We Eat Enough Grilled Cheese Sandwiches a Year To Fill 900 Olympic Swimming Pools

Corrie Duffy | Wealth of Geeks The Associated Press

A new state-by-state poll of 5,000 adults in the United States found a single average person eats 36 grilled cheese sandwiches per year. If everyone in the nation’s population were to eat the average amount in a year, it would be enough to cover 29,180 football fields with the classic sandwich.

As it is, Americans eat enough grilled cheese sandwiches in a year to fill nearly 900 Olympic-sized swimming pools.

Grilled cheese sandwiches are a beloved comfort food. They’re best for quick and easy weekday meals, feed cravings, and on warm up rainy days.

Americans love their grilled cheeses so much that it’s often considered the perfect meal to eat throughout the day. 62% agree that grilled cheese is best made at home, and 40% said they prefer eating it for lunch more than any other meal time.

In a interesting twist, Mississippians say they’d rather enjoy it as a breakfast option, while those in Kentucky found it best as an afternoon snack. South Dakota finds it perfect for dinner, and Oregon prefers to use them to curb late-night snack cravings.

No Right Way

There’s even a holiday. National Grilled Cheese Sandwich Day is commemorated every April 12. What better proof do you need that Americans are big fans of this easy-to-make sandwich.

Of course, everyone across the board has their preferences when it comes to their grilled cheese sandwiches.

The study, commissioned by Pepperidge Farm, conducted by OnePoll, asked what respondents believe the hypothetically “perfect” grilled cheese looks like. The top answer: two slices of American cheese on white bread, medium toasted, cut diagonally.

All agree the sandwich is a tried-and-true classic whose basic components consist of at least some form of melty cheese on two pieces of toasted bread. However, many states disagree on the intricacies involved in making the perfect grilled cheese sandwich.

Most agreed butter was the preferred coating for the grilling side of the bread. But even that gave rise to some controversy. Connecticut, Hawaii, Maryland, Mississippi, and Utah all prefer to butter the inside and outside. Meanwhile, California, Georgia, New Jersey, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Virginia all prefer to butter just the inside of the sandwich. And some substitute mayonnaise for butter or margarine. Sacrilege.

There was also plenty of debate on what else might go in between the slices of bread. Ham and bacon were the most popular additional ingredients to add across the states.

“The other day, I was talking to my French boyfriend, and he was horrified by what we eat for school lunches growing up and grilled cheese was a part of this conversation,” says Catherine Xu of Day Trip Nomad. “For them, something similar but mini-sized was only served as an appetizer very occasionally and everyone is only allowed max one at their cafeteria. Personally, I eat it with tomato soup when it’s there, but think it is plain (and unhealthy) as can be.”

Alabama, Arkansas, Iowa, Kentucky, Minnesota, Ohio, Tennessee, and Wyoming are purists when it comes to their sandwiches, opting to only use cheese.

Rhode Island stands out for its preference: choosing fresh tomatoes over everything else.

More than half agreed that American cheese was the best option for the sandwich.

Get That Bread

“We asked, and America answered: the right bread is crucial in making the best grilled cheese,” said Ama Auwarter, Vice President of Bakery Marketing at Campbell Snacks. “We couldn’t agree more. A bread that encapsulates that delicious, fresh-from-the-oven taste is bound to elevate every grilled cheese.”

While 43% said the bread-to-cheese ratio was “the most important component” in the sandwich, bread was found to be the most important in Connecticut, Maryland, and New York. The preferred types of bread to use are white, sourdough, and wheat. Across the board, all states agreed white bread was the best to use to craft the perfect sandwich.

Four in 10 said they prefer thicker bread over thinner bread, which is still preferred by at least 33%.

For many grilled cheese lovers, their preferred bread needs to be toasted well, crispy outside, hold the ingredients together, and have a soft inside.

The level of toastiness is up to some debate, however. Three in four said bread needs to be “medium” toasted, though states like California, New Mexico, and North Carolina prefer lightly toasted bread.

Florida and Maine both prefer their bread heavily toasted, though Colorado, Kentucky and Oklahoma all prefer their bread thoroughly burnt.

More than half agreed that slicing diagonally is the preferred way to divide a grilled cheese sandwich.

No matter how Americans prefer their grilled cheeses, they will remain a beloved classic. From diner menus to the perfect meal on a sick day, the grilled cheese is the ultimate comfort food.

This article was produced by Media Decision and syndicated by Wealth of Geeks.