Breakfast Sandwich Maker

When I first saw this I was skeptical that it would work without making a mess to clean up afterward. I've bought many of these little gadgets in the past and usually the clean up is never as easy as it is shown on TV or the product doesn't quite come out the same. This one works great!! I was eager to check it out when I first received it from UPS. I didn't have any english muffins and just had some thin lite bread in the fridge so just used that. Seasoned it first (and I highly recommend doing this every time you use it) with some vegetable oil after I washed it like recommended. I heated it up, squeezed the first piece of bread in so it fit in and didn't leave any gapes, added my cheese and bacon, then an extra large egg (it's what I had) and then gently shaped the top piece of bread to fit too without squeezing out the egg. Came out great! Then my daughter came over and I remembered I had some frozen pancakes in the freezer and offered to make her a sandwich and she loved it. My "McGriddle" is made with two small blueberry pancakes (store bought that come in a big bag). I put the first one in, put a small bit of maple syrup to coat it, add some cheese and the sausage or bacon (have done both), then the egg and the top pancake that I also put a thin layer of maple syrup as well. Those come out tasting so good! I've made them with English muffins, bread and pancakes. I believe because I season it with the vegetable oil each time after I've cleaned it and it's dried that when I go to use it nothing sticks at all. I don't have the white residue from the egg that one of videos showed except once and that was when I made another sandwich right after the first one. It wasn't a big deal, still cleaned up easily. I also tried to make a Reuben style sandwich as well. I used Weight Watcher's rye bread that I put in and squeezed into the bottom to fit, a little mustard, Swiss cheese, pastrami and sauerkraut and the top piece of bread also molded to fit. I had the "egg" tray slid out when I tried this and the top bread didn't brown because it wasn't up high enough but it was warm and crispy. I may try to arrange the ingredients a bit differently next time and leave the "egg tray" in this time and put the meat on top of that so it gets a bit hotter because it was just warm before and the bread should toast nicely. Bottom line is, you could make a variety of hot sandwiches in this and doesn't necessarily have to be for breakfast. One thing I did notice and I think others had mentioned was the top and bottom having a sticky residue feeling to them after using. I ran into this too and as it tells you not to use a scrubbing pad on it it is hard to get rid of. I do have non scratch type scrubbers for my smooth top stove and I gently tried using that. Still found it was sticky. One of the things that I think helps tremendously is that after your sandwich is done leave it on and closed while you eat and then wet a dish cloth and wipe the top and bottom with that being careful not to burn yourself and that helps remove that residue. I also just rinse and repeat and wipe down the rest of the the cooking surfaces as well. A couple of other tips, if you want to try making a sandwich and your bread is too big and you don't want to deal with trying to squeeze it in just use the one of the circles to "cut" the bread like a cookie or biscuit cutter and it will fit perfectly. The pancakes I use are varied in shape and sometimes too big too fit and are frozen so trying to use the cookie cutter idea isn't plausible so in that case I just trim them around the edges a bit with some kitchen scissors I have. Also, the sausage I buy that is round is rather small and we found the first couple of sandwiches would slide around so, after I microwaved it to thaw, I mashed it down a little bit to spread it out to fit better and give you more sausage per bite (and I do recommend thawing out any frozen meat first in the microwave). We also like to scramble up the egg sometimes before we pour it in and that works out well too, haven't tried this yet but for a western style sandwich you could scramble up the egg, pour it in and throw in a little bit of chopped up peppers and onion. Things I haven't tried but think would be good for hot sandwiches are Italian bread with butter spread on it and garlic powder sprinkled on top of that with the buttered side facing the heating sides and maybe some mozzerella and mashed meatballs or sloppy joe mixture on the inside, the reuben style I already mentioned, maybe a hamburger bun with a thawed chicken patty and your choice of cheese. Basically, just be creative and don't just limit your ideas to breakfast. Edited on 1-18-2014 Still enjoying my sandwich maker very much. One thing I'd like to suggest and it worked well for us is that if you are making your own biscuits or buying a can of pillsbury grand biscuits you can make up a batch of sandwiches or cook for a crowd easily. While the biscuits are baking in the oven I cook up a couple of eggs at a time in the sandwich maker. I crack an egg in a bowl, scramble it up a bit, pour one egg in the bottom slot, quickly scramble up another and pour it into the "egg" slot and cook for about three minutes. I repeat this process while the biscuits are baking and then when they are done I put my sandwiches together reserving the last two hottest eggs for my husband and I to have a hot sandwich. I get everything ready ahead of time, precooked bacon and the cheese out and just do it like a quick assembly line. The rest of the sandwiches I individually wrap in wax paper and have some breakfast sandwiches ready to throw in the microwave or for my husband to take a couple to work with him. I like that the sandwich maker makes perfectly round little egg patties. Think you could cook up a dozen eggs like this and freeze them too to have a quick and handy, throw in the microwave, pre-cooked egg whether you wanted it in a sandwich or just to throw on a plate with some bacon or sausage.

