Air Fryer Grilled Cheese Sandwich –, served with variations!

At a glance

What stands out: Air fryer grilled cheese are a standby grilled cheese sandwiches ever! No question about it, you’ll be convinced after the first bite. It’s fast and straightforward, too!

How long it takes: 15 minutes
Equipment you’ll need: air fryer, spatula
Servings: 1

A standby Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

If you love grilled cheese sandwiches, try using your air fryer for a standby grilled cheese sandwiches imaginable: crispy, never soggy or squished, with cheese that just melts evenly right into the bread. Using an air fryer to make grilled cheese sandwiches is a watershed event. You’ll never go back to a skillet sandwich.

We are a self-proclaimed grilled cheese queen.That’s a nicer way to say we're a grilled cheese junkie. In college, we were known for our nearly constant diet of grilled cheese sandwiches. Who doesn’t love melty cheese and toasty bread?! We just wish we would have had an air fryer back then.

You’ll also love Parmesan crusted pepperoni pizza grilled cheese. And sliders are basically a grilled cheese done en masse, aren’t they? Try ham and cheese sliders or turkey sliders, they’re real crowd pleasers.

Air Fryer Grilled Cheese

So straightforward! Bread, cheese, butter. It’s so simple, we almost hesitate to call this a recipe. In this post and in the recipe card, you’ll see instructions for a classic grilled cheese, along with lots of bread and cheese choices.

Straightforward to dress up. Don’t you just love fancy grilled cheese sandwiches? Different kinds of cheese, whole grain bread, mustard, deli meats, spinach (yes, spinach on grilled cheese is so good!), with tomato, with bacon, avocado, tuna, the list is endless.

What goes in

Bread

Choose your favorite kind of sliced bread. Whole grain bread is memorable but white bread is awesome, too. Try raisin bread, cinnamon swirl bread, or rye for a more unique treat. From-scratch no knead whole wheat bread is reliable for grilled cheese.

Ciabbata and sourdough make ultra-crunchy grilled cheese sandwiches. A bread with a lot of seeds and grains will also get crunchy, and those seeds and nuts in the bread will toast up a little and become ultra-flavorful.

Both thin bread and thicker slices will work, but your cooking time might change slightly, so keep an eye on it.

Cheese

Choose your favorite kind of cheese. Cheddar is tops: white, mild, sharp, extra sharp, Vermont, New York, farmhouse, Wisconsin, there are so many varieties of cheddar cheese. Provolone, mozzarella, and muenster are melting queens and will give you the most irresistible cheese pulls when you go to bite into your sandwich.

If you’re feeling a more adventurous try brie, gouda, asiago, feta, monterey jack, blue cheese, or a combination of cheeses. These possibilities are endless! Lately, we've been using pimento cheese on our grilled cheese sandwiches. It’s messy but so, so rich!

Butter

Use softened or spreadable butter. This is important because you don’t want to tear the bread when you’re spreading the butter. Trying to spread hard butter is frustrating!

Butter the outside of the bread, or if you like, butter the inside, too. Some people like to “butter” the bread with mayonnaise instead of butter because mayo has a higher smoke point and leads to a crunchy grilled cheese.

What kind of cheese is best for a grilled cheese sandwich?

Choose any type of cheese that melts well. Sharp cheddar cheese is a favorite because it’s so flavorful but there are so many kinds of cheese that work: Havarti, Swiss, munster, provolone, pepper Jack, Monterey Jack, soft cheeses like goat cheese or blue cheese, vegan cheese, the list is endless. If you love American cheese slices, go for it. It’s a classic combination!

Slice the cheese from a block or use pre-sliced cheese. Shredded cheese works, too, it’s just a little messier.

How it comes together

• Preheat your air fryer to 400°F.
• Spread butter on one side of each slice of bread.
• Place the cheese on the unbuttered side, and top with another slice of buttered bread, butter side out.
• Place sandwich on the rack in your air fryer. Poke a toothpick through all the layers to keep the top slice from flying off. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes, flip (remove toothpick), and continue cook for 4 to 5 minutes, or until golden brown. Enjoy!

Suggested Sides

Serve your grilled cheese sandwiches with from-scratch Instant Pot tomato soup or smoky roasted tomato soup for a classic meal. Grilled cheese sandwiches are reliable with from-scratch vegetable soup, too. Go all cheesy and serve the sandwiches with crockpot mac and cheese (ready in 2 hours) or microwave mac and cheese (ready in 10 minutes!). Keep things simple and serve your sandwiches with refrigerator dill pickles or from-scratch sweet potato chips that you make in a microwave oven.

Variations

Blue Cheese and Pear Grilled Cheese

This is a seriously classy grilled cheese sandwich. Ripe, juicy pear combined with blue cheese crumbles will make you feel like you’re at a fancy sandwich shop. A touch of Dijon mustard takes the flavor off the charts!

Bacon Avocado Grilled Cheese

What’s better than bacon and avocado? The creamy ripe avocado is the reliable complement to the salty, crisp bacon. Try this grilled cheese with sharp cheddar, or pepper jack for a spicy twist.

Grilled Ham and Cheese Sandwich

Sometimes the classics can’t be beat! A slice or two of thin sliced deli ham (or leftover ham!) is the reliable complement to a cheesy sandwich. Try this one with Swiss or cheddar cheese.

Tomato & Cheddar Grilled Cheese

Our favorite summertime treat when the tomatoes are at their prime! We like to make the grilled cheese with extra sharp cheddar and then pry it open and put a big juicy tomato slice in the middle of all that melty cheese. If you like the tomato warm, you could put it in right from the beginning, but be warned your bread might get slightly soggy this way.

Caprese Grilled Cheese

The reliable summer bite! Try big slices of fresh mozzarella cheese with lots of fresh tomato and basil. Level up by drizzling your bread with balsamic reduction before adding the fillings.

• Yield: 1
• Prep: 5 minutes
• Cook: 10 minutes
• Total: 15 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 slices bread (any kind, your choice)
• 3 to 4 slices sharp cheddar cheese (or any cheese you like!)
• 1 tablespoon butter, softened

Method

1. Preheat air fryer to 400ºF.
2. Spread one side of each slice of bread with butter. Place cheese on unbuttered side of bread and top with other slice of bread, buttered side facing out.
3. Place sandwich in air fryer, and poke a toothpick through all three layers to prevent the top slice of bread from flying off.
4. Air fry for 4 to 5 minutes. Flip, removing toothpick, and continue to air fry for 4 to 5 minutes, or until golden brown. Cooking time may vary, depending on what type of bread you use, and because air fryers can vary. Check the sandwich frequently to make sure it isn't getting overly brown.

Notes

Nutrition note: Nutrition information will vary depending on what type of bread you choose and how much cheese you add. The information below is calculated using white bakery bread, 3 ounces (4 slices) sharp cheddar cheese, and 1 tablespoon butter.

Blue cheese & pear: 2 ounces blue cheese; ½ ripe pear, thinly sliced; 2 teaspoons grainy Dijon mustard (thinly sliced apple is great, too!).

Bacon avocado & cheddar: 2 slices cooked bacon; ¼ ripe but firm avocado, cut into thin slices; 3 to 4 slices sharp white cheddar cheese, multi-grain bread.

Ham & Swiss: 3 slices deli ham, 3 to 4 slices Swiss cheese (or Monterey Jack), baby spinach leaves, if desired.

Caprese: Sliced fresh mozzarella cheese, basil leaves, thinly sliced tomato. Drizzle with balsamic glaze, if desired.