Cheese toasties are crispier if you ditch butter for a better ingredient

Cheese toasties are a beloved staple, typically enjoyed on grey, drizzly days — and with autumn fast approaching, there has never been a better moment to embrace everything warm, comforting and indulgent. Most people are confident they know how to rustle up a toastie, yet if your sandwich has ever emerged from the pan scorched or with stubbornly unmelted cheese, the culprit is likely the butter you used.

While butter lends a toastie a wonderfully rich flavour, it has a tendency to burn with ease, frequently resulting in charred bread while the filling inside remains disappointingly solid and unappetising. Home cook and founder of Jo Cooks, Joanna Cismaru, has revealed that butter is entirely unnecessary, arguing that mayonnaise produces a far crispier result. She said: "Mayonnaise is used instead of butter for a few reasons.

It spreads more evenly than butter, ensuring a consistent, golden crust. Mayo also has a higher smoke point than butter, which means it's less likely to burn while cooking."

Why make toasties with mayonnaise? Butter is comprised of milk solids, which are particularly susceptible to heat.

Toasties with butter on the outside have a tendency to brown rapidly before the cheese inside has had sufficient time to melt thoroughly.. This frequently results in unsightly black, burnt patches across the bread's surface, prompting most people to hastily remove the toastie from the heat before the cheese has had any real opportunity to cook through properly. Mayonnaise, however, is predominantly composed of oils, which are far more tolerant of high temperatures than butter, meaning it takes considerably longer to cook the bread.

Using mayonnaise simply helps the bread cook at the same rate as the cheese without burning so you end up with a sandwich that is crispy on the outside while gooey on the inside. The majority of the mayonnaise is absorbed into the bread during cooking, so it won't overwhelm the flavour — instead delivering a perfectly crafted, restaurant-quality toastie in just a matter of minutes.

You will need:

• Two teaspoons of mayonnaise
• 100g of cheddar cheese (shredded)
• 100g of mozzarella cheese (optional)
• Two slices of bread

Cheddar is the go-to cheese for a toastie, owing to its bold, rich taste, though it can turn rather greasy if used in excess. It is generally advisable to combine cheddar with a second cheese that has a higher moisture content, as this will melt more readily and lend the sandwich a far more satisfying flavour.

Mozzarella makes an excellent pairing, though Gouda or Emmental would work equally well should you prefer. Method:

Begin by spreading a generous layer of mayonnaise across the outer side of each slice of bread. Place a frying pan over a low-to-medium heat, then lay one slice of bread in the pan, mayonnaise-side down. Scatter the cheese evenly over the bread — don't be concerned if a little spills into the pan — then place the second slice of bread on top to complete the sandwich.

Cook the toastie for four to five minutes until it begins to turn golden, keeping a close eye on it and adjusting the temperature as needed. Once it appears thoroughly cooked, flip the toastie over and cook the other side for three to four minutes. After that, simply transfer it to a plate.

The finished toastie should be crispy, golden and delightfully gooey, with no trace of burning whatsoever.