Panini (sandwich)

(Redirected from Panino)

A panini (/pəˈnn/; nowadays less commonly called panino, Italian: [pa'niːno])[1][2][3] is a sandwich made with Italian bread (such as ciabatta and michetta), usually served warm after grilling or toasting.

Panini
A panino imbottito
Alternative namesPanino (Italian singular form), panino imbottito or panino ripieno (lit.'stuffed panino')
TypeSandwich
Place of originItaly
Serving temperatureWarm or room temperature
Main ingredientsItalian bread (not sliced bread), filling (meat, cheese, vegetables)

In many English-speaking countries, the name panini is given to a grilled sandwich made using various breads, including baguette, ciabatta, focaccia, and michetta. The bread is cut horizontally and filled with deli ingredients such as cheese, ham, mortadella, salami or other food, and often served warm after having been pressed by a warming grill.

Etymology

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Panini is a word of Italian origin. In Italian, the noun panino (Italian: [pa'niːno]; pl.: panini) is a diminutive of pane (lit.'bread') and refers to a bread roll. Panino imbottito (lit.'stuffed panino') refers to a sandwich, but the word panino is also often used alone to indicate a sandwich in general. Similar to a panino is a tramezzino, a triangular or square sandwich made up of two slices of soft white bread with the crusts removed.[citation needed]

In English dominant countries, panini is widely used as the singular form, with the plural form panini or paninis, although some speakers use singular panino and plural panini as in Italian.[4][5][6][7]

History

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A typical panini with salami, mortadella, tomatoes, and lettuce

Although the first US reference to panini dates to 1956, and a precursor appeared in a 16th-century Italian cookbook, the sandwiches became trendy in Milanese bars, called paninoteche, in the 1970s and 1980s. Trendy US restaurants began selling panini, with distinctive variations appearing in various cities.[8]

During the 1980s, the term paninaro arose in Italy to denote a member of a youth culture represented by patrons of sandwich bars, such as Milan's Al Panino, and Italy's first US-style fast food restaurants. Paninari were depicted as right-leaning, fashion-fixated individuals, delighting in showcasing early-1980s consumer goods as status symbols.[9][10][11]

Grills

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A sandwich being lifted off a panini grill with a spatula

A panini press or panini grill is 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, and grill marks).

See also

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  Media related to Panini at Wikimedia Commons

References

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  1. ^ "Definition of PANINI". www.merriam-webster.com. 2024-03-18. Retrieved 2024-04-09.
  2. ^ https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/us/definition/english/panini
  3. ^ https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/panini
  4. ^ "panini". Oxford Dictionaries. Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 14 July 2012. Retrieved 1 June 2016.
  5. ^ "Panini – Origin and Varieties". Taste and Flavours. 5 September 2012.
  6. ^ Denn, Rebekah (30 August 2005). "Ask The Critic: Panini vs. panino—a singular answer to a plural faux pas". Seattle Post-Intelligencer.
  7. ^ Butterfield, Jeremy (2016). Fowler's Concise Dictionary of Modern English Usage. Oxford University Press. p. 463. ISBN 978-0-19-966631-7. Retrieved 31 May 2016.
  8. ^ Zeldes, Leah A. (28 October 2009). "Eat this! Panini, Italy's answer to grilled cheese". Dining Chicago. Archived from the original on 31 October 2009. Retrieved 30 October 2009.
  9. ^ "paninari". Dizionario Italiano (in Italian). La Repubblica. Retrieved 27 April 2016.
  10. ^ "paninaro". Dizionario Italiano (in Italian). Corriere della Sera. Retrieved 27 April 2016.
  11. ^ "paninari". Vocabolario (in Italian). Treccani. Retrieved 27 April 2016.

Bibliography

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  • Katsigris, Costas; Thomas, Chris (2008). Design and Equipment for Restaurants and Foodservice: A Management View (third ed.). John Wiley & Sons, Inc. ISBN 978-0-470-44082-7.
  • 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. ISBN 978-1-55832-792-4.
  • Tripodi, Anthony (2011). The Everything Panini Press Cookbook. Adams Media. ISBN 9781440527692.