Tamago Sando (Japanese Egg Salad Sandwich) features rich and creamy egg salad served on soft white bread. It's a Japanese convenience store favorite and is made with Kewpie mayo with a jammy egg in the center. Make with a few ingredients and minimal effort for lunch or snack!
Tamago sandos are one of our go to lunches. The combination of soft and hard boiled eggs, Kewpie mayo, and shokupan (Japanese white bread) elevates it above other egg salad sandwiches. Trust us, you won't make an egg salad sandwich any other way again!
Whip it up for a light lunch and enjoy it with a Matcha Lemonade or Iced Matcha Latte for a refreshing boost!
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About Tamago Sando
- Taste - This egg sando is a blend of richly flavored and seasoned eggs, kewpie mayo, and lightly sweet white bread.
- Texture - The egg salad is creamy while the bread is firm.
- Effort - This recipe is super easy. All you need to do is boil the eggs, then mix the egg salad ingredients then assemble the sandwiches.
- Time - It takes just 10 minutes to cook the eggs, 10 minutes to cool them, then 5 minutes to make the sandwiches.
Ingredients
- Eggs - Eggs are a tasty source of protein. We prefer pasture-raised farm fresh eggs because they contain more vitamins and omega-3 fats than cage-raised eggs.
- Shokupan - Shokupan is Japanese milk bread. It is fluffy white bread that compliments the egg salad perfectly.
- Butter - We spread butter on the bread for extra rich flavor.
- Kewpie Mayonnaise - Kewpie mayo is a Japanese pantry staple with a rich umami flavor and creamy consistency.
See recipe card for quantities.
Substitutions
- Katsu sando - Make a chicken katsu sando if you want a heartier sando with more crunch.
- Regular mayo - If you don't have kewpie mayo, this recipe will also work with regular mayo.
- Hard boiled eggs only - Instead of a 3 hard boiled eggs and 1 soft boiled egg, you can make this recipe with just hard boiled eggs if you prefer the firmer egg whites.
- Bread - While we love this recipe with shokupan, it will also be tasty with regular white bread, ciabatta, or a healthy wheat or multi-grain bread. Toasting the bread will also add a a nice crunch.
Variations
- No bread - Enjoy the egg salad on its own without bread for a delicious side.
- Green olives - Chopped green olives will add a briny accent to the egg salad.
- Celery - Add chopped celery for a delicious crunch.
- Parsley - Parsley will add an earthy pepperiness.
- Cilantro - Add chopped cilantro for a fresh and lightly citrusy taste.
- Dill - Add finely chopped dill for a green, pungent flavor.
- Lettuce - Add crisp lettuce, like butter lettuce or little gem, for a refreshing crunch.
- Curry powder - Add a half teaspoon of curry powder to the egg salad when you add the mayo for a warm curry flavor.
- Sriracha - Add Sriracha or use spicy mayo to make this sandwich spicy.
Instructions
- Boil the water and eggs - Prepare two small ice baths for the jammy and hard-boiled eggs and set aside. Bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Then reduce the heat to low and use a slotted spoon to lower the eggs into the water. Increase the heat back to medium and set a timer to 7 minutes and cook the eggs. Remove one of the eggs after 7 minutes and transfer to an ice bath. Let the remaining 3 eggs cook for 3 additional minutes (10 minutes total). (Photo 1 and 2)
- Chill the eggs - Then transfer the eggs to a separate ice bath to keep track of the eggs easier. (Photo 3)
- Cool and peel the eggs - Let the eggs sit in the ice water for about 7-10 minutes then carefully peel them. (Photo 4)
- Cut the jammy egg - Cut the 7 minute egg in half lengthwise and set aside. (Photo 5)
- Dice the hard-boiled eggs - Finely dice the other 3 eggs and transfer to a mixing bowl. (Photo 6)
- Make salad - Then add Kewpie mayonnaise, kosher salt, and black pepper and fold until well combined. (Photo 7 and 8)
- Assemble - Place two slices of bread on a cutting board and spread butter evenly on both slices. (Photo 9)
- Add eggs to bread - Then spread an even layer of egg salad mixture on the two slices of bread and create a small well in the center. Nestle each half of the 7-minute egg in the egg salad and place the remaining slices of bread on top of both sandwich halves. (Photo 10)
- Press the sandwiches - Gently press down to adhere the top slice. (Photo 11)
- Cut off crust - Cut off the crust and slice the sandwich in half. Be sure to cut in the center of the egg lengthwise so you can see the yolk in the center. Enjoy! (Photo 12)
Pro tip - Make sure the eggs are at room temperature before you boil them. If the eggs are cold and right out of the fridge, they will crack when lowered into the hot water. When you turn on the stove to boil the water take the eggs out of the refrigerator to give the eggs enough time to reach room temperature.
