Skip Plain Old Swiss And Upgrade Reubens With This Melty Cheese

Everyone knows that the classic Reuben is a locked-in concept. Any one of these sandwiches worth its salt should have corned beef, sauerkraut, Russian dressing, and famously holey Swiss cheese, all grilled in rye bread. The Swiss cheese is an essential element: it's mild and it melts easily, which works well with the other saltier and heavier fillings. It's like a little sandwich glue that holds the whole thing together without taking over other flavors. But while mild is good, mild can quickly become forgettable.

Using Gruyère instead of regular Swiss cheese will give you a much deeper flavor. And technically, we're not breaking any Reuben-purist rules here because it's still an alpine style cheese — it just has a lot more umami and depth to its taste. Plus, Gruyère is a good melter, just like Swiss, so you'll still get that gooey, cheesy center. 

Gruyère is most known for its use in hot dishes like fondue, French onion soup, or even as an underrated addition to mac and cheese, and it works the same pressed into a hot sandwich. Amongst all those familiar flavor combinations, it will still end up as something that reads like the Reuben you know and love ... just a little elevated.

The biggest difference in using traditional Swiss versus Gruyère comes down to the intensity of flavor itself. Gruyère is much more complex than Swiss, largely because it is aged for much longer. While the two cheeses can be directly swapped in for each other, you might want to go lighter on the Gruyère in your Reuben than you would with the Swiss – a little Gruyère goes a long way.

Instead of stacking several slices of cheese into the sandwich, you can just grate a small amount of Gruyère to ramp up the umami significantly. Another note: placing the Gruyère on both sides of the sandwich filling is key to help seal it all together. Once you've added the Gruyère, heat the sandwich over a medium heat pan and wait until you have both cheese that's fully melted and bread that is golden and crisp.

The Reuben's elements need the correct treatment, too. The sauerkraut should always be drained and dried before it goes anywhere near the sandwich to avoid making everything soggy, and giving the sandwich a good press will help the layers almost fuse together in a way that doesn't create excess liquid. With the right balance between some rich melted Gruyère, crisp bread, and properly prepped fillings, you can easily create a deli-worthy Reuben that's as rich and satisfying but from the comfort of your home.