Chicken Panini
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Make a delicious Chicken Panini at home with chipotle grilled chicken, pepper jack cheese, and bacon. This spicy sandwich is loaded with flavor, and the recipe is easy to make with a few simple steps. If you love the Southwest Chicken Melt at Panera, then you’ll love this recipe!
Table of contents
Toasty bread, gooey melted cheese, juicy chicken and crispy bacon, this combination of ingredients makes for one mouth-watering sandwich! Inspired by fast-casual chains, like Panera Bread, I created this Southwest-style chicken panini that’s a little spicy, a little salty, and really flavorful.
I like to marinate and grill the chicken in advance, then whip up these sandwiches for a quick and delicious lunch. If you don’t have an indoor grill or panini press, no need to worry, I’ll teach you how to make a panini with two skillets on the stove!
This recipe is easily customizable, so feel free to add in other sandwich favorites, adjust the spice level, or swap out some of the ingredients. This sandwich is versatile, tasty and easy to make!
Ingredients
- Chicken breasts – you’ll want two large boneless, skinless chicken breasts for this recipe. Each chicken breast will be sliced in half through the middle, so you end of with four pieces of chicken.
- Chipotle sauce – click the link for my homemade recipe that’s easy to mix up in just 5 minutes. Or purchase a bottle of creamy chipotle sauce, or chipotle aioli, on the sauce and salad dressing aisle at the grocery store. The sauce will be used to marinate the chicken, and it will be spread on the sandwiches.
- Sourdough bread – you want a thick, crusty bread to make these sandwiches. I recommend sliced sourdough, but you could also use ciabatta or focaccia bread.
- Butter – to spread on the outside of each piece of bread, so it will get perfectly browned as you press it.
- Pepper jack cheese – to compliment the spice in this sandwich, I love to use pepper jack cheese. If you want to make a copycat of Panera’s Southwest Chicken Melt, you can use smoked gouda instead. You can also use slices of cheddar cheese for a more classic chicken sandwich flavor.
- Tomato – to add a fresh, juicy bite to the sandwiches.
- Cooked bacon slices – use this guide for how to cook bacon in the oven and cook the bacon up to 3 days in advance. Store the cooked bacon in the fridge until you’re ready to make the sandwiches.
Instructions
I’ve included step by step photos below to make this recipe super easy to follow at home. For the full detailed recipe instructions and ingredient quantities, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Marinate the chicken. Slice two chicken breasts through the middle to make four pieces of chicken. Add the chicken to a bowl with ¼ cup of chipotle sauce and toss until the chicken is fully covered in the sauce. Cover and place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes, or up to 8 hours to marinate the chicken.
- Grill the chicken. Using an indoor or outdoor grill, or skillet on the stove, use tongs to remove the chicken from the marinade and grill the chicken for 4-6 minutes per side, or until it reaches an internal temperature of 165°F.
- Butter the bread. Spread softened butter on one side of each piece of bread.
- Add sauce to the bread. Spread chipotle sauce on the other side of each piece of bread.
- Assemble the sandwiches. Place two pieces of pepper jack cheese on top of the chipotle sauce on each slice of bread. On half of the slices of bread, add two slices of bacon and two tomato slices, then top with a piece of grilled chicken. Place the other slices of bread, with chipotle sauce and pepper jack cheese on top of each piece of chicken.
- Grill the sandwiches. Heat an indoor grill, or panini press, and add two sandwiches at a time (or whatever will fit in the appliance you have available) and press the sandwiches to cook for 4-5 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the bread is golden brown on the outside.
How to make it without a panini press
If you don’t have a panini maker, or indoor grill, don’t worry! Using two skillets, you can still make this tasty panini sandwich.
- Heat a large cast iron skillet over high heat on the stove.
- Heat another large skillet (either non-stick or another cast iron skillet), on the stove over medium-high heat.
- When both skillets are hot, add the sandwiches to the large skillet over medium high heat. Remove the large cast iron skillet from the heat, and place it directly on top of the sandwiches in the other skillet.
