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Easy Traditional Welsh Rarebit | Toast With Cheese Sauce

Quick and Easy Recipes· Vegetarian Recipes

Welsh Rarebit is a robust cheese sauce made with a nutty roux, beer, sharp cheddar, mustard, worcestershire and a pinch of cayenne.  This cheesy goodness is drizzled over toasted bread and is traditional pub fare dating back to the 1700’s.  The original cheese toast. If you don’t want beer, just substitute wine or apple cider, easy!

Welsh Rarebit on toasted baguette.

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Table of contents

  1. What is Welsh Rarebit?
  2. Welsh Rarebit Tips
  3. How To Make Welsh Rarebit Step-by-Step
  4. More Cheesy Recipes

What is Welsh Rarebit?

Good question. Being an American from across the pond, I am not the authority on Welsh Rarebit, a British comfort food with a nod to the Welsh for their love of all things cheese.  So naturally I consulted my favorite resource of all things unknown to me, Wikipedia, a venerable expert on cheese toast.

I am lacking in the British friend department so I turned to the internet after first reading about Welsh Rarebit.  After reading a bunch of variations on Welsh Rarebit and watching countless YouTube videos, I went down a virtual ‘rarebit trail’ and I was ready to dive right in.

Welsh Rarebit is a savory cheese sauce that is served over toasted bread.  If you ‘put an egg on it’, it is known as a Buck Rarebit or a Golden Buck.  Rarebit sauce tastes cheesy with a sharp bite and a little heat.

Welsh Rarebit is not Welsh Rabbit.

The most common variation of Welsh Rarebit is made with a medium to dark beer, mustard, cayenne and sharp cheddar cheese.  All of this goodness is added to a roux which is fat and flour cooked until golden over medium heat while whisking constantly.

Welsh Rarebit Variations

Other variations of Rarebit include adding the cheddar cheese and mustard to a béchamel sauce.

In addition to the roux, I added dark beer, sharp cheddar, dijon mustard (instead of dry mustard), black pepper, cayenne, nutmeg and Worcestershire sauce.  There is no need to add an egg yolk in this classic English sauce, it’s already velvety from the roux that you made.

You can also make Welsh Rarebit with tomatoes, asparagus, leeks, bacon, ham, onion or spinach.

If you want to make Welsh Rarebit without beer you can substitute apple cider.  I have made it with white wine once and it was delicious.

I think it would be fantastic to serve Welsh Rarebit with tomato soup.  What do you think?

Why is it called Welsh Rarebit?

Well, that depends on who you ask.  Rarebit seems to be a corruption of the word rabbit, first recorded in 1725.  There is no other use of the word rarebit other than in this dish.

Legend has it that peasants weren’t allowed to hunt rabbit on crown-owned lands and had little access to rabbit.  Rarebit may have been invented to substitute rabbit with another dish that looked the same.

Calling it Welsh is believed to be either a reference to the Welsh being perceived as foreign or inferior by the Brits or a nod to the Welsh’s love of cheese.  There was a similar dish in South Wales that included bread and melted cheese.

Francis Grose first defined the term Welsh Rarebit in his book, A Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue in 1785.

What IS certain, is that people agree to disagree.  What is your take on Welsh Rarebit?  Leave a comment and let me know.  Also share some rarebit recipes if you have any, I would be delighted to hear how other people make theirs.

Rarebit cheese sauce is very flexible.  You can make this British and Canadian by pouring it over fries for a Rarebit Poutine indulgence.

I hope you find this article useful and the following recipe devine:)  If you LOVE cheese, I double dog dare you to make this easy recipe.

P.S. Did you know that September 3rd is National Welsh Rarebit Day?  Yup, It’s official:)  So if you make this dish, share on social media with #NationalWelshRarebitDay…

Welsh Rarebit Tips

  • Rarebit can be stored in the fridge and will last up to one week.  It re-heats well and you can enjoy this all week long.  Don’t freeze rarebit, the cheese will make the sauce split when de-frosted.  Basically, it will look gross.
  • Because you can store this in the fridge, it is easy to make Welsh Rarebit for one person and have convenient leftovers for busy weeknights.
  • Welsh Rarebit is traditionally served on toasted bread.  I have used thin sliced sandwich bread and thick sliced baguette.  It is really up to your personal preference on what type of bread to serve it on, just make sure to toast it first so that it will stand up to the cheese sauce and not get mushy.  One of my favorites is to pour this amazing cheese sauce on toasted sourdough.
  • Serve Rarebit with your favorite soup.  I personally love this with tomato soup or if you want to keep your dinner entirely British may I suggest Saxe-Coburg soup?
  • Add some extras to change it up and even make it more hearty as a one dish meal.
  • Although originally designed for toast, Welsh Rarebit sauce is delicious over steamed broccoli and cauliflower too.
Welsh rarebit on toasted bread.