Wow! This thing is awesome! This was my husband's favorite Christmas gift. I had seen it on an ad somewhere and thought it was probably a hunk of junk, but decided to look on amazon for reviews just to see. To my pleasant surprise, it looked like it just might be a good product, so I bought it! All the good reviews are true. This thing is quick, easy, and makes the most delicious, perfectly cooked, soft, satisfying egg sandwiches. My husband can't stop talking about how good the sandwiches are. We love how the egg is perfectly cooked, it is piping hot right down to the center of the sandwich, the cheese is perfectly melted, and the muffin is cooked, but still soft. Here are a few tips we discovered: Don't spray the nonstick cooking spray until the thing is totally heated and ready to go, AND YOU have all your ingredients ready to go. This thing is FAST, and if you are all ready, it goes very smoothly. At the last minute, spray on the cooking spray on both the top and bottom levels, and quickly assemble your ingredients. Place the bottom part of the english muffin on the bottom part and lay on the cheese (but don't leave the cheese hanging over the edge too much), and add the canadian bacon (Trader Joe's Canadian Bacon is great). Then close the top part and crack the egg right into it and put the top part of the english muffin right on top of the egg and close the lid (but don't press down on the lid. It will be slightly raised and that's ok). Also: You will need to set the timer on your stove because there is no timer on the sandwich maker. It says to let it cook for 4-5 minutes. At first, 4 minutes was perfect, but now it seems that even 3.5 minutes is even better, so you may want to play around with how long to let it cook so that it is right for you. I wouldn't go over 4 minutes, though, as it will get overcooked. Another tip: Thomas' English Muffins are TOO big, so I'm guessing bagels will be, too. They fill it out too much, so the top ends up getting slightly overcooked. The perfect sized English muffin is Trader Joes' kind, or the kind you find in a cylinder shaped bag at the grocery store. They are smaller and better suited for this machine and it keeps the top from overcooking. It is still perfectly soft. When the timer rings, slide the lever that starts on the right all the way over to the left. The top part of the sandwich falls on the bottom part. Lift the handle up and there is your sandwich! Scrape it off with a wooden or plastic utensil only onto a plate. Be careful not to burn your fingers! It is piping hot! This will be awesome for when we are in a rush getting ready for work, but we still want and need a satisfying breakfast. There are several recipes in the book, too, for variety. We found that Tillamook Muenster cheese melts beautifully and is super tasty. My parents were just here for the holiday and now my dad wants one of these things! He might go for the double maker! Enjoy!

As a rule of thumb, I avoid single use kitchen items, but with this sandwich maker, I make an exception. Technically it’s not single use if you can use it not only for breakfast but for other meals. And mix and match ingredients to fit your mood and your diet. I discovered this suggestion after learning I’m diabetic. And as much as I like fast food breakfast sandwiches I had to make some changes. But this allows me to create a breakfast sandwich, using lean proteins, eggs, and gluten-free English muffins. And it’s way easier than I ever thought. Plug it into preheat, put half of the muffin on the bottom, top that with your pre-cooked meat, such as refrigerated pre-cooked bacon, Canadian bacon or ham, top that with some cheese if you’d like, enclose the egg layer port in some slightly scrambled eggs. Then top with the other half of the muffin. I found a five minute timer, works perfect. So a full breakfast cooked in five minutes, to my specifications, saves me time and money. And it works just as well with other ingredients, such as meatballs, sauce and cheese. Or street taco tortillas with salsa and fried fish. Some helpful hints: you can use egg white, but do not use the store-bought egg whites in the carton. Spray a little cooking spray on the surfaces before it preheats. And the power source wipes, clean, and the rest can be easily removed and put into the dishwasher.

