Grilled cheese is a classic American sandwich, easily winning over people’s hearts and bellies more than peanut butter and jelly, according to a survey by Talker Research. The indulgent dish has seen its fair share of unique interpretations, from Five Guys’ flipped sesame seed bun featuring perfectly runny American cheese to the fancy fusion food take served at Beauty & Essex in New York: the grilled cheese, smoked bacon, and tomato soup dumplings that hit the holy trifecta of comfort food. But safe to say, nothing could’ve prepared cheese enthusiasts for the world’s largest grilled cheese created by Midwest brothers Iggy and Exodus Chaudhry.
This shockingly large sandwich weighed in at just over 418 pounds, 21% of which was pure, cheesy goodness, making it a prime example of a Guinness World Record that took food to ridiculous extremes. Measuring 10 feet and 10.7 inches long by 6 feet and 2.4 inches wide, the monstrous grilled cheese made it into the record book in October 2023. What makes the enormous feat even more impressive is that the Chaudhry brothers behind it were only 10 and 11 years old at the time, although they did have help from a team of people.
And it wasn’t all for show either, nor was it just for the sake of shock value. The brothers took advantage of the moment to set up a fundraiser for food banks in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Leftover slices were also donated to local food banks.
Read more: The Most Iconic Sandwich In Every State
How the biggest grilled cheese of all time was made
People gather around as a judge measures the world’s largest grilled cheese – The Exodus and Iggy Show / YouTube
Of course, a plain ol’ pan wouldn’t be enough to create a world-record-breaking sandwich. With the help of the community around the Chaudhrys, a custom-welded pan was created just for the occasion, which took almost a month to finish. And it was massive enough that it even had to be transported to the venue by a trailer. The process of actually getting it out of the vehicle required some effort with a forklift and a chain, with a couple of people overseeing everything to make sure the grilled cheese would be safe and sound. To set the stage, it was placed on cinder blocks and covered with the welding pan — a little pressure creates the ultimate crispy grilled cheese, after all.
There were two criteria for considering it a well-made grilled cheese worthy of the world record: The outer layers should be browned and the cheese must achieve melty perfection. While it might not be the crispiest grilled cheese anyone has ever had, the bread managed to reach caramelization, creating a nice, brown finish. The Milwaukee-based brothers even shared their process on their joint YouTube channel, which has 3.14 million subscribers as of writing. They continue to post exciting content, mostly about their travels. We’re unsure if they plan to attempt another food-related world record, though something like the biggest PB&J sandwich would be equally exciting, wouldn’t it?
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Read the original article on Chowhound.