What to Serve With Tamago Sando
This tamago sando is delicious on its own for a light lunch. If you want a heartier lunch or dinner, try it with a Japanese side like our Spicy Kani Salad or Furikake Shishito Peppers. It will also be great with these other healthy sandwich sides. If you want a refreshing drink to enjoy with this sandwich, try our Matcha Lemonade or Matcha Latte.
Storage
Store leftover Japanese egg salad in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Store the bread and egg salad separately so the bread doesn't get soggy. Then assemble your sandwich when you are ready to eat.
Top Tips
- Use pasture-raised eggs for beautiful bright orange yolks.
- Be sure to let the eggs chill in the ice bath to stop the eggs from cooking further and to make it easier to peel them.
- Keep the crust on if you like it!
Recipe FAQs
Yes, sando is short for sandoitchi, the Japanese word for sandwich.
It is pronounced sahndo.
While we wouldn't consider this sandwich super healthy because of the kewpie mayo and white bread, it is also protein packed from the eggs.
Yes, egg salad sandwiches are tastiest cold or at room temperature.
If you are concerned that your sandwich will get soggy, you can add a slice of lettuce or butter lettuce between the salad and bread to block the moisture from the egg salad.
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📖 Recipe
Tamago Sando (Japanese Egg Salad Sandwich)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 large eggs
- 4 slices of shokupan or soft white bread
- 2 teaspoon butter
- 2 tablespoon Japanese Kewpie mayonnaise
- ¼ pinch kosher salt or sea salt, to taste
- ¼ pinch freshly ground black pepper or to taste
Instructions
- Boil the water and eggs - Prepare two small ice baths for the jammy and hard-boiled eggs and set aside. Bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and use a slotted spoon to lower the eggs into the water. Increase the heat back to medium and set a timer to 7 minutes and cook the eggs. Remove one of the eggs after 7 minutes and transfer to an ice bath. Let the remaining 3 eggs cook for 3 additional minutes (10 minutes total). Transfer the eggs to a separate ice bath to keep track of the eggs easier.4 large eggs
- Cool and peel the eggs - Let the eggs sit in the ice water for about 7-10 minutes then carefully peel them.
- Cut the eggs - Cut the 7 minute egg in half lengthwise and set aside. Finely dice the other 3 eggs and transfer to a mixing bowl. Add Kewpie mayonnaise, kosher salt, and black pepper and fold until well combined.2 tablespoon Japanese Kewpie mayonnaise, ¼ pinch kosher salt, ¼ pinch freshly ground black pepper
- Assemble - Place two slices of bread on a cutting board and spread butter evenly on both slices. Spread an even layer of egg salad on the two slices of bread and create a small well in the center. Nestle each half of the 7-minute egg in the egg salad and place the remaining slices of bread on top of both sandwich halves. Gently press down to adhere the top slice. Cut off the crust and slice the sandwich in half. Be sure to cut in the center of the egg lengthwise so you can see the yolk in the center. Enjoy!4 slices of shokupan, 2 teaspoon butter
Video
Notes
- Make sure the eggs are at room temperature before you boil them so they don't crack when lowered into the hot water.Â
- Use pasture-raised eggs for beautiful bright orange yolks.
- Let the eggs chill in the ice bath to stop the eggs from cooking further and to make it easier to peel.
- Keep the crust on if you prefer the crunch!
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