the game here. If they brown at any point just lower the heat (see notes).
- Grilled Cheese: Wipe out pan and add two slices of bread with the heat OFF. Spread with butter then flip so they're butter-side-down. Add 3 wedges of brie each (or enough to cover), top with a dollop of onions and finish with a few pinches of fresh thyme (optional).
- Fry: Top each with another slice of bread and spread with butter. Turn heat to a medium and fry both sides until golden, with the brie just starting to spill out. Repeat with second batch and enjoy!
Quick Demo
Notes
If you loved this Brie Grilled Cheese Recipe be sure to Pin it for later! Already made it or got a burning question? Give me a shout in the comments below!
I have a big goofy grin on my face after reading this post ~ gonna make this today!!
That’s awesome – enjoy!!
I can definitely reccommend this combination! I lived in France and used Brie in everything and those onions just take it to the next level.
Love it!!
Where has this been all of my life?!? The addition of caramelized onions put this sandwich over the top good!
They absolutely do!! 🙂
This is my kind of a grilled cheese! Love the flavor combo.
Thanks Julia! 🙂
This Brie Grilled Cheese looks so delicious and pretty is easy to make. Bursting with flavour, I can’t wait to give it a try.
Hope you love it! 🙂