Step-by-step pictures on how to make Welsh Rarebit

Roux cooking in a pan.

Starting the roux with butter and flour.

Roux bubbling in a pan.

Almost perfect…

Roux finished in a pan.

Perfect golden color and nutty smell! Done:)

A golden roux in a pan.

Now add your liquid, stir, add rest of ingredients…

Cheddar cheese on top of roux in a pan.
Toasted bread on a baking sheet.

Ready to pour!  Bon Appetit:)

Rarebit on toast.

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Traditional Welsh Rarebit | Cheese Sauce On Toast. A cheese sauce made with cheddar, beer, mustard, worcestershire sauce and cayenne. A cheesy grown up grilled cheese.

Easy Traditional Welsh Rarebit

Yield: 6
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes

Welsh Rarebit is an amazing cheese sauce made with a nutty roux, beer, sharp cheddar, mustard, nutmeg and a pinch of cayenne. This cheesy goodness drizzled over toasted bread, extra cheesiness for me please! This easy and tasty recipe is traditional pub fare dating back to the 1700's. If you don't want beer, just substitute wine or apple cider, easy!

Ingredients

  • 3 Tbs all purpose flour
  • 3 Tbs salted butter
  • 1 1/2 cups of beer, your choice but an amber or dark is best (may sub white wine or apple cider)
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1/4 tsp cayenne
  • 1 Tbs dijon mustard
  • 1 Tbs Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/4 tsp nutmeg (optional)
  • 8 oz sharp cheddar chives, chopped for garnish
  • 1 baguette cut into 1 inch slices

Instructions

  1. In a medium sauce pan heat butter and flour over medium heat and stir constantly with a whisk until the roux turns a golden color and smells nutty.
  2. Add beer and stir well with whisk.
  3. Add pepper, cayenne, mustard, Worcestershire sauce and nutmeg, bring to a simmer.
  4. Add cheddar and stir well.
  5. Continue to cook until cheese is melted and sauce is well developed.
  6. Turn heat to low and stir occasionally while toasting baguette.
  7. Toast baguette either in a conventional toaster, toaster oven or under a broiler until golden.
  8. You may also toast bread in a skillet by coating bread with a light coat of olive oil or butter and browning on one side.
  9. Serve by plating bread, drizzling or pouring amazing cheese sauce over bread and sprinkle with chives.

Notes

Warning! This is a highly addictive substance! I once had it for breakfast, lunch AND dinner:) Prepare yourselves...

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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1/2 cup
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 398Total Fat: 20gSaturated Fat: 11gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 53mgSodium: 712mgCarbohydrates: 35gFiber: 2gSugar: 3gProtein: 16g
© Tina
Cuisine: British / Category: Easy Dinner Recipes

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. I love this recipe! I make this once and awhile and have it as an entrée for dinner with a salad. It has everything going for it, cheesiness, boldness and flavor. I also pour this over veggies.

    Reply

  2. Super glad I came across this. I’ve had welsh rarebit before and loved it. Going to make this tonight. Of course I love anything cheese so super happy about this. Thanks!

    Reply

  4. I have actually never heard of this, thanks so much for the in-depth explanation! The step by step photos was extremely helpful I also think this would pair well with tomato soup, or even carrots soup.

    Reply

  5. When I was a kid, I always thought it was Welsh Rabbit when I heard my parents talk about it. haha. I never knew the background to the recipe, though, and I loved reading about the history of the name in your post. I love the hint of nutmeg in your recipe, too. So perfect with the lager and sharp cheddar!

    Reply

    • I’ve heard that story a lot about thinking it was rabbit. I had heard the term but it did sound scary. This has become my favorite cheese sauce, I am going to toss it with pasta next time for a grown up mac & cheese:) Enjoy Amanda!

      Reply

  6. I feel so dumb that I’ve always thought welsh rarebit was some kind of meat! Not even because it looks like “rabbit” (I don’t think!), but because it’s “rare” I guess. My mind is blown that it’s an absolutely delicious-looking cheese sauce and I must have this in my life immediately!

    Reply

  7. I’ve never heard of welsh rarebit but now I have to have it! oozy gooey cheese on toast seems like something I want on the regular! Like Traci, I misread that as rabbit at first. The cheese here looks so creamy and savoury that I think a brunch date with these are in order!

    Reply

  8. I always hit up Wikipedia to make sure I’m doing a non-North American recipe justice before writing/posting it, haha. So I appreciated seeing that I’m not alone 🙂
    This cheese sauce is silky smooth perfection. The perfect thing to top off crusty bits of bread! This will be a great crowd-pleaser over the holidays.

