Best Review on Cuisinart GR 3 Griddler Nonstick Countertop
I finally found the perfect grilling appliance and to make it even sweeter it serves as a panini press too. The adjustable heat allows you to grill your food perfectly with the desired amount of grill marks. Others have complained that grease drips out on to the counter and not onto the cups but I have found this not to be true yet. Perhaps the cuts I use are leaner which is why I also grill my meats to rid food of extra fat. Clean up is a breeze. The removable grill pans are very easy to clean in the sink or if you wish in the dishwasher. It's the perfect size for cooking for one or two people, it's compact and does not take any counter real estate, looks great with the rest of my stainless steel appliances. I love the fact that it adjusts to the thickness of your meats and paninis. I have made some delicious paninis in it which brings in the versatility of this little appliance. I use it every day. I highly recommend it.
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I'd been looking at panini grills for years, but had never found the perfect model. Many of the grills I looked at in stores seemed very cheap and poorly built. One clear exception was the Cuisinart grill, which was very well constructed, but it was very expensive and also very large. When I saw this new Cuisinart Junior, I decided to take the plunge. It has become the hit of our kitchen. Making fancy grilled sandwiches has become a highlight of our weekends. My teenage kids love the sandwiches off the grill, and they don't seem to notice that they're eating healthier than before. The quality of panini sandwiches off this little grill is far superior to the paninis we get at our local restaurants.
BalasHapusHere are the features that make this grill a winner for me:
- The grill plates really are nonstick. I've never had to do more than wipe them clean, even when drippings seem to have burned on. The plates remove super easily, and also snap back in very easily.
- The grill pre-heats very quickly. I turn it on before I start making the sandwich, and it's always hot enough by the time the sandwich is assembled.
- The grill always creates the perfectly grilled panini. When I used to make grilled sandwiches in a frying pan, getting them perfectly grilled without burning was hit or miss. With this grill, I just set the dial a bit shy of medium and every sandwich comes out perfectly grilled.
- The hinged lid let's us make fairly huge sandwiches (a few inches thick). This might not sound like a big deal, but it's key to having fun with the grill, since it let's you make creative sandwiches that you could never cook all the way through or flip in a frying pan.
- The small size is perfect. It cooks one very large or two smaller panini, and it doesn't take up a ton of counter space. It's small enough that I can leave it out all the time, which makes it a lot more convenient to use.
One thing to be careful of: The lid does get hot. Make sure you only use the handle for opening and closing. I wouldn't let younger kids work the grill by themselves.
I have not tried cooking meat with the grill. We use it strictly as a panini grill.
I don't generally get excited about kitchen appliances, but this little grill is downright fun. Any gadget that can get my teenagers psyched about going to the grocery store to find wacky things they can turn into grilled sandwiches is a hit in my book. (BTW, our favorite sandwiches so far are: tomato and fresh mozzarela with basil pesto; chicken, apple, and raspberry with provolone; and pear with brie. My apologies if I'm not spelling some of these foods right.)
Great purchase. Getting used more heavily than our stove. I'm hooked.
I just bought my Griddler Jr. yesterday - and tried it out. It's very well made, and my panini sandwiches turned out great. It can also be opened flat to use a a regular grill. The best thing though - is that the grill plates are removable - for easy cleanup.
BalasHapus
BalasHapusI really like this little grill. It works just as you might hope it would and it's not too big (doesn't take up too much counter space, you know, like all the other appliances you have put away in the cupboard) and what's nice about that is you can leave it out and actually use it. It's super easy to clean - not only is the surface truly non-stick (some say they are, but try to clean them!) but the griddle surfaces snap out easily for cleaning. The unit heats up quickly and evenly and it's brushed stainless steel exterior matches everything in our kitchen from the fridge to the dishwasher. I can't say enough good things about this little guy - except that I bought it here on Amazon for quite a bit less than it's currently advertised for. Watch the price, it varies from as low as $59 to as high as $99.
