A panini press looks like 2 regular grills, one parallel to the ground and another hanging above without space in between where grease would drop into charcoal or a gas fire but instead uses electricity. It can be used for just about anything that can be seared such as vegetables, burgers, steaks, fish, waffles, pork chops and sausages. It is somewhat easy to clean, extremely versatile and inexpensive to operate. They are used on a table top and usually are made of cast iron.
The panini press falls under the innovative technology category. This piece of equipment has helped me at work and at home significantly. At work, I use a panini press for toasting bread, making sandwiches, grilling beef skewers and chorizo and it saves me an exponential amount of time and stress during service as apposed to having to do that stuff in a pan or in the oven. I use a version of a panini press at home, the George Foreman grill which helps me make a quick meal in the mornings so I don't have to skip breakfast.
The very first panini press was invented by Thomas Edison but it was not very popular so it was discontinued in the 1930's, but the first panini press he made is on display in Thomas Edison's winter estate museum in Fort Myers, Florida. Edison's press was forgotten about and an inventor named Breville re-invented the panini press in 1974.
The Panini press is important because it provides professional cooks a piece of fast, reliable, durable and versatile technology to rely on.
