Japan's love of meals, sandwiched
May 11, 2013 12:15 PM Subscribe
Lotteria will release a ramen sandwich later this month. Back in February, McDonald's announced the return of its Texas and Idaho burgers.
And yakisoba sandwiches are ubiquitous in Japan.
And yakisoba sandwiches are ubiquitous in Japan.
Yakisoba sandwich? Well, at least that would be wheat plus buckwheat (which isn't wheat).
But a ramen sandwich? Sounds like a bread sandwich except with extra salt and hydrogenated vegetable oil.
posted by kozad at 12:20 PM on May 11, 2013
But a ramen sandwich? Sounds like a bread sandwich except with extra salt and hydrogenated vegetable oil.
posted by kozad at 12:20 PM on May 11, 2013
Think of all the time we will save by not having to wash up a ramen bowl later.
posted by arcticseal at 12:32 PM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by arcticseal at 12:32 PM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
LOL I will link to a Japanese video I put on my blog just over 10 years ago:
BlogTV: The Secret Egg Salad Sandwich Recipe
posted by charlie don't surf at 12:33 PM on May 11, 2013
BlogTV: The Secret Egg Salad Sandwich Recipe
posted by charlie don't surf at 12:33 PM on May 11, 2013
I would eat both of those McDonald's thingies.
posted by jquinby at 12:54 PM on May 11, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by jquinby at 12:54 PM on May 11, 2013 [2 favorites]
Now I'm craving a chip butty, the best carb on carb on carb action EVER.
posted by maudlin at 12:55 PM on May 11, 2013 [4 favorites]
posted by maudlin at 12:55 PM on May 11, 2013 [4 favorites]
I used to eat leftover, cold pasta on a slice of buttered bread. Not too different from this.
Oh how I miss the days of wanton carb consumption.
posted by mudpuppie at 1:43 PM on May 11, 2013 [2 favorites]
Oh how I miss the days of wanton carb consumption.
posted by mudpuppie at 1:43 PM on May 11, 2013 [2 favorites]
That is hilarious, the hash brown patty on the Idaho burger. Do you know that McDonald's is pretty much the only way to get an Idaho potato in Idaho? They're all sold for frozen french fries, you can't just walk into the grocery and buy an Idaho potato, at least not that I've ever seen in 25 years. Anyway, is this something that people in Japan would get? That hash brown = potato = Idaho? I bet most Americans would have to think about it for a minute.
posted by HotToddy at 1:45 PM on May 11, 2013
posted by HotToddy at 1:45 PM on May 11, 2013
And yeah, carb on carb is awesome. The two best double carb things I've had were 1) a hash brown galette and 2) a stir fry that included french fries, over rice. Fat on fat is great, too, like toast with butter and avocado, plus green onion, salt, and a tiny bit of lemon juice.
posted by HotToddy at 1:48 PM on May 11, 2013
posted by HotToddy at 1:48 PM on May 11, 2013
Not to distract from the matters at hand but one of the sites linked above also features a Whopper topped with 1050 bacon strips.
posted by superquail at 2:11 PM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by superquail at 2:11 PM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
Oh my god, the Big America Burgers! Azuresunday and I still talk about those, two years out of Japan. They're pretty good, you know, for McDonalds.
posted by gc at 2:14 PM on May 11, 2013
posted by gc at 2:14 PM on May 11, 2013
Parasite Unseen 1994 (GOTH ME) wants one of those Koro Burgers more than he has ever wanted anything in his entire life.
posted by Parasite Unseen at 2:32 PM on May 11, 2013
posted by Parasite Unseen at 2:32 PM on May 11, 2013
Behold the French Fry Poboy. Fries on poboy bread and drenched in beef gravy (and cheese if you're lucky)
posted by ColdChef at 3:31 PM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by ColdChef at 3:31 PM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
Yep, the McDonald's America burgers look like decent stuff, and seem to be available Europe wide at the moment.
posted by ambrosen at 4:11 PM on May 11, 2013
posted by ambrosen at 4:11 PM on May 11, 2013
I'd rather have the kind of ramen burger where they use the ramen for the bun. Found one example via Google but I first came across them from a funny local chef in Kyushu who was always talking about how he invented them (doubt it's true, but he was interviewed about them on TV a few times).
posted by p3t3 at 4:18 PM on May 11, 2013
posted by p3t3 at 4:18 PM on May 11, 2013
Derail to a very bad sandwich experience in Japan.
