A panino is a sandwich made from a small loaf of bread,
typically a ciabatta. The loaf is often cut horizontally and
filled with salami, ham, meat, cheese or other food, and
sometimes served hot. A grilled panino is buttered on the
outside and grilled in a press.
The word "panino" [pa'ni:no] is Italian (literally meaning
small bread roll), with the plural panini. "Panini" is often
used in a singular sense by speakers of languages that
borrow the word, including English and French, and
pluralised when necessary into "paninis".
In Italian, panino refers properly to a bread roll and a "panino
imbottito" (literally "stuffed panino") to a sandwich; so a
paninoteca is a sandwich bar. In Central Italy, there is a
popular version of panino which is filled with porchetta,
i.e. slices of roasted pork.
A sandwich is a food item typically made of two or more
slices of leavened bread with one or more layers of meat,
seafood, vegetables, cheese or jam or butter. The bread can
be used as is, or it can be coated with butter, oil, or
other optional or traditional condiments and sauces to
enhance flavor and texture.
The modern sandwich is named after the 4th Earl of Sandwich,
although the exact circumstances of the invention of the
sandwich are still the subject of debate.
Sandwiches are commonly carried to work or school in
lunchboxes or brown paper bags (in sandwich bags) to be
eaten as the midday meal. In the UK they are taken in
lunchboxes on picnics, hiking trips, or other outings. In
some parts of the world, they are also served in restaurants
as entrées, and are sometimes eaten at home, either as a
quick meal or as part of a larger meal. When eaten as part
of a full meal, sandwiches are traditionally accompanied
with such side dishes as a serving of soup
(soup-and-sandwich), a salad (salad-and-sandwich), french
fries/chips, potato chips/crisps and a pickle or coleslaw
The first form of sandwich is attributed to the ancient
Jewish sage Hillel the Elder, who is said to have put meat
from the Paschal lamb and bitter herbs inside matzo (or
flat,unleavened bread) during Passover. The filling between
the matzos served as a reminder to Israelites of their
forced labor constructing Egyptian buildings. For this
reason, Romans referred to the meal as a "cibus Hilleli," or
Hillel's Snack. [1]
During the Middle Ages, thick slabs of coarse and usually
stale bread, called "trenchers", were used as plates. After
a meal, the food-soaked trencher was fed to a dog, less
fortunate beggars, or eaten by the diner. Trenchers were the
harbingers of open-face sandwiches.[2]
Club SandwichIn the Middle East, the Mediterranean, and
other parts of Europe, meals comprising meat, fruit, cheese,
and condiments sandwiched between bread or pastry existed
well before the appearance of the word 'sandwich'. The first
written usage of the word appeared in Edward Gibbon's
journal, in longhand, referring to "bits of cold meat" as a
'Sandwich.' It was named after John Montagu, 4th Earl of
Sandwich, an 18th-century English aristocrat, although he
was neither the inventor nor sustainer of the food. It is
said that Lord Sandwich was fond of this form of food
because it allowed him to continue playing cards,
particularly cribbage, while eating without getting his
cards greasy from eating meat with his bare hands.
The Earldom refers to the English town of Sandwich in Kent —
from the Old English Sandwich, meaning "sand place".
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