BalasHapusThis has all the features of the high end models with the added bonus of a small footprint. It does it all and takes up very little counter space. Also, we paid less than $80 for it which is a tremendous value for something with these features and quality construction.
BalasHapusI didn't need a family-size grill, so I went with the Cuisinart Griddler Jr. It's just the right size. I liked the fact that it had removable (and dishwashable in top rack) grill trays, multiple heat settings (low, medium, and high), and an adjustable hinge so that bulky sandwiches don't have their contents squished out. It does a great job of cooking and is very versatile.
BalasHapusUpdate March 16, 2011
I've had the grill about 2-1/2 years now, and it's still going strong. I never owned a Cuisinart appliance before, but this has made me a believer. It's unbelievably easy to use and easy to clean up. I highly recommend this device and have moved my rating from 4 stars up to 5.
My wife and I tend to try to justify purchases to ourselves by sort of over-blowing how much use we'll get out of them. This process was no different, as we talked about how easy and often we'd just slice some sourdough, toss something like sliced turkey, cheese, and a little raspberry preserves in between, and grill it up into nice hot crunchy sandwiches. Inevitably, few of our predictions actually hold true as the novelty wears off, and even tools you love are pulled out a little less frequently as time goes by. This has not been the case with our GR-3 Griddler Jr.
BalasHapusBecause of its greatly reduced footprint (it takes up less space than our Krups 4-Slice Toaster), we've been able to leave it out on the counter right by our bread board, so it's always quick and convenient to turn it on, and make any sort of sandwich we like within a few minutes.
The unit is easy to clean, both the top and bottom plates are easily removable, and while they have that somewhat gritty type of non-stick surface, even burnt on cheese or preserves require no effort whatsoever to come out from between the grooves. It heats evenly and quickly, the hinge allows even thick sandwiches to be pressed (or not) evenly, and for us it's churned out perfectly grilled sandwiches.
We haven't used it for anything but, so I can't and won't speak to its efficacy as a George Foreman replacement. It seems to be that people who are used to those, and switch to real panini presses often come away disappointed because large quantities of grease aren't handled well. If you want to make sandwiches, and aren't cooking for more than a couple of people (perhaps no more than 3), then I highly recommend both this make, and the model. If they ever come out with alternative flat grilling plates as an add-on, it will be the perfect press -- even without those, it's worthy of each of the five stars I'm giving it here.
I have had my Cuisinart Griddler Jr. for about a month and I love it. I have made breakfast paninis, lunch paninis and dinner paninis and they have all turned out great. My husband says everything I make in the Griddler makes my old recipes taste better!
BalasHapusThe cookbook that came with the Griddler Jr. has limited recipes so I purchased another one from Amazon titled "200 Best Panini Recipes" by Tiffany Collins. It is the best panini recipe book I have found so far and well worth the money.
The Griddler works much better for paninis than my old George Foreman. The floating lid makes it easy to cook thick sandwiches and it heats up faster and is much hotter than the Foreman so food takes less time to cook.
It is a breeze to clean, especially because of the removable cook plates, although I do not put them in the dishwasher. Some of the cookbook authors suggest that it is better to clean them by hand.
My daughter was so impressed with the Griddler that she purchased on too.
I would definitely recommend it to anyone, especially working people who are short on time.
I finally found the perfect grilling appliance and to make it even sweeter it serves as a panini press too. The adjustable heat allows you to grill your food perfectly with the desired amount of grill marks. Others have complained that grease drips out on to the counter and not onto the cups but I have found this not to be true yet. Perhaps the cuts I use are leaner which is why I also grill my meats to rid food of extra fat. Clean up is a breeze. The removable grill pans are very easy to clean in the sink or if you wish in the dishwasher. It's the perfect size for cooking for one or two people, it's compact and does not take any counter real estate, looks great with the rest of my stainless steel appliances. I love the fact that it adjusts to the thickness of your meats and paninis. I have made some delicious paninis in it which brings in the versatility of this little appliance. I use it every day. I highly recommend it.
BalasHapus