I am usually pretty good at organizing and following my constantly updated to-do list. But once in a while life does get overwhelmingly busy and I fail to plan ahead especially when juggling too many things at the same time. What ends up happening is I call my husband at the office asking him to meet me and the kids at a restaurant for dinner at the last minute.
One of the drawbacks of not cooking dinner at home is that I don’t have “leftover” to pack for my son’s bento (lunch box) the next day. I try to save some leftover in the freezer for an emergency like these, but sometimes no luck. On those days, the easy sandwich comes in handy.
Now for those living in the States, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich might be a common menu for children’s school lunch. However, both of my children always preferred hot panini sandwich than typical soft bread sandwich like these.
The turning point was when we were in Japan last April. My mother loves bakeries and we often visited many local bakeries to pick up fresh bread.
My children really enjoyed freshly baked bread from Japanese bakeries and they especially loved Egg Salad Sandwich, or we call it Tamago Sando (たまごサンド). Japanese sandwich usually uses crust-less white bread slices, probably from British influence. Compared to typical American egg salad sandwich, the Japanese version is very simple – there are no celery, chives or green onions. The eggs are seasoned simply with Japanese mayonnaise, salt and pepper, and sugar.
Now speaking of mayonnaise, I receive several questions from some of you about Japanese mayonnaise. What’s the difference from regular kind? Well, you can read more about it here.
My son loves this Egg Salad Sandwich and this menu is now one of my favorite backup bento plans. I hope you will give it a try and enjoy this simple egg salad sandwich!
Check out my latest Japanese Egg Sandwich (Tamago Sando) recipe and video!
Wish to learn more about Japanese cooking? Sign up for our free newsletter to receive cooking tips & recipe updates! And stay in touch with me on Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube, and Instagram.
Egg Salad Sandwich Bento
Ingredients
- 2 slices bread of your choice (try Shokupan (Japanese Milk Bread) for an authentic taste)
- 1 soft or hard-boiled egg (peeled)
- 1 Tbsp Japanese Kewpie mayonnaise
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt (to taste)
- freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
- 1 pinch sugar (optional; a little bit of sugar is a typical ingredient for Japanese egg salad)
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients. Make 1 boiled egg on the previous day to save time in the morning.
- In a small bowl, mash 1 soft or hard-boiled egg with a fork.
- Add 1 Tbsp Japanese Kewpie mayonnaise and mix well. If it‘s not moist, you can add ½ Tbsp more.
- Season with Diamond Crystal kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper (and 1 pinch sugar, if you‘d like). I like to add a bit more salt and pepper to give good flavor.
- With 2 slices bread of your choice, spread the egg mixture on top of a slice of bread and put another slice of bread on top.
- [Optional] Cut off the crusts of the bread. Japanese sandwiches usually don’t have crusts. Tip: Don‘t throw away the crusts! Use them to make Shokupan Crust Rusks. These crunchy, buttery snacks are so delicious! You can make them now or freeze those crust strips and make them later.
- Cut the sandwich in half or thirds, depending on the bento box size.
- Pack the sandwich in a bento box. Add some fruit and vegetables to fill the empty space. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Did you make this recipe?
Tag @justonecookbook on Instagram so we can see your delicious creation!
