It’s time to iron sandwiches again! For a woman who HATES to iron, I am now ironing a lot of food! The new Panini press I’m in love with calls my name regularly. I picked up a few ciabatta rolls to use for grill-wiches when I was out shopping. I haven’t tried ciabatta on the Panini griddle yet so this was a new twist on crispy crunchy sandwiches.

Ready to make dinner, I set my Panini press on the counter and made sure the ridged griddle plates were turned the right direction. I plugged in the press and let it heat.

Brush oil on top and bottom of each ciabatta

The ciabatta rolls were already cut in half, so I laid them open side down to put a light layer of oil over the top and bottom of the rolls. Oil is probably a better choice than butter for these rolls that are lighter and holier than a regular roll. That’s holier with a “hole”, not with a “holy” like the kind with a cross. Just so that’s clear.

Heat pulled pork in a saucepan

I still have a lot of portions of frozen pulled pork I posted earlier, and was in the mood for a good portion of the BBQ meat on a crispy, chewy roll. I’d thawed a packet earlier that was enough for about 4 sandwiches. I was going to make two sandwiches for a light dinner for my P.S. (Pork Savorer/hubby) and myself. He could make another if he wished.

Layer cheese on both sides, then pulled pork and slaw on one side

To prevent the pork and its BBQ sauce from soaking into the bun and making it soggy, next I laid slices of cheddar cheese on each side of the bun. Any cheese would have worked, I just happened to pull cheddar out of the fridge drawer first.

Mix cole slaw dressing in a bowll

I’d heated the pulled pork in a small saucepan over medium heat until it was bubbly, and used a spoon to put a pile of pork onto two of the buns.

Slice cabbage thinly

I’d decided on a quick cole slaw I usually make for fish tacos that I posted awhile back. It’s zesty and flavorful and I thought it would peek through the other heavier flavors of the pulled pork nicely. I put a portion on top of each mound of pulled pork and closed the buns.

Toss cabbage and dressing together

My press was heated so I placed the ciabatta sandwiches on the griddle and closed the lid. The tops of the buns wanted to push forward, so I had to maneuver it around so the sandwich remained straight.

Place on preheated griddle

After about 4-5 minutes there were nice marks on the buns and I plated the sandwiches with some chips and dip. We devoured them and decided one was filling enough. There was a lot of pork on the sandwiches and it was very satisfying. I liked that the outside of the ciabatta was crispy and the inside was soft.

Fry until ciabatta are browned

We loved the flavors of course but the cole slaw, even with its extra zesty flavor wasn’t very noticeable. No problem; it was delicious anyway! We each had a little dish of it on the side and it was so tangy we laughed that it wasn’t very noticeable inside the sandwich.

Cut diagonally and serve hot

Pulled pork meets ciabatta meets Panini press was successful! I’ll have to work on more new ways to use pulled pork. I’m thinking eggroll next?

Pulled Pork Ciabatta Panini

Pulled Pork Ciabatta Panini

2 ciabatta buns; cut in half
1 cup pulled pork; heated to bubbling
4 slices cheddar cheese (or cheese of choice)
½ cup cole slaw

Heat Panini press.

Lightly oil the outsides of both sides of the ciabatta bun.

Turn outsides down and layer slices of cheese over each side of the bun. Spoon hot pulled pork on half of each bun, then top each with a spoonful of cole slaw.

Close buns and place on heated griddle, closing cover over them evenly. Fry until marks appear on top of the buns.

Cut diagonally and serve.

2 Panini