Who doesn't love a good Reuben sandwich!? Well, maybe not those of us following the Weight Watchers program, once we realize a typical Reuben sandwich is loaded with WW points! But good news -this Turkey Reuban Panini Sandwich is only 6 ww points (and can be cut to 3 ww points using a lighter bread).
And you can use deli meat or leftover turkey breast meat, helping you get back on track after that big holiday meal! Reuben Sandwiches are especially popular for St. Patrick's day. If you are looking for Weight Watchers sandwiches, you'll love this Turkey Reuben recipe!
Jump to:
I love paninis because I adore warm sandwiches. And getting a panini press was one of the best investments I ever made because it instantly turns a boring, old, and cold sandwich into a HOT meal! There's just something cozier about eating a warm sandwich and this is one of my very favorite sandwiches!
🥘Ingredients
For this Turkey Reuben Sandwichrecipe, you'll need:
- oven-roasted turkey breast (cold cuts/deli meat or leftover turkey)
- mustard
- low - fat Swiss cheese slices
- sauerkraut
- rye bread slices
📖 Variations & Substitutions
- bread- use any type you prefer- you can further lower the points with a very WW friendly bread
- mustard - give it some spice with Dijon mustard!
- turkey - you can use deli meat or leftover turkey or chicken breast
🥗 Side Dishes
This Turkey Reuben Panini goes well with veggies, soup, a side salad, cabbage slaw (zero points) or healthy fries. I also like to serve it with:
🍽 Equipment
I have always considered sandwiches to be lunch food, but hot sandwiches are an entirely different thing all together. It just feels more 'dinner like' when you heat them up on the panini press *See recipe card for recommended equipment photos and links
If you don't have a panini press, you can still make this turkey reuben sandwiches recipe with a frying pan/large skillet or in a toaster oven. However, I would suggest investing in one- it's so worth it!
💭 Weight Watchers lunch ideas (or dinner!)
This Turkey Reuben makes a great Weight Watchers lunch (or even a dinner!) If you are looking for more WW lunch ideas, then check out these WW friendly lunch recipes!
And if you love Reuben's, you'll love my lighter Reuben Soup (shown below), which can be further lightened up with the suggestions I give in the post.
🔢WW POINTS
Just because you're on Weight Watchers, doesn't mean you need to eat boring sandwiches! This grilled sandwich is 6 WW points. If you can find reduced calorie rye, you can cut it down to 3 weight watchers points per sandwich. According to the ww app, a traditional reuben sandwich is a whopping 24 points!
There's been a lot of different plans since I have been following Weight Watchers for over 20 years and the freestyle program was, by far, my favorite! I'm glad it's recently gone back to something similar to that. You can read about my personal WW journey HERE.
Most importantly, with all the WW programs, BALANCE has always been key and that's what I love about the program. You can still indulge and not feel deprived. You can also read my WW Tips & Tricks HERE! But what I love even more is that staying on track means you get to eat meals like THIS - yum!
👪 Serving Size
This Turkey Reuben recipe makes 4 sandwiches. However, you can half, double or triple the recipe by clicking on the blue serving number and selecting the number of servings you'd like. The ingredient quantities will automatically adjust.
🌡️Storage
Store ingredients for this hearty sandwich (sauerkraut, turkey and cheese) separately from each other in an airtight sealed containers in the fridge for up to 3 days. Bread can be stored at room temperature.
One of my favorite Weight Watchers sayings is: "It's not what you eat between Christmas and New Year's, but what you eat between New Year's and Christmas that really matters." We get so hung up on overdoing it during the holidays and often beat ourselves up. It's OKAY to indulge, but just be sure to get back on that wagon! It's what you eat all those days in between that really makes the difference. And since it's still between New Year's and Christmas, you'll want to be using your leftover Thanksgiving turkey for this sandwich!
WW friendly Leftover Turkey
Leftover turkey is the best! But leftover turkey sandwiches can get a little dull and predictable. And that's exactly why I love this sandwich recipe; it's lean, healthy, a little different and super delicious! Plus, you can always use roasted turkey deli meat if you don't have leftover turkey.
Oh and my Easy Leftover Turkey Enchiladas is another great leftover turkey recipe that is also WW friendly!
❔ FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Use lean meat (turkey breast or chicken breast), tuna, salmon, vegetables such as cucumber, tomatoes and lettuce leaves, pickles and black olives, red onions, salsa, hot sauce, reduced fat cheese, a little mustard, low-fat mayonnaise or Greek yogurt hummus
So if you are looking for a healthy, easy WW lunch ideas, give this Turkey Reuben Panini recipe a try!
⭐ COMMENTS & REVIEWS
Did you know that commenting and rating recipes is one of the best ways to support your favorite recipe creators? If you loved this recipe, please comment and rate it in the recipe card or share photos on social media using the hashtag #foodmeanderings or tagging @foodmeanderings !
🥪Turkey Reuben Panini Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 150 g oven roasted turkey breast meat (cold cuts or leftover turkey) * about 6 slices
- 4 teaspoon mustard
- 4 slices low - fat swiss cheese slices
- 1 cup sauerkraut, drained and squeezed * measure AFTER it's drained and liquid has been squeezed out
- 8 slices rye bread
Garnish
- dill pickles, sliced
Instructions
- Heat panini press.
- On a cutting board or work surface, spread 1 teaspoon of mustard evenly on 4 slices of bread.
- Top each piece of bread with mustard on it, with slices of turkey meat, dividing evenly between all 4 pieces of bread.
- Drain and squeeze liquid from sauerkraut, then place it on top of turkey, dividing evenly between the 4 sandwiches.
- Add one slice of cheese to each sandwich and top each sandwich with the remaining slice of bread.
- Place sandwiches on panini press and lower top. ** You do not need to add butter or anything else- it will not stick!
- Cook for 5 minutes (approximately) until it has grilled brown ridges (as in photos)
- If cheese is not yet melted, move the setting to "melt" until cheese is melted.
- Serve with dill pickles and enjoy!
Terri Gilson
Who knew a Reuben sandwich could be WW friendly? This Turkey Reuben Panini is only 6 points and can be cut to 3 using lighter bread! I love how it transforms leftover turkey into a warm, cozy meal. There's just something special about biting into a hot sandwich, and this one's become my favorite - especially around St. Patrick's Day!