How To Heat Your Jimmy Dean Sandwich Up Without A Microwave

Even if you regularly use the microwave, sometimes all you want is for your leftover breakfast sandwich to taste a little better than reheated frozen food. Jimmy Dean's sausage, egg, and cheese croissant sandwiches are a quick meal, but the right warming process can make these taste like they just left a diner. 

The Jimmy Dean brand itself recommends one step before other forms of heat are applied, and that's thawing the sandwich completely in the refrigerator. Freezing hardens the bread and toppings, making it more difficult for them to cook through evenly. By thawing the sandwich, you won't get burnt bread with ice-cold eggs and meat in the middle. Sure, you can microwave a Jimmy Dean sandwich with the proper method, but the oven takes things up a notch.

If you've thawed your sandwich out, using the oven is the easiest alternative to a microwave. Preheat to around 350 degrees Fahrenheit, and fold the sandwich loosely in foil — this traps the steam and prevents the croissant from drying out. Heat it for about 20 minutes, and the warmth from the oven will restore the buttery layers of the croissant while melting the cheese into that perfect gooey pull. It takes a little bit longer than the microwave, but the payoff in the texture is worth the wait. Jimmy Dean sandwiches also use real eggs, so you want to make sure they're heated all the way through.

If you want something even speedier than the oven, but still without the microwave, you can heat up Jimmy Dean sandwiches in the air fryer. Once your sandwich has thawed, place it in a preheated air fryer at around 320 degrees Fahrenheit, and then cook for six to eight minutes. The hot air circulating around the sandwich is able to crisp up all of the croissant's outer layers and provide a fresh-baked aesthetic. The cheese will melt into the sausage and egg while providing some crunch on the outside that microwaves hardly replicate. For even more flavor, you could open the sandwich right about halfway through cooking to toast the layers inside, then reassemble and finish heating. This is great if you enjoy toasty edges on your bread or extra browning on your cheese.

Air frying also gives you more control. If you want it extra crispy, you can simply add another minute or two without worrying about overcooking the center. The oven method means you are not left with the sometimes-soggy results of the microwave style of heating. Similarly, an air fryer allows you to customize your breakfast with ease. Add sliced tomato, avocado, or an extra slice of cheese after the sandwich is just about heated, and let the last couple of minutes warm it all together. The result is a Jimmy Dean sandwich that tastes less like convenience food and more like a treat you'd order from a café.