Panini (sandwich)

"Panino" redirects here. For any of the inhabited localities in Russia, seePanino, Russia.

Panini

Apanino imbottito
Alternative names	Panino imbottitoorpanino ripieno(lit. 'stuffed panino')
Type	Sandwich
Place of origin	Italy
Serving temperature	Warm or room temperature
Main ingredients	Bread(notsliced bread), filling (meat,cheese,vegetables)
Media: Panini

Apanini(/pəˈniːniː/;nowadays less commonly called panino,Italian:[pa'niːno])is asandwichmade withItalianbread(such asciabattaandmichetta), usually served warm after grilling or toasting.

In many English-speaking countries, the namepaniniis given to a grilled sandwich made using various breads, includingbaguette,ciabatta,focaccia,andmichetta.The bread is cut horizontally and filled withdeliingredients such ascheese,ham,mortadella,salami,or other food, and often served warm after having been pressed by awarming grill.

Etymology

Paniniis a word of Italian origin. InItalian,the nounpanino(Italian:[pa'niːno];pl.:panini) is adiminutiveofpane(lit. 'bread') and refers to abread roll.Panino imbottito(lit. 'stuffed panino') refers to a sandwich, but the wordpaninois also often used alone to indicate a sandwich in general. Similar to a panino is atramezzino,a triangular or squaresandwichmade up of two slices of softwhite breadwith the crusts removed.

In English dominant countries,paniniis widely used as the singular form, with the plural formpaniniorpaninis,although some speakers use singularpaninoand pluralpaninias in Italian.

History

A typical panini withsalami,mortadella,tomatoes,andlettuce

Although the first U.S. reference to panini dates to 1956, and a precursor appeared in a 16th-century Italian cookbook, the sandwiches became trendy in Milanese bars, calledpaninoteche,in the 1970s and 1980s. Trendy U.S. restaurants began selling panini, with distinctive variations appearing in various cities.

During the 1980s, the termpaninaroarose in Italy to denote a member of a youth culture represented by patrons of sandwich bars, such asMilan'sAl Panino,and Italy's first US-stylefast foodrestaurants.Paninariwere depicted as right-leaning, fashion-fixated individuals, delighting in showcasing early-1980s consumer goods asstatus symbols.

Grills

A sandwich being lifted off a panini grill with a spatula

Apanini pressorpanini grillis a contact grill for heating sandwiches, meat products, vegetables, and specialty menu items, nearly always with electric elements, comprising a heated bottom plate that is fixed, and a heated top plate that closes towards the bottom plate and comes in contact with the food. The function of the panini grill is to heat food to an appropriate internal temperature with desirable external characteristics (i.e., melted cheese, crisp finish, grill marks).

See also

Media related toPaniniat Wikimedia Commons

• List of sandwiches
• Panuozzo
• Tramezzino

Bibliography

• Katsigris, Costas; Thomas, Chris (2008).Design and Equipment for Restaurants and Foodservice: A Management View(third ed.).John Wiley & Sons, Inc.ISBN978-0-470-44082-7.
• Strahs, Kathy (2013).The Ultimate Panini Press Cookbook: More than 200 Perfect-Every-Time Recipes for Making Panini – and Lots of Other Things – on Your Panini Press or Other Countertop Grill.Harvard Common Press.ISBN978-1-55832-792-4.
• Tripodi, Anthony (2011).The Everything Panini Press Cookbook.Adams Media.ISBN9781440527692.