Panini sandwiches are popping up everywhere these days. You'll find them on restaurant menus. Several food companies have added heat and serve Paninis to their lines.
Panini sandwiches are really just grilled sandwiches which have always been popular in the South. Try to find a kid from the South who never had grilled cheese sandwiches and Campbell's Soup when growing up. Hard thing to do.
The big difference between the standard grilled sandwiches and the paninis is that the grilled sandwiches are made in a skillet or on a griddle pan and flipped over. Paninis, on the other hand, are typically grilled with some type of cooker that has top and bottom plates so that the sandwich is not flipped and also has grill ridge marks.
There are panini sandwiches presses on the market now. The George Foreman G5 (which is fabulous) has various plates to cook different foods and includes panini press plates. These machines are expensive.
You can, however, make fabulous panini sandwiches with a standard George Foreman grill. We use the low end, original George Foreman to make paninis, and it works great. With the small Foreman indoor grill, you can only make one sandwich at a time or two if you use smaller types of bread.
Here are some tips for making panini sandwiches on the regular George Foreman grill.
Ingredients and Fillings:
- The bread does matter. Regular sandwich slices are very soft and really mash flat in the George Foreman. While you can use regular loaf bread, it's better to use other types of bread. Italian and French breads are excellent for paninis. Really, any denser type bread is perfect for paninis.
- The fillings can vary. You can make standard grilled cheese or can add meat and vegetables. The thin sliced deli meats work especially well for paninis. With vegetable toppings, it works out best to put them on after the sandwiches are toasted and then add them as toppings. It's fine to cook them inside the sandwiches, but they don't cooked as well.
Once you get your bread and sandwich fillings, plug in the George Foreman grill and let it heat up.
Technique:
- When the Foreman is hot, spray some Pam on the top and bottom plate. This step isn't essential, but it does make clean up easier.
- Butter the outside of the bread slices - the sides that will come in contact with the grill. Spray or wipe on olive oil if you're watching your cholesterol.
- Put the bottom piece of bread down on the bottom GF plate. Put cheese on the bread. Add the meat. Swiss cheese with thin sliced deli honey ham is especially good. Place the top piece of bread on with the butter pointing up.
- Close the grill but do not press down. Just put it down lightly, so you don't mash the sandwich and make the fillings squeeze out.
- Let the sandwich cook for 4 to 5 minutes. You can open up the grill about half way through if you like to have a cross hatch pattern on the sandwiches. Just turn the sandwich a half turn to get the checkerboard look on the bread.
Panini sandwiches on the George Foreman grill as crisp and toasty on the outside and hot and melty inside. They're pressed together pretty tight, but you can pull up on a corner to add condiments.
Panini sandwiches on the standard George Foreman grill open up the door for endless possibilities. Try different breads, different cheeses, different meats, veggies, various condiments. Sprinkle on new spcies too. It's really hard to make a bad panini.
Panini sandwiches are pretty expensive at restaurants and ready made. With some bread and toppings, you can make them at home for a fraction of the cost. You can customize the sandwiches. Plus, they're fun to make. Even kids can make paninis on the George Foreman grill.
Cyndi Allison - Southern born and fed, Cyndi Allison is a college lecturer and newspaper advisor as well as being a freelance writer. She writes on ...
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