What is Panini Press?

A panini press is used to make paninis that are specialized Italian grilled sandwiches. Panini is very popular in bistros and cafes. The panini press is a two sided electric grill compressing and grilling the panini in the both sides simultaneously.

What features should I expect from my Panini Press?

Type of Lid: Lid hinges determine maximum how thick food you can grill in your paninni press. Avoid lid hinges that do not accomodate a thick sandwich or any kind of food you want to grill.

Surface: Some panini presses have got ridged cooking surfaces that creates a linear grill mark on your sanwiche. The advantage of a ridged cooking surface is that it allows melting fat of meat slide away from your food. This is an important factor if you are grilling steaks etc. but has no benefit if you are only grilling toast or panini.

Dishwasher: Most of the panini presses are dishwasher safe, it means you can save time putting them into your dishwasher.

Adjustable Heat Control: This is a very important factor that allows you to adjuste the heat of panini press. This is important especially if you are cooking different kinds of foods/meats. If you only want something cheap and simple only to make some simple panini sandwich, you may ignore this option. Otherwise, you should avoid the type of panini press not having this feature.

These are the basic features you should pay attention buying a panini press though some panini presses have got some other extra features.