Grilled Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich
Posted Mar 21, 2017, Updated May 07, 2022
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This Grilled Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich Recipe takes PB & J to the next level in the best way possible! It’s made with 3 ingredients in 5 minutes and makes lunchtime extra special!
I’m fairly certain that at birth, all my kids’ cute little perfect bodies consisted of 85% peanut butter. It’s no secret that I eat it often, and pregnancy was no exception.
Well today I have something that will change your peanut butter loving life. If you haven’t tried it before, I’d like to introduce you to this Grilled Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich Recipe. After one bite of this ooey gooey peanut buttery sandwich, you will never, ever be able to eat another “regular” PB&J again.
This Grilled Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich Recipe uses 4 ingredients and it’s ready in 5 minutes!
I always have peanut butter, jelly, bread (or the ingredients to whip up a loaf of homemade bread), and butter on hand. You might be thinking, “come on now Laura, PB&J isn’t a recipe.” But really, if you’ve never tried this Grilled Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich Recipe you are totally and completely missing out and you need to do it ASAP!
How to make a Grilled Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich
There is an art to making a perfect Grilled Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich. So we’ll walk through the process together, and don’t forget to watch the video.
Preheat the griddle!.This is absolutely critical! The griddle (or nonstick pan) needs to be hot before putting the prepared sandwich on it. You want the bread to get golden brown without the peanut butter and jelly beginning to ooze out of the sides. Having a preheated cooking surface ensures quick browning which will make your peanut butter and jelly irresistibly melty and delicious without being too messy.
Next, make the PB & J sandwiches, then butter both sides of the bread.
Then, grill the sandwich one one side for 1-2 minutes or until golden brown. Flip and repeat on the second side.
Serve
Remove the grilled peanut butter and jelly sandwiches from the heat and let them cool for a minute or two. This way the melted peanut butter won’t just ooze out when you cut into the bread.
Recipe FAQs
I suggest eating this grilled PB&J all in one sitting because it’s the best when fresh. You can store uneaten sandwich pieces in an airtight container in the refrigerator and then reheat them in a warm nonstick fry pan.
Yes, you can either double it or halve it with great results.
Grilled Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich Recipe: Substitutions
- Bread: Use your favorite bread – white sandwich bread, sourdough, whole wheat, or a gluten-free variety.
- Peanut butter: I am partial to creamy, but any nut butter would be amazing in this sandwich. Crunchy peanut butter, almond butter, sunflower seed butter, etc.
- Jelly: When I say jelly I really mean jam. Jam is made with the whole fruit not just the juice, and (in my opinion) is both more nutritious and delicious.
- Butter: Spreading some sort of fat source on the outside of the bread is critical to the perfect Grilled Peanut Butter & Jelly sandwich. Vegan butter spread can be substituted for regular butter if you need to avoid dairy. I highly recommend sticking to one of these two options because the salty buttery flavor really takes this sandwich to the next level.
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Grilled Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 slices of bread
- 4 TBS creamy peanut butter or crunchy!
- 2 TBS strawberry jam or your favorite jam or jelly
- 2 TBS butter room temperature (or vegan butter)
Instructions
- Preheat a griddle to 350 degrees F, or preheat a nonstick pan over medium heat until warm.
- While griddle/pan is preheating, make sandwiches:
- Take each piece of bread and spread 1 TBS of peanut butter on the sides that will be the middle of the sandwich (the sides that will touch).
- Spread 1 TBS of jelly evenly over the peanut butter on two of the pieces of bread.
- Put the pieces of bread together to make two sandwiches.
- Spread each piece of bread with ½ TBS of butter.
- Place sandwich on your preheated griddle or nonstick pan.
- Cook for 2-4 minutes or until the sandwich is golden brown.
- Flip and cook for another 2-4 minutes until golden brown.
- Serve immediately for the best ooey, gooey, melty peanut butter and jelly experience of your life!
Video
Notes
Ingredient Substitutions
- Bread:Â Use your favorite bread – white sandwich bread, sourdough, whole wheat, or a gluten-free variety.
- Peanut butter:Â I am partial to creamy, but any nut butter would be amazing in this sandwich. Crunchy peanut butter, almond butter, sunflower seed butter, etc.
- Jelly:Â When I say jelly I really mean jam. Jam is made with the whole fruit not just the juice, and (in my opinion) is both more nutritious and delicious.
- Butter: Spreading some sort of fat source on the outside of the bread is critical to the perfect Grilled Peanut Butter & Jelly sandwich. Vegan butter spread can be substituted for regular butter if you need to avoid dairy. I highly recommend sticking to one of these two options because the salty buttery flavor really takes this sandwich to the next level.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Fun fact: I craved this sandwich the last week before I gave birth with all three of my last pregnancies. So I ate these for lunch leading up to labor. I’m not sure why but it’s what my body wanted! By the third time when I started craving it I knew delivery was near!
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While delicious, there is no way those calorie counts are right for a single sandwich. 2 slices of bread alone will be at least 200 kcal. These are going to be closer to 600-700 kcals I would think.
If you look it is for half of a sandwich. Of course, it depends GREATLY on the bread you choose! I’m glad you enjoyed them!
Have you ever used mayo on the outsides to make it crispy? I know that sounds crazy, but it makes a huge difference on a regular grilled cheese sandwich. Thoughts?
I have not tried that but it sounds amazing! I use butter to make it crispy!
Can I use crunchy PB instead of creamy?
Yes absolutely!
Can you use peanut butter in place of the butter on the outsides?
No I do not recommend that, the peanut butter would likely burn. And you can’t beat the taste of butter.
I’m so glad to see this! I used to have grilled PB&J all the time as a kid, and it is an awesome treat now! Everyone should try it. PB&J will never be the same 🙂 also, a side note on alternatives for buttering the toast – by recommendation from a friend, I tried using mayonnaise to “butter” my bread for grilling, and it works wonders and tastes so rich!
OoOoOo I’m thoroughly intrigued by the idea of using mayo!
What a great idea. Definitely a great twist on the stand PBNJ. The closest I came to doing it this way was to just toast the bread in the toaster. With the summer coming might have to try and throw some of these on the grill!!
PB&J is such an amazing classic! I’m definitely gonna have to try making this sometime! <3
You would LOVE it Farrah!
What could be more simple yet more delicious? At least for those of us that love PB&J! =)
The beauty of simplicity!
i literally cannot show this to my boyfriend, or we will have it every night for the next 4 years….
also i love that you used creamy peanut butter because THERE IS NO SUBSTITUTE FOR THAT STUFF. so yummy haha
LOL Beverley! Isn’t in amazing how grown men love eating like 5 year old children?! My hubby would live on tater tots and hot dogs if he could!