Waffle With Sausage, Egg and Cheese, Encrusted With Frico
Frico’s friends, crispy mac and cheese friends, and all you crunchy grilled cheese lovers out there, listen up: You’re going to love this latest breakthrough in sandwich engineering. You can top your breakfast with a crispy layer of Frico, and you should do so as soon as possible. Let this inside-out waffle sausage, egg, and cheese be your guide to many other pressed, cheese-crusted sandwiches.
A waffle iron is one of the best tools in your kitchen appliance arsenal. Obviously, they can make waffles, but what’s even more appealing is their ability to enhance the crispiness of anything they touch. Their unique shape consists of a variety of 3D cubes and tunnels that essentially equal the surface area of whatever you’re carrying. Waffle irons also provide direct, high heat. Both factors lead to an intense frico experience.
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Frico is simply cheese fried to the point of melting. It starts to brown and then as it cools, the cheese sets and becomes hard and crunchy. You can make small disks of frico for snacking if you fry them separately, or you can add cheese to the surface of pan-cooked foods, like pancakes , and create a thin outer shell of crunchy, salty cheese.
This breakfast sandwich combines the best qualities of a hot-press sandwich with the increased surface area of a waffle iron. I made this sandwich with sausage and an egg inside, but you can make it with any savory sandwich filling you don’t mind warming up. The magic is in the bread. Turn the bread upside down (if using a bun) and place the cheese on that side. This is the surface that will press against the hot waffle iron. I think the open crumb texture holds the cheese and fat better than the other side of the bun. If you are using sliced sandwich bread, either side will do.
How to Make a Frico Breakfast Sandwich Inside Out
Prepare the ingredients
First, preheat your waffle iron. Take two sides of the roll and turn them over so the open crumb side is facing up. Spread a thin layer of mayonnaise or butter on the roll. Sprinkle grated Parmesan or cheddar over the mayonnaise and press down to ensure the cheese adheres well. Boil the egg in a frying pan. I usually specifically break the yolk in the pan because I don’t want any surprises in the waffle iron. Fry the egg until it is set; it will have more time to heat up in the iron. If you use meat, be sure to waffle it first .
Place the sandwich cheese side out
The cheese releases a lot of fat, so you don’t have to grease the waffle iron. However, if you’re intimidated by a different waffle experience, I completely understand. If you want, you can spray it with oil first. Place the first bun on the waffle iron, cheese side down. Add egg and sausage to bread. Top the sandwich with the other side of the bun, this time cheese side up. Close the waffle iron and press down for about 30 seconds to ensure good contact. The waffle iron’s indentations should grip the soft bread and leave hard indentations. Let it sizzle for two to five minutes, depending on the temperature of the waffle iron.
Check for a good crust
Check it when you hear a sizzle and see the fat running down the side of the sandwich. Carefully lift the top. The bread should release easily from the waffle iron and you will be able to see if the cheese is browned enough. The surface of the cheese should be firm, not sticky or oozing. The color should be dark brown and relatively uniform over the entire surface. Using a couple of forks, carefully remove the sandwich and let it cool on a cooling rack.
As soon as you cut into the sandwich or take a bite, you’ll notice that the surface of the bread is completely covered in the crust of the toastiest frico you’ve ever tasted. It gets so crispy, dense and salty that I can only describe it as a savory version of candied cheese bread. The juicy sausage and egg inside will give you even more confidence that this was the best choice for today’s breakfast.