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British

Welsh rarebit

Non-vegetarian

Caws pobi

Thick toast spread with a savoury sauce of melted Cheddar, ale, mustard and Worcestershire sauce, then grilled until bubbling and golden. A classic British supper or snack.

Welsh rarebit is a British sandwich from United Kingdom, ready in about 17 minutes and made with cheddar, prepared mustard and wholemeal bread. It serves 4 and is rated easy to cook.

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Welsh rarebit: toast topped with a melted, browned cheese sauce
Photo: Worm That Turned / Wikimedia Commons · CC-BY-SA-4.0
Prep
5 min
Cook
12 min
Total
17 min
Serves
4
Level
Easy
Calories
376

Ingredients

4 slices

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Melt the butter (opens in a new tab) in a small pan, stir in the flour and cook for a minute. Gradually stir in the beer (opens in a new tab) to a thick, smooth paste.

  2. Step 2

    Off the heat, stir in the cheese until melted, then the mustard, Worcestershire sauce (opens in a new tab), pepper (opens in a new tab) and cayenne. Beat in the egg yolk (opens in a new tab).

    • 3 min

  3. Step 3

    Toast the bread on both sides under a hot grill until golden.

    Food cooking over a grill
    How it looks · Photo: Malte Luk on Pexels

  4. Step 4

    Spread the cheese mixture thickly right to the edges and grill until bubbling and spotted brown.

About this dish

Origin
Wales, United Kingdom · Commonly attributedMore food from United Kingdom
Dish
Lunch · Snack · Brunch · Sandwiches · Finger food
Cooking method
Broiled / grilled under heat, Toasted
Taste
savoury, rich, tangy, salty
Diet
Pescatarian · No nut ingredients · Low-carb
All labelsPescatarian · Non-vegetarian · Flexitarian-friendly · No nut ingredients · Pork-free · Beef-free · Low-carb · Calorie-conscious
Worked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Everyday · Minimal cleanup
Cook more with
Cheddar · Prepared mustard · Wholemeal bread · Butter · All-purpose flour · Beer
Techniques
Broiling · Toasting · Spice roasting (dry-roasting) · Roux thickening

Allergens

  • Contains: Milkfrom butter, cheddar, wholemeal bread
  • Contains: Eggsfrom egg yolk
  • Contains: Fishfrom worcestershire sauce
  • Contains: Wheatfrom all-purpose flour, wholemeal bread
  • Contains: Glutenfrom all-purpose flour, beer, worcestershire sauce, wholemeal bread
  • May contain: Soyfrom wholemeal bread
  • May contain: Sesamefrom wholemeal bread
  • Contains: Mustardfrom prepared mustard
  • May contain: Celeryfrom worcestershire sauce
  • May contain: Sulphitesfrom prepared mustard, worcestershire sauce

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

376 kcal per serving

Calculated

1 serving ≈ 127 g · recipe makes 4

Where the energy comes from

  • Protein 18%
  • Carbohydrate 23%
  • Fat 58%
Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
NutrientPer servingPer 100 g*
Energy376 kcal297 kcal
Protein17 g13.4 g
Carbohydrate21.6 g17 g
Net carbohydrate19.4 g15.3 g
Sugars1.8 g1.4 g
Added sugars——
Fibre2.2 g1.7 g
Fat24.1 g19 g
Saturated fat13.3 g10.5 g
Trans fat——
Cholesterol109 mg86 mg
Sodium547 mg432 mg
Salt equivalent1.4 g1.1 g
Vitamins & minerals per serving
Potassium
154 mg
Calcium
418 mg
Iron
1.4 mg
Magnesium
42 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)
228 µg
Vitamin C
0 mg
Vitamin D
0.5 µg
Vitamin B12
0.6 µg
Folate (DFE)
53 µg

How these numbers were made

  • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
  • *Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
  • Optional ingredients are not included: cayenne / chilli powder.
  • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
  • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

  • Toasting the bread first stops the cheese soaking in and keeps the base crisp.

Common mistakes

  • Melting the cheese over direct heat, which makes it stringy and greasy — stir it in off the heat.

Storage

  • The cheese mixture keeps 3 days in the fridge.

Variations

  • Buck rarebit: Topped with a poached egg.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Grouped by each ingredient’s role in the dish. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

What the dish is built around

Main ingredient

Used in steps 1, 2, 3

Reviews & corrections

Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

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