- Cook for 4-5 minutes.
If you don’t have a cast iron skillet available, I recommend cooking the sandwiches like a grilled cheese. Simply add them to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook for 3-4 minutes, flip and cook for an additional 3-4 minutes.
Additions and variations
- To make it like Panera’s Southwest Chicken Melt, add cilantro and sliced red onion, and omit the bacon.
- Replace the chipotle sauce with cilantro lime sauce, and add avocado to the sandwich, for a Southwestern-style sandwich, with a little less spice.
- Replace the chipotle sauce with bbq sauce, and the pepper jack cheese with cheddar cheese, for a tasty bbq chicken panini. This is a great way to make the sandwich with no spice.
- Use pulled rotisserie chicken, tossed with chipotle sauce, instead of grilled chicken to make this sandwich come together really quick!
- To make an Italian chicken panini, replace the chipotle sauce with basil pesto, and replace the pepper jack cheese with mozzarella cheese.
- Add spinach leaves or arugula on top of the tomatoes, if you want to add some greens to the sandwich!
What to serve with it
Delicious sides likes tots or fries go great with this grilled chicken panini, or you can always go with the classic pairing of soup and sandwich! Grab some delicious recipe inspiration for sides below.
- Baked Sweet Potato Tots
- Rosemary Parmesan Sweet Potato Fries
- Crab Fries (french fries seasoned with Old Bay)
- Crispy Smashed Potatoes
- Air Fryer French Fries
- Broccoli Cheddar Soup
- 29 Minute Roasted Tomato Soup
More sandwich recipes
If you love a good sandwich, with layers of flavor, be sure to check out these other delicious and easy sandwich recipes!
Chicken Panini
Ingredients
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, sliced through the middle into 4 pieces
- ½ cup chipotle sauce, or chipotle mayo (divided) – click link for recipe
- 8 slices sourdough bread, or ciabatta or focaccia bread
- ¼ cup butter, softened
- 16 slices pepper jack cheese
- 1 large tomato, sliced into 8 slices
- 8 slices cooked bacon
Instructions
- Slice the chicken breasts through the middle to make four pieces of chicken. Add the chicken to a bowl with ¼ cup of chipotle sauce and toss until the chicken is fully covered in the sauce.
- Cover and place the chicken in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes, or up to 8 hours.
- Use an indoor or outdoor grill to grill the chicken, or cook the chicken in a skillet over medium-high heat, for 4-6 minutes per side until it reaches an internal temperature of 165°F. Set the grilled chicken aside while assembling the sandwiches.
- Spread butter on one side of each slice of bread.
- Spread the remaining ¼ cup chipotle sauce evenly on the other side of each piece of bread, then place two slices of pepper jack cheese on top of the chipotle sauce on each piece of bread.
- Add two slices of cooked bacon to half of the slices of bread. Top with two slices of tomato and the cooked chicken breast.
- Place the other pieces of bread with chipotle sauce and cheese on top of the pieces of chicken to form four sandwiches.
- Heat an indoor grill, or panini press, then add the sandwiches to the panini press and cook for 4-5 minutes.
Notes
- The chicken can be marinated and grilled up to 3 days in advance, and stored in the fridge until you’re ready to make the sandwiches.
- You can also cook bacon in the oven up to 3 days in advance, then store the cooked bacon in the fridge until you’re ready to make the sandwiches.
- To make the sandwiches without a panini press:
- Heat a large cast iron skillet over high heat on the stove.
- Heat another large skillet (either non-stick or another cast iron skillet), on the stove over medium-high heat.
- When both skillets are hot, add the sandwiches to the large skillet over medium high heat. Remove the large cast iron skillet from the heat, and place it directly on top of the sandwiches in the other skillet.
- Cook for 4-5 minutes.
- If you don’t have a cast iron skillet available, I recommend cooking the sandwiches like a grilled cheese. Simply add them to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook for 3-4 minutes, flip and cook for an additional 3-4 minutes.
Nutrition Facts
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