Lunch was a bunch of ordered sandwiches of all types. I got what I thought was tuna salad, took one bite and was nauseated. Then I noticed it was slightly pink for tuna salad. I retrieved the label and asked what I had. "It's a Roast Beef and Tuna Salad sandwich", I was told, as if it were the most ordinary thing in the world.
I finished it. I did not finish my first and last taste of natto (on another occaison) but I didn't spit it out.
Also--one NY gyro cart puts some leftover over-age french fries in with the usual gyro ingredients (he asks first, of course). I'ts a nice variation.
posted by hexatron at 5:21 PM on May 11, 2013
Lunch was a bunch of ordered sandwiches of all types. I got what I thought was tuna salad, took one bite and was nauseated. Then I noticed it was slightly pink for tuna salad. I retrieved the label and asked what I had. "It's a Roast Beef and Tuna Salad sandwich", I was told, as if it were the most ordinary thing in the world.
I finished it. I did not finish my first and last taste of natto (on another occaison) but I didn't spit it out.
Also--one NY gyro cart puts some leftover over-age french fries in with the usual gyro ingredients (he asks first, of course). I'ts a nice variation.
posted by hexatron at 5:21 PM on May 11, 2013
I did not finish my first and last taste of natto
Ahh, natto. I positively love the stuff. Anytime I have to take antibiotics, the first few meals after I complete the course of meds involves me getting a couple of these three-packs and a half-gallon of kimchi. Restores the flora and fauna in my gut back to norms double-quick.
posted by Purposeful Grimace at 6:23 PM on May 11, 2013
Ahh, natto. I positively love the stuff. Anytime I have to take antibiotics, the first few meals after I complete the course of meds involves me getting a couple of these three-packs and a half-gallon of kimchi. Restores the flora and fauna in my gut back to norms double-quick.
posted by Purposeful Grimace at 6:23 PM on May 11, 2013
Yakisoba sandwiches taste sublime. They're usually sold as a small "hero" style white bread bun with a slightly sweet glaze, filled with yakisoba, sprinkled with nori and garnished with salt "benishoga" ginger. The double carb combo of soft white bread and noodles is really satisfying.
In terms of sandwiches in Japan, I'm always on the lookout for minced pork cutlet sandwiches. My mother in law ran a coffee shop, and her tomato sandwiches were really good - thin slices of white bread without the crust, slivers of tomatoes and cucumber, a good layer of Kewpie mayo, and a sprinkle of salt.
Most convenience stores will sell strawberry sandwiches (with whipping cream).
Japan is awesome because, as a rule of thumb, whatever they decide to do, they decide to do it well, and this extends to "sando".
posted by KokuRyu at 8:02 PM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
In terms of sandwiches in Japan, I'm always on the lookout for minced pork cutlet sandwiches. My mother in law ran a coffee shop, and her tomato sandwiches were really good - thin slices of white bread without the crust, slivers of tomatoes and cucumber, a good layer of Kewpie mayo, and a sprinkle of salt.
Most convenience stores will sell strawberry sandwiches (with whipping cream).
Japan is awesome because, as a rule of thumb, whatever they decide to do, they decide to do it well, and this extends to "sando".
posted by KokuRyu at 8:02 PM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
lunchpack yakisoba
everything as a sandwich
posted by Infernarl at 8:34 PM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
everything as a sandwich
posted by Infernarl at 8:34 PM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
The Idaho burger, meanwhile, looks a little odd if you ask us. Complete with hash browns, onion, bacon and pepper relish
Wow, sounds awesome. Along the same lines as the French fries on gyros, which I wholeheartedly approve of, Sophie's, a chain Cuban restaurant, puts crunchy potato stix on some of its sandwiches.
