In this episode of Culinary Artisan, Chef Alex Chen applies his full attention to one of the most beloved comfort foods in the North American canon. The result: a unique Truffle Mortadella Grilled Cheese with sourdough bread from Terra Breads, Mortadella from Oyama Sausage & Co, Fontina and Taleggio sourced from Benton Brothers Cheese, and black winter truffles shaved over the top.

The inspiration behind this dish? Simplicity and memorable comfort food creations he tried around the world. There is a restaurant in Portugal that has been serving the same beef sandwich since the 1950s. A crusty bun, tenderloin, garlic. Nothing else. No dessert menu. No variations. And yet Chef Alex Chen describes it as one of the most life-changing things he has ever eaten.

"How could three simple ingredients be so life-changing?" he asks. "What it stands for — that is still being an ambassador for your environment, your local cuisine."

There is a particular kind of confidence that separates a good home cook from a great one — and it has very little to do with technique. It is the confidence of knowing exactly where your ingredients come from, exactly what your equipment will do, and exactly how those two things will come together in the pan. That confidence is what Chef Alex brings to this dish, and it is what makes something as simple as a grilled cheese feel like an act of complete mastery.

"The whole experience is not about grilled cheese," says Chef Alex. "It's about knowing I have the stove, the pans, I know the baker. I know where to buy the cheese, where to buy the Mortadella. How do I put it together, knowing that everything is not going to fail me?"

The grilled cheese is the simplest possible proof of that principle. There is nowhere to hide in a dish with four ingredients and a hot pan. What you bring to it — in sourcing, in technique, in the care you take with every small detail — is exactly what comes back to you in the eating.

The Recipe: Black Truffle, Mortadella & Taleggio Grilled Cheese

Serves 2–4 | Best served immediately

Ingredients

Every component in this sandwich has a provenance. Chef Alex encourages you to know yours.

1. Pre-sliced sourdough bread from your most trusted local bakery

2. Mortadella, sliced very thin from your best local deli

3. Fontina and Taleggio cheese, sliced from your trusted local cheesemonger

4. Fresh black winter truffles, for shaving — white truffles if you want to splurge

5. Quality unsalted butter

Method

Step 1 — Build the Sandwich

1. Butter the pan directly, or the outside of both sourdough slices generously

2. Layer Mortadella on the inside — sliced super thin, in quantity: the mouthfeel of delicate, layered ham bears no resemblance to its thick-cut equivalent

3. Add Fontina and Taleggio, distributed evenly

4. Shave black winter truffles over the cheese — this is not the moment for restraint

Step 2 — Cook Low and Slow

1. Heat the pan in the Wolf cooktop over medium-low heat

2. Place the sandwich in the pan and apply firm, even pressure with a chef's press

3. Cook slowly, with patience — the goal is a deep golden crust and cheese that has melted completely and uniformly

4. Flip carefully and repeat, maintaining consistent pressure throughout

Step 3 — The Finish

1. Remove from the pan and allow to rest for a moment

2. Cut cleanly and serve immediately

3. Consider who you are serving it to — this sandwich deserves good company

Cooking with Luxury Appliances in the Sub-Zero | Wolf | Cove Display Kitchen - Trail Appliances Richmond Showroom

The newly renovated Sub-Zero / Wolf / Cove display kitchen at the Trail Appliances Richmond Showroom, designed by SSDG Interiors Inc. is where Chef Alex brought this dish to life. For a recipe that rewards patience, precision, and complete reliability from every tool in the kitchen, this is the right environment to inspire possibilities for your kitchen renovation or new build.

"I have a Wolf range, a stovetop, and an oven, so I know the reliability. I know what I'm going to get out of it." - says Chef Alex

Present in his professional kitchens and his personal one, Wolf cooking appliances are what he reaches for with the kind of unthinking confidence that only comes from years of dependable performance. From the cooktop that delivers the sustained, even heat needed to colour bread without burning it, to the oven that finishes a dish with the consistency a professional kitchen demands — every Wolf appliance performs to the same uncompromising standard.

Sub-Zero refrigeration is built on a single, uncompromising premise: that the ingredients you bring home should still be at their best when you are ready to cook with them. Designed with a dual refrigeration system that keeps the refrigerator and freezer environments completely separate, Sub-Zero prevents the transfer of odors and maintains the precise humidity levels that preserve food at its peak — far longer than a conventional refrigerator can. For a sandwich built on ingredients as perishable and as prized as fresh truffles, Taleggio, and handmade Mortadella, that level of preservation is what ensures every component earns its place.

Cove dishwashers are engineered with the same exacting standards as the professional kitchen tools they clean, with flexible rack configurations designed to handle everything a cooking session produces — cast iron griddle pans, chef's presses, and delicate serving ware — in the same cycle, and wash performance powerful enough to cut through the residue of butter and melted cheese without compromising the integrity of your cookware.

Visit the newly renovated Sub-Zero | Wolf | Cove kitchen display at Trail Appliances' Richmond Showroom and experience what it truly means to cook with exceptional appliances.