This is the perfect 'no fuss, no muss' 5-minute breakfast maker! We plugged it in, waited for the 'Ready' light to come on (3-5 minutes), popped in our ingredients and in minutes had the perfect breakfast sandwich! I used Orowheat English Muffins, a vegetarian sausage patty, shredded cheese and an egg. Didn't experience one issue that others have had. We looked at the pictures on how to place the items, popped them in and voila! Yummy hot breakfast! BTW..I've forgotten to 'pop the yolk' twice now and it still cooked through and no mess =0) It's important to look at the pics because if you add cheese but nothing on top of it (like my veg sausage patty), the cheese may stick to the plate above it. If you don't want to use a 'meat', then I would recommend putting the cheese on top of the egg and the top muffin over it. I noticed in the 'How To' photo that they used shredded cheese and not sliced which is why I used that type & I pre-cooked my patty since it came from the freezer (isn't that just common sense?!). Remember to use a non-stick spray for ez clean-up! After your done, just pop out the plates, wash & pop them back in...easy-peasy! This little baby should have 5-stars across the board! This was a Christmas gift for my mom who gets up early and enjoys a quick hot breakfast. She loves this little thing & no more frozen breakfast sandwiches hogging space in the freezer! Kids could easily use this (what age is at the parents discretion) & it would be a great gift for the grandparents too! It's so easy to use! Just be sure to tell them to only touch the handles (the plates get HOT! HOT! HOT!) and use a spatula to remove the sandwich from the hot plate. This goes for EVERYONE! And..very important...be sure to unplug it after use (there is no 'on & off' button!) ;) The second best thing about this machine, it's small. So if you don't like cluttered countertops it nicely tucks away in a cabinet/pantry. Paid around $24 for it - don't pay more than $25 with free shipping. If prices jump again (which they did after I bought it), go to your local wally world! =0) PS: Mine came in ez packaging. If you Google Hamilton Beach Breakfast Sandwich Maker you'll find the manufacturer's photos on how to layer your items (click on Images at top of screen). In the event you don't want to do that...Plug in and wait for the Ready light (Green). When it's ready, open it up, spray with non-stick cooking spray (they don't show that), and with the bottom ring down, put your bottom muffin in, add shredded cheese & veg/'meat', lower the next plate and place your egg and top with the other muffin slice, close the top and let it work it's magic. When the green light goes off...it's ready! Lift up from the bottom handle to expose the entire sandwich. Remember, it's going to be screaming hot when you add your goodies to it so be careful & be sure to use a spatula to remove it!!!

Yes, of course this is an absurd one-off speciality kitchen appliance. Of course you don't need it. Of course it's just going to take up space on your counter. Of course you can just make a breakfast sandwich yourself using your stove. But to look at it strictly from this perspective completely glosses over how convenient this thing is. Is the convenience worth the embarrassment of not just manually assembling things? Of course it is. Let's be honest here - the competition for this contraption is not you toasting your english muffin, poaching an egg, and frying up some sausage to assemble into a sandwich. The competition is not having breakfast. Or just running to McDonald's because it's so much simpler. So I'll admit it - I'd frequent McD's for a sausage mcmuffin with egg. I'd also frequently have an energy bar or a donut or some other basically junk breakfast. I have manually made egg sandwiches by cooking and assembling the ingredients, but that's more of a special occasion thing - it just took too much time. Even if it was 5-10 minutes of cooking/assembling, it was time that I was _actively_ working on it. And I'm lazy/busy, so it was always a low priority. Even when I got the ingredients, I'd tend to do it once and then let the english muffins get moldy over the next few weeks as I didn't do it again. Not to mention washing all the pans. But this thing changed everything - I'm literally making one of these every day for breakfast. And it's delicious. I pick my own high grade eggs, good quality butter, the english muffins I like, a good cheese. it's all fresh and it tastes way better than the fast food version. And it's basically no effort - it's a few minutes to pre-heat it (and you do other things during that), 30 seconds to assemble on the machine, 5 minutes to cook (again, do other things), a few minutes to cool (again, do other things), and you eat. It's awesome. If you're looking at this thing and reading this review, you're debating it as well. I'm sure you're doing the same mental gymnastics I did - it's a waste of money, it's a speciality item, I could just do it by hand, why would I bother buying this device when I know how to make eggs on the stove, etc. But the much more important question to ask yourself is - When was the last time you did any of that? If you're assembling your own sandwiches made on your stove with regularity, then by all means continue to do so - you absolutely do not need this. But if you're not...then get it. Tossing these things together quickly and getting something really tasty with basically no effort is FAR better than going out for something or not making it at all. You're not competing with the prospect of making it on the stove - you're competing against the prospect of not doing it at all. It's okay. Just buy it even though it's ridiculous. You'll really enjoy it. The one thing I really don't like about it is its lack of a switch - you have to unplug it to turn it off. So pick up a cheap outlet switch as well so you can plug the cooker into that and flip it on/off at the wall instead of plugging/unplugging. They really should add a switch to the unit.

