I bought a panini press! Now what?

[BeeZee]

Would it perhaps make the bread less greasy, yet still give good grill marks, if you brushed the surfaces of the panini press with a little butter/oil, rather than coating the bread?

[Smithy]

@TdeV, your sandwich ingredients look delicious!

 

I use my panini press on the highest setting on the "Grill-Panini" side; on mine, the hottest setting for that is "Sear". I do always preheat it (with the lids open*) before I put the sandwich in. It's been a while since I bothered to time the process, but I'd guess at about 5 minutes. Keep in mind that my machine is a thrift-store special, so it may not be up to specs. I don't think I've measured the griddle temperature settings. I should do that sometime, I suppose.

 

 

As I noted for my last sandwich, I have found that I prefer butter on the outside rather than mayo. I don't think the mayo adds much in the way of flavor, and it might indeed give that greasy sense that you had from yours. I do like a fairly heavy coating of butter, probably more than necessary, but it crisps up nicely and gives a good flavor IMO. Incidentally, the longer or hotter you cook the sandwiches, the more you're likely to cook the greens. I like the crispness of fresh greens, so I add them after the pressing is done. I do the same thing if I'm adding sauerkraut for something like a Reuben, though that's more to keep the "good" bugs alive than because of a textural issue.

 

@BeeZee, your idea might work too. I've never tried that. I'm not sure I've even tried brushing the bread with oil instead of butter, much less brushing the oil on the griddle as you suggest. I'm just kindof a butter fiend. 😀 But the oil-brushing you suggest should ensure that all the bread contacted the griddle without soaking up too much.

 

*Lids open, partly to ensure that everything is at max temperature but also to make sure that I've removed the manual and scraper. Ask me how I know. 

[gfweb]

A spray of PAM will give enough fat to crisp-up the bread but not be too greasy

[Smithy]

On 8/28/2025 at 11:25 AM, gfweb said:

A spray of PAM will give enough fat to crisp-up the bread but not be too greasy

 

I confess I still haven't tried this, but I do think that spraying the griddle rather than the bread would waste cooking oil and make more of a mess. (Maybe you meant using PAM to spray the bread with PAM rather than the griddle?)

 

I just had another grilled sandwich, using butter on the outside surface of the bread, and think I've settled on that method. If I ever make grilled sandwiches for someone who can't tolerate dairy, I'll try PAM or olive oil.

[TdeV]

I have a small baguette purchased from the baker at last Saturday's farmers' market. They use no preservatives so it was likely baked last Friday.

 

How do I use this in the panini press?

 

I asked if I could revive the baguette in the Anova Steam Oven thread here.

 

 

 

Edited 3 hours ago by TdeV
Link malfunctioning (log)

[Smithy]

1 hour ago, TdeV said:

I have a small baguette purchased from the baker at last Saturday's farmers' market. They use no preservatives so it was likely baked last Friday.

 

How do I use this in the panini press?

 

I asked if I could revive the baguette in the Anova Steam Oven thread here.

 

 

I've never pressed a crusty piece of bread, and I assume you're trying to soften the whole thing in the APO. Yes?

 

Assuming you can split it lengthwise without having it all fall apart into crumbs, the world baguette is your oyster, so to speak. I'm partial to spreading mayonnaise and mustard on the interior, then putting in layers of meat and cheese. Any meat, any cheese that you like together will work. You could even put in slices of roasted red pepper, or roasted mushrooms, or other roasted vegetables that will lie flat. Certain sandwich additions that I like (lettuce, tomato, pickle, sprouts) I generally wait until after the sandwich is grilled before adding them. That's a matter of preference. I like the contrast of soft and crunchy, and hot and cold.

 

Some kind of fat on the outside will improve the griddling: olive oil or butter would work. @rotuts has noted that he likes mayonnaise on the outside of some of his grilled sandwiches.

 

Get the press good and hot, then do your best to mash the sandwich in the press. If it's too hard and round to get much contact on the outer surfaces, you might consider cutting it in half and griddling the halves separately (face up or face down) to get them cooked properly. Then the meat, cheese, etc. will have to be added separately, and possibly griddled separately. 

 

Caution: use fairly thin slices of cheese, and monitor the process to the best of your ability so you don't end up with cheese melting all over the griddle! It's delicious that way, but messy. Ask me how I know. 😉