Best Spices for Grilled Cheese

What do chefs put in a grilled cheese? Mostly mustard. Tyler Florence spreads Dijon on the bread,¹ and Alton Brown seasons his cheese with a mix of dry mustard, smoked paprika and black pepper.² Garlic, a little chile heat, fresh basil and grated Parmesan all work too. Just keep minced garlic off the outside of the bread, where it sits right on the hot pan.

At a glance

Seasoning	What it does	How to use it
Mustard (Dijon, grainy, or dry mustard)	Sharp tang against rich cheese	Spread on the bread, or mix the powder into the cheese¹³²
Garlic or garlic powder	Savory depth	Stirred into the butter for the outside of the bread
Smoked paprika, chipotle powder	Smoke and color	In a dry seasoning mix with the cheese²
Red pepper flakes, cayenne	Heat	A pinch over the cheese⁴
Basil	Fresh, sweet herb note	Whole or sliced leaves inside⁵⁶
Parmesan	Salt and umami	Grated inside or on the outside of the bread⁷
Onion powder	Mild sweet onion flavor	In the butter or the cheese

How named recipes season it

Recipe	Cheese	Seasoning
Tyler Florence (Food Network)¹	Farmhouse cheddar, with bacon and green apple	Dijon mustard spread on the bread; butter on the outside
Alton Brown (as reported by Chowhound)²	Extra-sharp cheddar and Gruyère	Dry mustard, smoked paprika and black pepper
Ina Garten (as reported by Tasting Table)³	Gruyère and cheddar	Dijon mustard
Martha Stewart (as reported by Tasting Table)³	Sharp cheddar	Grainy mustard

The seasonings and what each one does

Mustard

Mustard’s sharpness cuts through melted cheese. Tasting Table passes on a cheese educator’s advice: match the intensity of the cheese and the mustard, look for contrasting flavors, and pair a sharp cheddar with a strong mustard like Dijon.³ Prepared mustard goes on the inside of the bread, as in Florence’s recipe.¹ Dry mustard powder can go straight into the cheese, as in Brown’s mix.² See mustard powder, mustard powder vs. prepared mustard and mustard powder uses.

Garlic

Garlic and toasted bread are a familiar pairing. One way to add it is butter mixed with minced garlic or garlic powder for the outside of the bread. Watch the heat, though. America’s Test Kitchen warns that garlic in a hot pan can burn fast and turn acrid and bitter,⁸ and minced garlic on the outside of the bread sits right on the hot pan. Garlic powder is the safer pick there. An Iowa State extension recipe treats 1 teaspoon of garlic powder as equal to 2 minced cloves.⁹ See garlic powder vs. garlic.

Chile heat and smoke

For heat without extra bulk, a pinch of red pepper flakes or cayenne over the cheese is enough. Ground cayenne is usually hotter than flakes.⁴ For smoke, Brown uses smoked paprika.² Chipotle powder brings smoke and heat together, and “chipotle” has come to mean smoked jalapeños almost exclusively. Sliced fresh or pickled jalapeños inside the sandwich are another route, though they add bulk and moisture.

Basil

Basil, tomato and mozzarella is the combination of the classic Neapolitan cheese pizza, and cheese dishes are among basil’s uses in Italian cooking. Tuck whole or sliced fresh leaves inside the sandwich with the cheese. The LSU AgCenter notes that delicate herbs like basil lose flavor under long heat,¹⁰ so add the leaves when you build the sandwich instead of cooking them separately.

Parmesan

Parmesan adds salt and savory depth. America’s Test Kitchen calls aged Parmesan unparalleled among cheeses for umami.⁷ Grate it inside with the melting cheese, or press it onto the buttered outside so it crisps in the pan. See MSG and MSG substitutes.

Onion

Sliced onion, caramelized onion or a little onion powder in the butter adds a sweet, savory note that suits sharp cheddar. See onion powder vs. onion.

A starting point

Here’s a simple seasoned grilled cheese. Spread a thin layer of Dijon on the inside of each slice, add sharp cheddar with a pinch of smoked paprika or red pepper flakes, and butter the outsides, with a little garlic powder stirred into the butter if you like. Cook over moderate heat so the bread browns as the cheese melts.

Tyler Florence, “Grilled Cheese”, Food Network. foodnetwork.com · Publication ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴
Amelie Maurice-Jones, “You’ll Never Believe What Alton Brown Uses To Make A Grilled Cheese”, Chowhound, 2025. chowhound.com · Publication ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶
Katherine Beck, “The Bold Condiment To Make Your Grilled Cheese Pop”, Tasting Table, 2023. tastingtable.com · Publication ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴
“Red Pepper”, McCormick Science Institute. mccormickscienceinstitute.com · Merchant ↩ ↩²
Braden Phillips, “Pizza Margherita may be fit for a queen, but was it really named after one?”, National Geographic, 2022. nationalgeographic.com · Publication ↩
Aguilar, Pham Truong Thi Tho and Oyen, “Ocimum basilicum”, PROSEA. uses.plantnet-project.org · Reference work ↩
“Getting to Know: Umami Powerhouses”, America’s Test Kitchen (Cook’s Country). americastestkitchen.com · Publication ↩ ↩²
Liz Bomze, “Why You Should Wait to Add Garlic”, America’s Test Kitchen, 2023. americastestkitchen.com · Publication ↩
“Beef Stew”, Spend Smart. Eat Smart., Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. spendsmart.extension.iastate.edu · Reference work ↩
“Flavorful Herbs”, LSU AgCenter. lsuagcenter.com · Reference work ↩

Also drawn on

Paprika and Mexican chiles (Capsicum annuum), Gernot Katzer’s Spice Pages, Gernot Katzer. gernot-katzers-spice-pages.com

The Best Spices for Grilled Cheese: Mustard, Garlic, Heat, Basil and Parmesan