Why You Should Avoid That Overrated Grilled Cheese Toaster Hack

A grilled cheese sandwich is one of those foods that takes you right back to childhood — back before jobs, taxes, and other adult responsibilities. While it's simple enough to make with just two or three components, mastering the perfect grilled cheese can be a rather time-consuming process, not always suitable for a quick bite. Then along came videos of viral TikTok toaster grilled cheese hacks (as well as its social media cousin, the toaster quesadilla). However, there is a compelling reason why you should skip the toaster grilled cheese.

This grilled cheese hack involves putting together slices of bread with cheese in between, and then turning the toaster on its side so that, when the coils are fully heated, the cheese doesn't drip down. Well, that all sounds good, except that when you turn the toaster to one side, the leftover crumbs, as well as any new ones introduced by the fresh bread, are then pushed into the heating coils. This can cause them to ignite and create a fire hazard along with your lunch.

There are plenty of other ways to make grilled cheese sandwiches quickly and easily, and these techniques don't involve potential fire hazards. You don't even have to use a different appliance, you can still stick with your toaster. Just pop your bread and cheese into a silicone sleeve known as a Toastabag. This provides a barrier between the toaster and the bread and cheese, and it allows you to keep the toaster upright when using it, too.

If you decide you don't need a toaster, you can also air fry a grilled cheese sandwich by placing the sandwich into the appliance, setting the temperature at 380 degrees Fahrenheit, and letting it cook for a few minutes on one side, then a few minutes on the other (or until you like how dark the bread is and how melty the cheese). You can also use your toaster oven in much the same way, except that you'll use the bake function. For this, you'll set the temperature between 425-450 degrees Fahrenheit and cook for up to four minutes on each side, again stopping when the sandwich reaches your preferred level of ooey-gooey crustiness.