Cheese and Open Flames Don't Mix

Funny I should mention this, there has been a small rash of cheese and grill related entries here on Men in Aprons. During this time, though, I have come to realize that when it comes to grilling, cheese should be used sparingly and in brief spurts.

You see, when I first cooked the unholy chicken, I had a major problem with fire. And I don't mean fire from the grill, I'm talking full-blown fire from the bacon grease, chicken grease and burning cheese. The cheese spurted out of the chicken breasts, despite my best efforts in toothpick securing. And thought I wasn't surprised by this turn of cheesy events, it did solidify my opinions now that cheese and grills don't mix.

Turning the clock back a few years, TheWife and I tried this hamburger recipe where you put cheese into the center of the patty. "Oooo," we thought, "cheese in the patty." But that was wrong. Again, it was a flame mired mess.

You see, when you make dishes like this, you have to consider what is going on. The meat of the hamburger or chicken cooks on the grill and it shrinks back as the fat renders off. At the same time, the cheese wants to liquify and expand under the heat of the grill. Combine the two scenarios and you have a mess, or even a fire hazard.

The best use of cheese and the grill is on burgers ... ON burgers. Some of the best tasting grilled burgers are those that have cheese melted on top in the last 2 minutes of cooking. The cheese slowly melts down, but doesn't touch the grill grates or the open flame.

Of course, most of this just my opinion, which is based on the frustrating reality of my situations. If you have your own opinions about cheese and the grill, by all means leave a comment and let me know.