When I make it to mcdonalds breakfast I always make a sandwich out of the big breakfast platter. Sausage, egg, hash brown and grape jelly on a biscuit.
posted by Ad hominem at 8:55 PM on May 11, 2013
Wow, sounds awesome. Along the same lines as the French fries on gyros, which I wholeheartedly approve of, Sophie's, a chain Cuban restaurant, puts crunchy potato stix on some of its sandwiches.
When I make it to mcdonalds breakfast I always make a sandwich out of the big breakfast platter. Sausage, egg, hash brown and grape jelly on a biscuit.
posted by Ad hominem at 8:55 PM on May 11, 2013
Nice post!
Most convenience stores will sell strawberry sandwiches (with whipping cream).
Ah yes, the strawberry sandwiches on soft white bread with artificial whipped cream - sublime. Also sometimes in season I've spotted similar sandwiches with mandarin orange slices instead of strawberries.
Potato-salad sandwiches on soft white bread are another excellent source of carb-on-carb, even more so if paired with a rice ball.
Another stunning invention is MOS Burger's newest rice burger, which uses toasted rice cakes instead of a bun and is filled with beans and fried vegetables.
Yakisoba sandwich? Well, at least that would be wheat plus buckwheat (which isn't wheat).
Actually, while buckwheat isn't wheat, yakisoba isn't soba either. Yakisoba noodles are made from wheat flour, pretty similar to ramen (contrary to the OP's third link). So a yakisoba sandwich would resemble a ramen sandwich, except for the very distinctive yakisoba sauce.
posted by Umami Dearest at 9:58 PM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
Most convenience stores will sell strawberry sandwiches (with whipping cream).
Ah yes, the strawberry sandwiches on soft white bread with artificial whipped cream - sublime. Also sometimes in season I've spotted similar sandwiches with mandarin orange slices instead of strawberries.
Potato-salad sandwiches on soft white bread are another excellent source of carb-on-carb, even more so if paired with a rice ball.
Another stunning invention is MOS Burger's newest rice burger, which uses toasted rice cakes instead of a bun and is filled with beans and fried vegetables.
Yakisoba sandwich? Well, at least that would be wheat plus buckwheat (which isn't wheat).
Actually, while buckwheat isn't wheat, yakisoba isn't soba either. Yakisoba noodles are made from wheat flour, pretty similar to ramen (contrary to the OP's third link). So a yakisoba sandwich would resemble a ramen sandwich, except for the very distinctive yakisoba sauce.
posted by Umami Dearest at 9:58 PM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
Hmm, the Japanese Burger King pumpkin burger looks interesting. I mean, it looks terrible given that it's from Burger King, but I'd like to try elf-made versions of the ingredients. I want to try that nut sauce.
I meant to write "well-made", but auto-correct suggested "elf-made" and that's a damn better word choice.
Also: ugh.
posted by painquale at 10:46 PM on May 11, 2013
I meant to write "well-made", but auto-correct suggested "elf-made" and that's a damn better word choice.
Also: ugh.
posted by painquale at 10:46 PM on May 11, 2013
Down in Kyushu, Miyazaki-shi theres a sandwich that is made with Chicken Nanban. (Trans-literally Southern Barbarian Chicken) The one I had was served with red cabbage, lettuce, spicy mayo, and Japanese style tartar sauce. Finger lickin good!
I wouldn't be surprised if there's a Basashi based sandwich somewhere in Kyushu, but I never encountered one. (nor gone out of my way to find one)
But by far my least favorite sandwich was/is the McDonalds Ebi Burger.
Ah... I miss Japan and all it's wonderful food weirdness
posted by PipRuss at 10:49 PM on May 11, 2013
I wouldn't be surprised if there's a Basashi based sandwich somewhere in Kyushu, but I never encountered one. (nor gone out of my way to find one)
But by far my least favorite sandwich was/is the McDonalds Ebi Burger.
Ah... I miss Japan and all it's wonderful food weirdness
posted by PipRuss at 10:49 PM on May 11, 2013
Not to distract from the matters at hand but one of the sites linked above also features a Whopper topped with 1050 bacon strips.
