How to Make a Croque-Monsieur Sandwich

Votes: 2

Time: 25 min.
Complexity: easily
Servings: 4

A step-by-step photo guide to making a Croque Monsieur ham sandwich.

The croque-monsieur originated in French cafes and bars as a quick snack, and owes its name to the combination of the words "crunch" and "monsieur." Interestingly, there's also a "feminine" version of the dish, topped with a fried egg—the croque-madame. The sandwich first appeared on a Parisian cafe menu in 1910, and by 1918, it was mentioned by writer Marcel Proust in the second volume of his "In Search of Lost Time" series. Pair the sandwich with a Merlot wine.

The recipes use measuring containers with the following volumes:
1 glass (st.) - 250 ml.
3/4 cup (st.) - 180 ml.
2/3 cup (st.) - 160 ml.
1/2 cup (st.) - 125 ml.
1/3 cup (st.) - 80 ml.
1/4 cup (st.) - 60 ml.
1 tablespoon (tbsp) - 15 ml.
1 teaspoon (tsp) - 5 ml.
1/5 teaspoon (tsp) - 1 ml.

Ingredients for the recipe:

Croque-Monsieur sandwich

4 slices of white country bread, 2 cm thick.
12 thin slices (230 g) Black Forest or any other lean ham
2 tbsp. (230 g) coarsely grated Gruyere cheese

Béchamel sauce

1 cup whole milk
1 tbsp (15 g) butter
1 tbsp flour
1/8 tsp. grated nutmeg
1/4 cup (30 g) finely grated Gruyere cheese

Ingredient Substitution Suggestions

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Recipes with similar ingredients: white bread, ham, Gruyere cheese, nutmeg, milk

Cooking the dish according to the recipe:

Make béchamel sauce.

In a small saucepan, heat the milk over medium heat until it's warm to the touch.

In a separate small saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the flour. Reduce the heat to low and cook, whisking constantly, until the raw flour taste disappears, about 2 minutes. Stir in the warm milk until smooth.

Grate nutmeg into the béchamel.

Add cheese.

Season the béchamel with salt and bring to a simmer, whisking constantly, until the sauce thickens, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the Gruyere.

Whisk until smooth.

Assemble the sandwiches.

Preheat the oven to high with the top heat setting. Place the bread on a baking sheet and top each slice with 3 slices of ham.