Bibimbap Inspired Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Bibimbap Grilled Cheese Sandwich Sizzle and Sear

This gourmet grilled cheese sandwich is sweet, savory, salty, and sour; just like the dish that inspired it; dolsot bibimbap! Bibimbap is a Korean rice dish cooked in a stone bowl with sautéed vegetables, topped with pickled vegetables, an egg, and some gochujang sauce. This sandwich includes sourdough bread that is grilled on both sides, mimicking the crispy texture of the bottom layer of rice in bibimbap. The sourdough's fermentation also adds a tang to the sandwich which can also be found in bibimbap. The sandwich also includes carrots and spinach to represent the sautéed vegetables, some pickled bean sprouts and cucumber, and it's topped with an egg and gochujang. Bibimbap in a sandwich form; pure bliss!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cucumber, peeled and diced
• 1 cup bean sprouts, rinsed
• 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup aged white cheddar, grated
• 1/4 cup gruyere, grated
• 4 tbsp. gochujang
• 4 tbsp. mayonnaise
• 4 slices sourdough bread
• 1 tbsp. butter
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup carrots, shredded
• Handful baby spinach

Vacuum Packaged Pickled Cucumber and Bean Sprouts Directions:

1. Place cucumber, bean sprouts, and apple cider vinegar into a vacuum packaged bag. Place bag in your chamber vacuum sealer (VP200 Chamber Vacuum Sealer, VP95 Chamber Vacuum Sealer, or VacMaster's best selling VP215 Chamber Vacuum Sealer) and run a vacuum cycle. Once the cycle is complete, you can use the pickles immediately or refrigerate them sealed for up to 24 hours.

Cheese and Gochujang Directions:

1. Mix together aged white cheddar, gruyère, and gochujang in a small bowl.

Browning the Bread Directions:

1. Preheat cast iron skillet over medium-high heat.
2. Spread mayo on one side of each of the slices of sourdough bread.
3. Place two slices of sourdough bread into the frying pan, mayo-side down. Push bread down with spatula to ensure it makes good contact with the skillet.
4. While bread is browning, spread mayo over the top-facing side of the sourdough bread.
5. Once bottom side of sourdough bread is browned (~3 minutes), flip the bread over and brown the other side for about 3 minutes, then remove bread from pan.

Cooking the Egg Directions:

1. Add 1/2 tbsp butter to nonstick skillet and heat over low heat.
2. Crack an egg into the skillet and cook until whites are set. Flip egg and cook briefly. You are going for an over-easy texture with a yolk that will run when broken.

Assembling and Cooking the Sandwich Directions:

1. Spread cheese and gochujang mixture over both pieces of toasted bread.
2. Layer shredded carrot, pickled cucumbers and beansprouts, and spinach onto one slice of toasted bread.
3. Return slice of the toasted bread with layered ingredients to the cast-iron pan over medium-high heat.
4. Cut the egg in half and quickly layer onto the toasted bread inside the skillet.
5. Complete the sandwich by adding the other slice of bread, face-down, to the slice inside the skillet.
6. Push sandwich down with hand or spatula, and cook each side of the sandwich for a couple minutes to allow cheese to melt.
7. Remove sandwich from skillet, cut in half, and enjoy!
8. Repeat sandwich assembly instructions for the second sandwich.