17 Grilled Sandwich Recipes That Make Lunch a Meal to Anticipate (2024)

Turkey Taco Panini

Don't let the simplicity of these five-ingredient foldovers fool you: Bold, cheesy taco flavor hides just beneath the golden-brown exterior. Customize your grilled turkey sandwich with black bean, corn, or fruit salsa—whatever strikes your fancy.

Cuban Panini with Quick Pickles

Friends will think you stopped by the deli. But in reality, these toasty sandwiches stuffed with spicy sliced pork and melty swiss cheese crisp up beautifully on your own grill—in just six minutes. Pass the quick pickles!

Steak and Tomatoes on Toast

This simple yet hearty grilled steak sandwich recipe is filled with flavorful flank steak and a sizzling herb mixture with tomatoes. Our open-faced sandwich calls for grilled ciabatta bread, but any bread could work in a pinch. The only challenge to this easy recipe is deciding whether to use your hands or a fork and knife to eat it.

Apple and Almond Butter Panini

Upgrade your grilled peanut butter sandwich game with this almond butter panini. The entire sandwich comes together in a waffle iron, but feel free to use your handy indoor sandwich grill instead. Thinly sliced apples coated in a cinnamon sugar coating create the satisfying crunch between almond butter and toasted bread.

Reuben Sandwiches

This classic Reuben sandwich is the grilled sandwich recipe your corner deli wishes it had. Thinly sliced corned beef combines with perfect proportions of sauerkraut, swiss cheese, and thousand island dressing for a very memorable Reuben. One flip and this sandwich is melty, toasty, and ready for lunchtime.

Italian Chicken Sandwich

Foldable flatbreads char gorgeously on the grill while melty mozzarella binds chicken strips, banana peppers, and sautéed veggies into a savory filling. A panini press gets the grill lines on point, but any sort of skillet with a press can bring this grilled flatbread sandwich to melty perfection.

Grilled Eggplant Tartines

This entire grilled eggplant sandwich comes together on your grill. Start by grilling thick slices of eggplant until tender, and then grill the sliced baguettes until lightly toasted. Once assembled, this open-face sandwich resembles a cross between Caprese salad and bruschetta with all the flavors of eggplant Parmesan.

Cubanos

These toasty sandwiches stuffed with deli-sliced ham, pulled pork, and melty swiss cheese crisp up beautifully on your skillet, but a panini press works great as well. Homemade Cuban pork makes all the difference in this grilled pork sandwich, spread on top a healthy smear of brown grain-mustard. Dill pickles add a satisfying crunch, made even more satisfying if they're homemade.

Buy It: Breville Sear and Press Grill ($180, Williams Sonoma)

Turkey Apple Grilled Cheese

Thick slices of country-style bread are just the beginning of this hot grilled cheese upgrade. Sauté the sweet onions until they're tender before adding the apple jelly directly to the warm onions. From there, tart, thinly sliced apples make a sweet complement to savory Gouda cheese and roasted turkey in this grilled sandwich.

Bacon-Cheddar Chipotle Chicken Panini

This hearty chicken panini eats like a meal. We slathered whole grain bread with a three-ingredient chipotle cream spread, then piled on the chicken, cheese, bacon, and fresh fixings. Grill it indoors or out—either is delish.

Tomato-Avocado Grilled Cheese

Fresh juicy tomatoes and cumin-laced avocado transform this seemingly simple grilled cheese sandwich into the ultimate grilled avocado sandwich. The flavors may be complex, but the process is not. We love it on hearty whole grain bread with gooey Monterey Jack cheese.

Grilled Meat Loaf Sandwiches

Leftovers often inspire some of the best grilled sandwich ideas. Turn last night's meat loaf into today's grilled sandwich and watch your family's eyes light up with delight. Warning: This stellar sandwich recipe might be reason enough to make a double batch of meat loaf the next time around.

Grilled Chicken Mole Sandwiches

This satisfying grilled sandwich recipe features mole-infused chicken breast served atop a homemade avocado mayonnaise and is topped with juicy tomato slices. The chicken breasts are butterflied before grilling to cut down on grill time, producing juicy grilled chicken in just 12 minutes. It's sure to be your new favorite grilled chicken sandwich recipe.

Farmers Market Grilled Cheese

Who knew comfort food could be so fresh? Toasty sourdough and melted cheese combine with seasonal veggies in this grilled vegetable sandwich. We used zucchini, tomato, and spinach, but choose what's best in your area.

French Onion Soup Grilled Cheese

All the flavors of French onion soup come together in this grilled vegetable sandwich. Caramelized onions and melty mozzarella provide a dead-ringer flavor profile for the famous soup. And the crusty bread? It's on the outside!

Grilled Texas Steak Sandwiches with Dilled Horseradish Sauce

Serve a simple yet hearty dinner sandwich filled with flavorful grilled steak and a bold, creamy dill sauce. This beefy Texas-style dinner takes just 20 minutes to make.

Lemon and Herb Grilled Trout Sandwiches

The best grilled sandwich ideas come together quickly, and our grilled fish sandwich is ready in just 22 minutes. Grilled ciabatta buns add a crunchy base to flaky grilled trout, but it's the homemade mayo mixture that really adds some zing to this fish sandwich. Top the filets with slivers of grilled lemon for a fun touch.