Adding 1 ingredient to cheese toasties makes them extra crispy every time

Your cheese toasties will turn out crispier than ever if you ditch the butter in favour of one surprising alternative ingredient. With summer now firmly in the rear-view mirror, many of us are trading salads and barbecue fare for warming bowls of soup and hearty stews.

And few things complement a steaming bowl of soup better than a golden, crispy cheese toastie that can be dunked into the broth for a satisfying meal. Even if soup isn't your thing, cheese toasties make a thoroughly enjoyable lunchtime option when you're after something warming but don't fancy a full meal, or simply haven't the time to prepare something more elaborate.

The traditional method for making a cheese toastie, sometimes referred to as grilled cheese, involves spreading butter across two slices of bread, placing cheese on the unbuttered side, then grilling or frying the sandwich so the buttered surfaces crisp up while the cheese melts within.

However, one woman on is urging people to set aside the butter and reach for an altogether different ingredient to coat their bread, claiming it produces an even crispier result.

Inês Teixeira-Dias, who regularly posts cooking, crafting, and cottage country living content on her Instagram page, recently shared a video revealing that the "secret" to an "extra crispy" cheese toastie is mayonnaise.

She wrote on her video: "FYI [for your information], the crispiest cheese toasties have mayo on the outside, not butter."

The video demonstrated her spreading some mayonnaise onto one slice of bread and placing it mayo side down in a frying pan. She then added grated cheese on top of the slice and placed another slice of bread over it, this time with the mayonnaise facing upwards.

After one side of the bread had crisped up, she turned the sandwich over in the pan to toast the other side before serving.

Inês wrote in the caption: "In case you didn't have a [friend] to teach you in uni like I did, the best cheese toastie hack for extra crisp bread - mayo on the outside, not butter. You're welcome!"

Mayonnaise creates the ideal cheese toastie because it consists primarily of oil and doesn't contain the water present in butter, which means the bread fries immediately rather than steaming in the pan.

Moreover, the egg proteins accelerate the browning process, and it spreads easily straight from the fridge for a perfectly uniform, golden crunch.

Those commenting on the video were amazed by the straightforward adjustment that appeared to make such a significant difference, with many saying they had never thought of using mayonnaise on a cheese toastie previously.

One person commented: "You're a genius."

Another wrote: "Whaaaaatttt??? Why has no one told me this before?!"

How to make a cheese toastie

• 2 slices of thick white bread
• Mayonnaise (or butter if preferred)
• Grated cheddar cheese
• Coat the bread: Spread mayonnaise (or butter) over one or both sides of each slice of bread. If only coating one side of the bread, ensure that these sides are the outsides of your sandwich.
• Place in a pan: Add one slice of bread to a pan. If you haven't coated both sides, make sure the mayonnaise or butter side is touching the pan, and the plain side is facing up.
• Add cheese: Add your grated cheese to the slice of bread.
• Add the other slice of bread: Top the sandwich with the other slice of bread. If you haven't coated both sides, make sure the mayonnaise or butter side is facing up, and the plain side is touching the cheese.
• Cook and press: Heat the sandwich gently in the pan, pressing down gently on top to ensure the toastie cooks evenly and the cheese melts.
• Flip: After around three minutes, carefully flip the toastie over and cook the other side, repeating the pressing motions. Cook this side for another three minutes.
• Serve: Take the perfectly crisp toastie out of the pan, allow to cool for a moment, and enjoy.