The Toast-N-Serve Magic Bag

[Jason Perlow]

Ok, when I recieved samples of these things from Warner at Toast-N-Serve I was extremely skeptical they would work. How in the hell can you put two peices of buttered bread, with fillings in them into a black teflon bag, slide them into a $7 pop-up toaster from Target and expect it to produce a damn good grilled cheese, or yet, a stellar peanut butter, bacon and banana grilled sandwich, Elivs's Presleys' favorite treat? It sounds like pseudoscience, right?

I kid you not. These things work. Observe.

Butter each side of the bread and apply fillings to middle

Slide prepared sandwich into bag

Insert bags into $7 Toastmaster from Target

Set toaster at 3/4 browning level, start toasting

When done remove sandwiches from bags

The bags are re-usable for hundreds of times and they are dishwasher safe.

I can think of a LOT of things and nifty toaster sandwiches you could cook in this.

[jhlurie]

I think you need to go a bit into WHY it's better. Does the bread taste different? Are the ingredients more evenly cooked? Is it simply neater?

Also: Cool $7 toaster. I think eGullet should have a topic about the best cheap toasters. I mean why the hell should a toaster cost $60? All it does is heat bread.

[lamb]

Doesn't the cheese slide down to the bottom of the bag when you are making a "toaster" cheese sammich?

Do you press the two sides of bread together to stop the cheese from spreading?

[hillbill]

Great series of pics. Very satisfying. I felt like I was right there, making and bagging and toasting and eating the sandwich.

My favorite pic is the "Set toaster at 3/4 browning level, start toasting" with the finger and the 99cent sticker.

My second favorite is the "Insert bags into $7 Toastmaster from Target." Great "you are there" perspective.

Hillbill, the eGulleter who wants to see pics of everything!

Edited November 4, 2003 by hillbill (log)

[Jason Perlow]

Doesn't the cheese slide down to the bottom of the bag when you are making a "toaster" cheese sammich?

Do you press the two sides of bread together to stop the cheese from spreading?

No, amazingly it does not slide down. You dont need to press the stuff together. The $7 toastmaster has auto-expanding slots and when you push the toast plunger down it clamps down on the sandwich bag.

[lamb]

Doesn't the cheese slide down to the bottom of the bag when you are making a "toaster" cheese sammich?

Do you press the two sides of bread together to stop the cheese from spreading?

No, amazingly it does not slide down. You dont need to press the stuff together. The $7 toastmaster has auto-expanding slots and when you push the toast plunger down it clamps down on the sandwich bag.

Do you have to use the $7 Target Toaster with this baggie thing?

[Jason Perlow]

I think you need to go a bit into WHY it's better.  Does the bread taste different?  Are the ingredients more evenly cooked?  Is it simply neater?

Also: Cool $7 toaster.  I think eGullet should have a topic about the best cheap toasters.  I mean why the hell should a toaster cost $60?  All it does is heat bread.

Well, its better because you dont have to get a pan dirty and worry about flipping the sandwich or using too much grease. I think you could probably also use some kind of a butter spray or olive oil mister. You just pop the sandwiches in and they are done.

I do also think that the teflon material completely enclosing the sandwich also does more evenly cook it and give it that consistent toasted look.

And Rachel was extremely skeptical about whether or not if they would taste better than a pan grilled sandwich. She LOVES grilled cheese and she really liked it, as did I Seriously, these things do a stellar job.

[Jason Perlow]

Doesn't the cheese slide down to the bottom of the bag when you are making a "toaster" cheese sammich?

Do you press the two sides of bread together to stop the cheese from spreading?

No, amazingly it does not slide down. You dont need to press the stuff together. The $7 toastmaster has auto-expanding slots and when you push the toast plunger down it clamps down on the sandwich bag.

Do you have to use the $7 Target Toaster with this baggie thing?

No, you can use any toaster. You can use a 200 dollar Pink Dualit if you want. I just bought the cheapest toaster I could find because I didn't own one and I wanted to see how it worked with the cheapest crap toaster I could fnd. I only had a 200 dollar Cuisinart convection toaster oven, not a popup.

[Cusina]

Great pictures... like the bathrobe.

So how does it clean up? Did you have to turn it inside out?

And how is PB, banana and bacon anyways?

[Jason Perlow]

Great pictures... like the bathrobe. 

So how does it clean up?  Did you have to turn it inside out?

And how is PB, banana and bacon anyways?

It cleans up easy. Grease comes right off, the bags are made out of Teflon.

The Elvis Sandwich rules.

[vengroff]

Well, its better because you dont have to get a pan dirty and worry about flipping the sandwich or using too much grease.

But once you head down the bacon road you are already commited to a greasy pan, aren't you? Or do you use leftover bacon from breakfast?

[hillbill]

Well, its better because you dont have to get a pan dirty and worry about flipping the sandwich or using too much grease. I think you could probably also use some kind of a butter spray or olive oil mister. You just pop the sandwiches in and they are done.

How do you clean the bags?

Edit: Answered my own question at the web site:

Toast-n-Serve bags are fully reusable: Just wash with warm soapy water and let dry.

Edited November 4, 2003 by hillbill (log)

[Jason Perlow]

Apparently they also sell a re-usable cooking liner for use in conventional ovens made out of the same material.

[Jason Perlow]

Well, its better because you dont have to get a pan dirty and worry about flipping the sandwich or using too much grease. I think you could probably also use some kind of a butter spray or olive oil mister. You just pop the sandwiches in and they are done.

How do you clean the bags?

Water and soap. But you dont have to clean them right after using, you can cook several sandwiches, one after the other. There wasnt much in the bag except for some crumbs and some butter residue.

[hillbill]

The question everyone wants answered:

Is it truly the most revolutionary new product this century?

[Schielke]

The real question here is:

Are these things worth buying a toaster so you can use them?

[Jason Perlow]

The real question here is:

Are these things worth buying a toaster so you can use them?

Hell yes.

[Jason Perlow]

The question everyone wants answered:

Is it truly the most revolutionary new product this century?

I'm thinking nuclear fission and the transistor are way up there, but the Toast-N-Serve is pretty close.

[vengroff]

The question everyone wants answered:

Is it truly the most revolutionary new product this century?

I'm thinking nuclear fission and the transistor are way up there, but the Toast-N-Serve is pretty close.

Both were last century, though. So I think the magic bag is still in the lead in the 21st century.

[Squeat Mungry]

I don't have a $7 Target Toaster.

Can I use them in my $200 Cuisinart convection toaster oven?

Squeat

[Jason Perlow]

I don't have a $7 Target Toaster.

Can I use them in my $200 Cuisinart convection toaster oven?

Squeat

I haven't tried them in my Cuisinart yet but I'll let you know. My guess is that they will work but you may need to have the oven turned up really high because the heating elements wont be applying direct heat like a toaster would. And it probably wont work as fast. These are done in no time.

Still, being that you can buy a $7 toaster at Target its no big deal if you can't.

[Jason Perlow]

The question everyone wants answered:

Is it truly the most revolutionary new product this century?

I'm thinking nuclear fission and the transistor are way up there, but the Toast-N-Serve is pretty close.

Both were last century, though. So I think the magic bag is still in the lead in the 21st century.

It definitely beats the Segway, no question.

[Squeat Mungry]

Still, being that you can buy a $7 toaster at Target its no big deal if you can't.

Ah, but I would have to get rid of the Cuisinart to make room for it in my tiny kitchen!

[Basilgirl]

Do you think it would be good for reheating pizza?

[Rhea_S]

Are the magic bags only available from the Toast-N-Serve website? I checked the site and couldn't find links to buying them elsewhere.