UPDATE MARCH 2, 2024: I dropped two stars from this. I haven't used the thing in over two months. Why? Because every screw holding it together is solid rust. I saw a couple other reviews mentioning this and am surprised there's not more. So now I can either toss the thing despite it being a rather clever and nice appliance, or hopefully extract at least one of the screws, go to some hardware store somewhere, ask the nice people there if they can match the screw in a STAINLESS STEEL VERSION, pay them money, bring it home, hope I can extract all the other screws, hope the new ones actually do work and that my old, untalented fingers can manage screwing them in, and only THEN might I be able to again use the thing. I dislike hassles. I buy things on Amazon to avoid hassles. Hence the passage of at least two months since it rusted and it still sitting on my counter untouched. So, hey, manufacturer. If you'd like to just send me a new one of these with stainless steel screws, I'm all in for it. I like the mint green. I'll even send you the stupid-screw one if you want it. I'm so torn between really liking it and really not liking hassles, but honestly, I wouldn't gift one to anyone as is or really even be able to advocate for the thing now. I won't bring it up out of the blue, but if someone says, wow, you have such a cool sandwich maker, then I'll have to say, yes, but it involved tassle, and they'll say why, and I'll tell them, and we'll both be bummed about it, and that person will never buy one because they don't like hassles, either. No one likes hassles. Mint green with stainless steel screws. See what you can do. I'm a gadget-aholic, but this was a stretch even for me. Who needs this thing? I have wonderful cast iron pans, a top-notch toaster oven, and the ability to cook everything that goes into a breakfast sandwich - so why bother with this? Because it is WONDERFULLY easy. That's why. It works every time, I never don't make a breakfast sandwich because I don't want to wash it (it's a 30-second chore to clean), and I can snub my nose at the Mc-place I used to go to for these when they cost half what they do now. Win-win-win.

Love this little guy! Super quick and easy to use. Easy to clean as well!

Well, got it and first thing cleaned it, got my stuff together and made one of the best English egg,ham and cheese muffin's I have ever had, no more drive thru's. Pretty easy to clean.

El producto ha llegado en buen estado. Es muy bueno para hacer sandwich de huevo. En México no he podido encontrar en las tienditas de la esquina el pan que sea de la medida adecuada, por lo que tengo que cortar o doblar el pan para que quepa. Es fácil de limpiar y aunque se puede quedar huevo pegado, se quita muy fácil todo lo pegado a la hora de lavar. Recomiendo no presionar demasiado a la hora de colocar el huevo y el pan de la parte superior ya que la pieza donde va el huevo queda justo y al presionar se puede abrir y derramar el huevo. Un buen producto para los amantes del sandwich del huevo y ayuda a ahorrar tiempo.

I would love this if the egg didn't leak EVERY time.

Its crap...burns the bread every time

Compré esta sandwichera por curiosidad, Que sorpresa me lleve. Es excelente. Si te gustan los sandwiches de desayuno de los drive inns, esta es tu maquina, quedan igualitos. Puedes comprar el pan y todo lo necesario en cualquier supermercado, y de verdad quedan iguales. Ya empece a experimentar con diferentes recetas, todas quedan perfectas. El único pero que le pongo, es que no tiene time que te avisa que el sandwich está listo. Pero de ahí en fuera, Perfecto!!!!

Fait de bon sandwich, il suffit qu’il soit bien réchauffer avant de mettre les ingrédients et se lave très bien aussi ne colle pas