Croque Monsieur & Béchamel (Grandpa's Perfected Recipe)

diandracappelut
Jul 27, 2023
4 min read

Updated: Aug 1, 2023

Croque Monsieur is a staple comfort food for most French people. You can have it anytime - breakfast, lunch, or dinner - and it's sold in practically every boulangerie (bakery) in France. It's simple but oh so very delicious!

Croque Monsieur is basically an elevated ham and cheese sandwich with a secret sauce... Béchamel. Béchamel is a white sauce that adds an extra layer of creaminess and luxuriousness, and it is absolutely divine.

My grandpa learned how to make Croque Monsieur when he was only 14 years old working at his parents' bakery in France. Over time, from his work at bakeries across the nation to making it for the family at home, he has honed his skills and perfected this dish. It is one of my favorite family recipes and I am so excited to share it with you all!

The "Secret Sauce"

Béchamel is a MUST in a real French Croque Monsieur.

It's not a croque monsieur without it. I REPEAT, it is NOT a croque monsieur without it.

Now, there are two key ingredients that change the game in our béchamel...

NUTMEG & EGG YOLK.

The nutmeg gives the béchamel a depth of flavor that just blows your mind, and the egg yolks give the béchamel an extra richness that just hits the spot. Believe me, you've never had homemade béchamel as good as our recipe!

Gruyère VS Emmental Cheese

Traditionally, the croque monsieur uses gruyère cheese. However, I live in a place that doesn't have easy access to this cheese. So for those of you who have the same problem, the solution is emmental.

Emmental is slightly milder than gruyère, but honestly, it's still a great substitute. Your croque monsieur will still taste fantastic, don't worry!

It's All About The Layers

One of the keys to a great croque monsieur is how you layer the ingredients!

The right way to layer is:

Bread > Béchamel > Ham > Béchamel > Sliced Cheese > Béchamel > Bread > Béchamel > Grated Cheese with Milk

If you don't have this many layers, your croque monsieur will come out kind of sad really.

SO LAYER IT RIGHT.

Freeze your Croque Monsieur

For those of you who made one too many croque monsieurs, don't throw it away!

Freeze them.

After assembling the croque monsieurs (don't cook them yet), put them in a zip lock and store them in your freezer. They can last in your freezer for 1-3 months.

When you're ready for an easy meal, defrost the croque monsieur and stick it in your oven for 10 minutes. Easy!

Store & Reuse your Béchamel

Made too much béchamel? Stick it in your fridge.

Béchamel will last in your fridge for a good 3-4 days.

There are many other recipes you can make with béchamel! From all types of potato and vegetable gratins to fish pies, easy snacks, and more.

*Stay tuned to this blog for more béchamel-related recipes.

Turn your Croque Monsieur into a Croque Madame

All you need to do to turn your croque monsieur into a croque madame is add a sunny-side-up egg on top. A nice and simple way to add more protein to your meal if you ask me!

That's it, you guys! You're good to go and I hope you enjoy this Croque Monsieur recipe.

Don't forget to tag me in your photos on Instagram once you've made the dish - @diandracappelut.

I would love to see how your croque monsieur turns out!

Croque Monsieur

(My Grandpa's Perfected Recipe)

For 5 people

Ingredients

Béchamel

500 mL Milk
50g Salted Butter
50g All Purpose Flour
1 Egg Yolk
1/2 whole nutmeg, grated
Salt & Pepper, to season

The Croque Monsieur

Béchamel
10 slices White Bread (If you want a crispy sandwich, keep the crust. If you want a more creamy sandwich, cut off the crust)
5 slices Paris Ham (or any other ham of your preference) - each slice has to be big enough to cover the white bread
About 300g Gruyère or Emmental Cheese, 200g sliced and 100g grated. *Pro tip: I say get a bit more cheese, in case you feel extra cheesy
5 tablespoons of Milk

Preparation

Make the Béchamel

In a pan, heat up the milk until warm.
In a separate pan, melt the butter on low to medium heat.
Once the butter is melted, add in the flour and whisk until it is well incorporated with the butter. (At this point, the flour will thicken into dough-looking clumps).
Then add a ladle of warm milk into the flour/butter mixture, and continue to whisk. Continue adding the milk bit by bit until finished, and whisk, so that the béchamel can become nice and smooth.
Keep whisking until the béchamel is thick, smooth, and creamy. You'll know the béchamel is done when it starts to bubble at the center of the pan. Remove from heat.
Add in the grated nutmeg, egg yolks, salt, and pepper, then whisk well. Voilà!

Assemble the Croque Monsieur

Preheat the oven to 220 degrees Celcius.
On a slice of white bread, spread a tablespoon of bechamel.
Then, add a slice of ham on top of the bechamel.
On top of it, add another half a tablespoon of bechamel.
Then, add slices of the cheese.
Layer the cheese with another half a tablespoon of bechamel, then add another slice of white bread.
On top of the white bread, layer one tablespoon of bechamel.
Then, in a small bowl, lightly mix one tablespoon of milk with two tablespoons of grated cheese. Then, spread the mixture evenly on top of the bread
Repeat steps 2-8 to make the rest of the croque monsieur, and once ready, put it all in the oven for a total of 10 minutes (5 minutes of normal heat, and another 5 minutes of heat only coming from the top of your oven).
Serve and Bon Appétit!

Need help? Watch my Grandpa & I make the Croque Monsieur:

Note: In the recipe video above, my grandpa made béchamel according to a 1L of milk recipe. Use it if you'd like to make a big batch of béchamel and keep it in the fridge.

The ingredients he mentioned for the big batch of béchamel include:

1L of Milk
100g of Salted Butter
100g of All Purpose Flour
1 whole Nutmeg
2 Egg Yolks
Salt & Pepper, to taste

Cook it the same as the recipe above!

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