By: Jill Mills Updated: Mar 22, 2023

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This Bacon Grilled Cheese is a masterpiece of flavor with American, cheddar, and parmesan cheese and thick-cut bacon on sourdough bread. It’s a guaranteed lunchtime hit!

Bacon grilled cheese on a plate with parsley.

This recipe is extremely simple (just like any grilled cheese should be) but it tastes like a gourmet sandwich you would get at a fancy restaurant. Serve it with some soup or chips, and it’s super filling too! Once you make a bacon grilled cheese, you’ll never want to go back to the original.

Why This Recipe Works

Extra buttery and gooey. Every bite of this sandwich is filled with buttery bread, crispy bacon, and gooey cheese. What could be better?
Super quick. Basically all you have to do is assemble the sandwich, cook it in a pan, flip it, and cook it some more. Easy!
Adaptable. You can do so much with a recipe like this to make it your own. Add some tomato slices, switch up the cheese, etc. For more suggestions, check out the tips section below.

Watch the Recipe Video!

Check out this video to see the grilled bacon cheese come together in just a few simple steps:

Key Ingredients

To see the exact ingredient amounts and the full set of directions, scroll down to the recipe card below.

Bread – I like using sourdough for this recipe, but any kind of bread will work like our homemade white bread.
Cheese – I use a combination of American, cheddar, and parmesan cheese. You can use your favorite blends, though.
Bacon – You will need thick-cut and cooked bacon, or you can use turkey bacon instead.
Mayo or butter – I personally enjoy mayo over butter. Mayo adds another flavor element, and makes it harder to burn the outside of the bread because it has a lower smoke point. However, feel free to use butter as well.

How to Make a Bacon Grilled Cheese

Assemble the sandwich. Spread some mayo on one side of each slice of bread. Next, heat a cast iron or griddle over medium-low heat. Once hot, put the mayo side of one slice down on the pan and top it with cheese. Add bacon, then top with more slices of cheese. Set the other slice of bread on top with the mayo facing upwards.
Cook the sandwich. Allow the sandwich to cook for 3-4 minutes on each side until lightly browned. Place the cooked sandwich aside and continue until you have used up the cheese and bread. Top with some grated parmesan cheese and serve immediately. Enjoy!

Bacon grilled cheese on a plate with a bowl of parmesan cheese.

Tips & Variations

Keep the sandwiches warm while you cook. Keep your sandwiches warm by putting your oven on the lowest temperature and setting them on a baking sheet in the oven.
Switch up the cheese. You can try other cheeses like mozzarella, provolone, Swiss, pepperjack, etc.
Cook the bacon according to your preferences. You can make the bacon as crispy as you like. We like to cook bacon in the air fryer for ease.
Use another kind of bread. Other bread that tastes good with this recipe is Italian, white, wheat, potato bread, etc.
Low heat on the stovetop ensures that the cheese inside melts. This also helps the outside not get burnt. Once the inside cheese has melted, you can raise the heat a bit to get that nice crispy outside on the bread. It takes longer to cook, but the results are always perfect!
Add veggies. Take your grilled bacon cheese to the next level by adding a couple of fresh tomato slices. Sliced jalapenos or onions would also be good.

Sliced bacon grilled cheese sandwiches on a plate.

Serving Suggestions

Soup: One of my all-time favorite sides to serve with a grilled cheese is tomato soup! Broccoli cheddar soup and butternut squash soup are also good options.
Veggies: You can serve your bacon grilled cheese with vegetable sides like baked zucchini spears or oven roasted asparagus, too.
Salad: Grilled cheese sandwiches pair wonderfully with a light salad. I’m particularly fond of avocado salad and broccoli salad!

A stack of bacon grilled cheese sandwiches.

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5 from 1 vote