This Cheese Never Belongs On A Burger, According To Bobby Flay

Nothing says summertime backyard cookout better than a freshly grilled cheeseburger, each bite a perfect blend of juicy beef and melty cheese. But you have to use the right cheese, otherwise it might not melt — or worse — have an off-putting texture. For Bobby Flay, there's one popular cheese he'll never put on a burger, giving the thumbs-down to cheddar.

Flay said that cheddar doesn't melt well and "kind of sweats" instead, in his BBQ Burgers video class for Food Network. Cheese with higher moisture and fat content has a lower melting point (and therefore melt better), as opposed to drier, harder cheeses. Aged cheese, which lose moisture over time, can become oily, greasy, or grainy when heated, which is not what you want happening on your burger.

Cheddar is known for being sharp and tangy, depending on how long it's aged. Mild cheddar can be aged three to six months; sharp cheddar may be aged nine to 12 months; and extra sharp cheddar could be aged up to two years. While using sharp cheddar on a burger would be a problem, as Flay described, because it's dry and crumbly, if you really have a hankering for a cheddar cheeseburger, try a young, mild cheese, which will be creamier and easier to melt.

He rejected cheddar, but Bobby Flay also spoke about the kinds of cheese he does like to melt over his burgers, naming fontina, Monterey Jack, and American as favorites. He further said that he always doubles up with two slices of cheese, creating a thicker layer on the patty. Flay's best tip for perfectly melted cheese on burgers involves sprinkling the grill with water to create a little slice-melting steam.

Fontina is a creamy Italian cheese with a buttery, nutty flavor. It will also become harder as it ages, however, so a younger fontina is best for burgers. (It's also the absolute best cheese for a tuna melt.) Monterey Jack is a smooth, semi-soft cheese that has a mild flavor. Pepper jack, a Monterey Jack variation with spicy peppers, would be a good choice to give your cheeseburgers a kick of heat.

American is the traditional, classic choice, the cheese that topped every childhood cheeseburger you ever had. For all the trash talk it gets for not being "real" cheese, American cheese is the perfect choice for melting. In fact, the cheese is made to be that way. American cheese features a real cheese base — commonly mild cheddar or Colby — with other ingredients like milk, water, salt, and an emulsifier added to the mix. This gives it a very low melting point, producing that ideal cheeseburger melt you can happily sink your teeth into.