    Reply

    • Wiki is always very helpful. I find all sorts of new cuisines just by searching ‘list of soups’ or ‘appetizers’ or ‘dips’ etc. You are not the only one.

      Reply

  9. I love how golden and creamy it looks! Food history is always so interesting, so thank you for including it, I’m a big history buff. I think Welsh Rarebit would be super tasty over some oven roasted cauliflower and broccoli, and I’m craving it now big time.

    Reply

  10. Gorgeous recipe and I really love the step by step! You make this one really easy, especially for someone who’s never made Welsh rarebit. And I did read this as Welsh rabbit LOL…how’d you know?! I love love love that there is beer in this recipe too…because beer cheese – yum!!! Thanks for sharing with us!

    Reply

  11. I’d heard of Welsh rarebit before, and admit to confusing it with rabbit when I was a kid. Now that you’ve walked me through it, this sounds like perfect pub food — it kinda reminds me of the beer cheese that they serve with hot pretzels. The beer and mustard are the key — and your substitution of dijon mustard would make it even more tangy, I think. Nicely done.

    Reply

    • Thanks Lisa. I thought it was rabbit too and that the Brits didn’t pronounce it very well. I’ve made this a lot and I really like it. I think it would be perfect over asparagus or brussels sprouts.

      Reply

  12. Years ago I ate Welsh Rarebit at a cafeteria lunch and I had zero idea what I’d eaten lol! I always meant to look it up and never did– this was fascinating! And now I’m super hungry 😀

    Reply

  14. So many wonderful flavours in this recipe. I have never tried Welsh Rarebit. My husband loves Welsh cheddar…and paired with beer, I can see this would be a winner of a sauce for sure.

    Reply

  15. Thanks for all the info and tips. I had never heard of this. Seems a bit like hollandaise….but richer. Going to try it with poached eggs on an english muffin….I think my family will LOVE it.

    Reply

  25. My mother was from Wales and my sister and I grew up on this. We always looked forward to Welsh rarebit supper nights! I will try your version although it looks like the ingredients are much the same. Thanks for the memory!

    Reply

  31. My dad used to make this for us growing up, he would serve it on toasted English muffins. I miss it, thanks for posting will definitely give this a try soon.

    Reply

    • What a lovely memory, I think it would be amazing on English muffins. I hope this lives up to your expectations, let me know how it goes Sue.

      Reply

  32. Wow, this looks amazing and yes I’m a cheesehead. Definitely making this tomorrow. I would love to put an egg on it. I didn’t know what Buck Rarebit was until now, thanks for this helpful article.

    Reply

  33. Well, what do you know?!? I’ve been making Welsh Rarebit all along and my British husband never bothered to tell me!! Haha!! I like mine with Guinness and lately I’ve been adding a bit of bacon to it. I usually just call it beer cheese, even with the addition of the mustard (Colemans) and the worcestershire sauce. Thank you for the education!

    Reply

  34. Sooooo… I’ve never heard of Welsh Rarebit before, but I thoroughly enjoyed reading this post and learning about it! As someone who enjoys cheese, I can imagine this would be a thing of beauty in my household. 🙂 Well done!

    Reply

  35. I hadn’t even heard of this dish until a couple of years back. Now I’m hooked. It looks amazing! Your photos are gorgeous. Definitely going to have to give yours a try.

    Reply

  36. I’ve never heard of this and I’m in England a lot! I’ll have to look for this one menus and ask around! I love that it dates way back to the 1700s! Looks like you nailed it!!

    Reply

    • Thanks Amanda! That was a lot of fun:) I wish I were in England a lot! Good For you, have fun and safe travels.

      Reply

  38. The first time I saw the name rarebit was in a cookbook I received for my birthday. It was a gift from my neighbor and I was 12. I loved to cook and she knew it. Well, the name fascinated me and I kept scanning the ingredients looking for the rabbit. I misread the title. I never did make the recipe but I’m certainly tempted now.

    Reply

  39. I had never heard of Welsh rarebit before coming across your post and this looks so inviting 🙂 I am definitely trying this soon!

    And I am sure it will go great with tomato soup!

    Thanks for sharing

    Reply

  40. As a fellow American, I actually thought it was Welsh Rabbit. It seems Bugs Bunny nearly ended up in that dish in at least one Warner Bros Cartoon. LOL. I agree. It looks addictive. I think I would be someone who might also eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I’m glad tomorrow is shopping day so I can buy the ingredients I need to make this.

    Reply

  41. I have neve heard of this before! I have a little cocktail party coming up and I need to bring something and I am thinking this would be an ideal recipe for just that occasion!

    Reply

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