Stanley Tucci's Italian-Inspired Toastie Proves Simple Can Still Be Indulgent

Actor and author turned culinary internet sensation Stanley Tucci adores Italian comfort food. Growing up in an Italian-American family in Westchester, New York, it's no surprise that Tucci's last meal would be a multi-course Italian extravaganza or that he has strong opinions on how certain foods should be prepared, from roasted branzino to spicy beef bolognese. To the delight of his fans and the general public, Tucci took to his Instagram during the pandemic to share a few of his favorite simple and comforting recipes, like eggplant parmesan and a powerful negroni, and his tradition of bringing viewers inside his cozy home continues today.

Simple yet indulgent, one of Tucci's recipes typifies the warm and homey fare his kitchen has become famous for: a cheese toastie. "In the colder months of the year I think it's important to eat a lot of sandwiches," he writes on his Instagram. "This is one of my favorites." A cheese toastie is a Briticism for what Americans will know as a grilled cheese sandwich. Tucci's Italian-inspired version includes prosciutto cotto, mozzarella, tomato, basil, salt, and olive oil — perfect for when the temperatures start to drop outside.

To build his elevated grilled cheese sandwich, cookbook author Stanley Tucci starts with olive oil in a hot pan — he doesn't specify which variety of olive oil he's using, but you can follow our guide to find the best brand of olive oil for your own kitchen. He also adds a dab of olive oil to his bread slices, which will help them achieve an evenly crisp toast. Along with the bread, Tucci calls for Italian ham, specifically prosciutto cotto. Prosciutto cotto is actually a cooked ham, as opposed to a purely dry-aged prosciutto. This slowly cooked ham is super tender and quite light in flavor, perfect for pairing with other strong ingredients.

To put the cheese in his cheese toastie, Tucci adds fresh mozzarella. Buffalo mozzarella is our choice for the best caprese, so we think Tucci would approve of it here as well. On top of his mozzarella, he adds slices of tomato, basil leaves, and a little bit of salt. The salt is essential to help wake up the flavors of the tomato, so make sure you're salting the tomato as opposed to the cheese. Tucci presses his toastie into the hot pan with a grill press, resulting in a satisfying sizzle. 

For an even-more-indulgent flavor, Tucci adds a pat of butter when he flips his toastie to give both sides an even sear. Once the toastie is definitively browned on both sides, Tucci takes a bite of his "mozzarella in carrozza," or fried mozzarella sandwich. The look on his face alone should have you running for your frying pan.