Welsh Rarebit

Tempo

25 min

Picante

Dificuldade

Médio

Rende

4porções

Ingredientes

25 g

butter

1 tbsp

plain flour (farinha de trigo)

100 ml

strong ale or stout (cerveja escura — Guinness or any *cerveja preta*)

1 tsp

Worcestershire sauce (molho inglês)

1 tsp

English mustard (mostarda inglesa, e.g. Colman's; or Dijon as sub)

Pinch cayenne pepper (pimenta caiena)

200 g

mature cheddar, grated (queijo cheddar maturado, ralado)

egg yolk

slices thick country bread, toasted on both sides

Modo de preparo

01**Roux.** Melt butter in saucepan. Add flour; stir, cook 1 min — pale, foaming.
02**Beer.** Pour in beer slowly, whisking. It will lump; keep whisking till smooth. Bring to a simmer.
03**Flavour.** Add Worcestershire, mustard, cayenne. Stir.
04**Cheese.** Off heat, add grated cheddar a handful at a time, stirring until melted and glossy. Don't return to heat — it'll split.
05**Yolk.** Beat in egg yolk last. The mix should be very thick — almost spreadable.
06**Toast bread** under grill/broiler on both sides. Don't toast all the way — just dry it out and brown the surface.
07**Top + grill.** Spread cheese mix thickly on toast. Broiler on high, top shelf, **2-3 min**, until bubbling and dappled brown. Watch like a hawk.
08**Serve immediately**, with Worcestershire on the side.

Welsh Rarebit

A glorified posh cheese-on-toast. Beer-thickened cheese sauce loaded with mustard and Worcestershire, broiler-bubbled till blistered. Ridiculous and perfect.

Heat: 1/5. Mustard + cayenne. Easy to dial down.

Tame it

Skip cayenne; halve the mustard.

Sub: bottled chiles only

N/A — not a chile-forward dish.

Substitutions (Brazilian sourcing)

Mature cheddar: sold at Empório Santa Maria, Pão de Açúcar's premium section, or use a mix of Cheddar Polenghi (mild) + Parmesão ralado (sharp) for closer flavour. Avoid the bright orange "cheddar tipo americano".
Stout: any dark beer. Guinness imported costs a fortune in BR; Eisenbahn Dunkel or even a porter is fine.
Worcestershire / molho inglês: Cepera or Lea & Perrins in São Paulo.

Notes

Buck rarebit: add a poached egg on top after grilling.
Pub-style serving: cut crusts off; cut into 4 triangles per slice.
Sauce keeps in fridge 4-5 days, sealed. Bring to room temp before broiling onto toast.