Good Lord, that is fucking disgusting. This is pretty much the upper limit of bacon fetishism.
posted by DecemberBoy at 10:57 PM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
Good Lord, that is fucking disgusting. This is pretty much the upper limit of bacon fetishism.
posted by DecemberBoy at 10:57 PM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
Yeah, the Idaho burger was one of those rare experiences when I ended up pleasantly surprised after deciding to indulge. Not quite as good as anything Mos Burger (I am heavily biased in favor of Mos), but possibly the most satisfying burger I've ever had at McDonalds.
posted by harujion at 2:39 AM on May 12, 2013
posted by harujion at 2:39 AM on May 12, 2013
A guy I used to work with, one day, told me he was going to open up a sandwich shop. Part of it was oneupsmanship. I regularly brought in leftover bbq, or if I had extra, I'd mail a coworker or two and see if they wanted a sandwich.
He said he would open up a sandwich shop out in Kashiwa (which is a big place, but still a glorified bedroom community) and sell sandwiches to people heading to Tokyo on their morning commute. I tried to reason with him, to point out the number of ways in which he was doomed to fail:
It's flagrantly not a sandwich culture. Sandwiches are a snack. They're something eaten at a cafe with coffee, but not as a lunch, and most certainly not as a dinner. His idea of 'good, proper American sandwiches' was up against 100-150 yen 'sandwiches' from convienence stores everywhere, which have the aforementioned yaki-soba, strawberries, or whatever.
Pret-a-manger, the UK sandwich chain opened three shops in Tokyo, in business districts. They closed less than a year later. For the most part, the lunch-crowd of salarymen? They want to spend 500 yen or less on lunch, which is why McDonald's has it's lunch set priced at... 500 yen, why Sukiya and Yoshinoya have regular price wars selling gyudon for 290 yen a bowl.
Other than that, I tried to point out that, here in the boonies at least, nothing is open around the main stations before 7 am (aside from McDonald's) because no one has time to stop for anything. If you're getting on a train before 7 am, you're already in too much of a rush to stop at a shop and order a sandwich to be made on the spot.
No, my coworker said, it'd work. I just didn't understand how awesome his sandwiches would be.
there is good food here, I swear it. Seriously, check out Brozers, or Devil Craft, or any one of dozens of tiny restaurants turning out fantastic burgers, pizza, and even bbq
posted by Ghidorah at 4:11 AM on May 12, 2013
He said he would open up a sandwich shop out in Kashiwa (which is a big place, but still a glorified bedroom community) and sell sandwiches to people heading to Tokyo on their morning commute. I tried to reason with him, to point out the number of ways in which he was doomed to fail:
It's flagrantly not a sandwich culture. Sandwiches are a snack. They're something eaten at a cafe with coffee, but not as a lunch, and most certainly not as a dinner. His idea of 'good, proper American sandwiches' was up against 100-150 yen 'sandwiches' from convienence stores everywhere, which have the aforementioned yaki-soba, strawberries, or whatever.
Pret-a-manger, the UK sandwich chain opened three shops in Tokyo, in business districts. They closed less than a year later. For the most part, the lunch-crowd of salarymen? They want to spend 500 yen or less on lunch, which is why McDonald's has it's lunch set priced at... 500 yen, why Sukiya and Yoshinoya have regular price wars selling gyudon for 290 yen a bowl.
Other than that, I tried to point out that, here in the boonies at least, nothing is open around the main stations before 7 am (aside from McDonald's) because no one has time to stop for anything. If you're getting on a train before 7 am, you're already in too much of a rush to stop at a shop and order a sandwich to be made on the spot.
No, my coworker said, it'd work. I just didn't understand how awesome his sandwiches would be.
there is good food here, I swear it. Seriously, check out Brozers, or Devil Craft, or any one of dozens of tiny restaurants turning out fantastic burgers, pizza, and even bbq
posted by Ghidorah at 4:11 AM on May 12, 2013
I'm more shocked that the writer of this cooking focused tumblr has apparently never cut an onion before.
posted by lucidium at 5:48 AM on May 12, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by lucidium at 5:48 AM on May 12, 2013 [2 favorites]
Now I can't stop thinking about the steak au poivre and pomme frite sandwiches served on a baguette that are very common in Moorea, Tahiti. Someone should start a food truck and make these. And by "start a food truck" I mean "come to my house right now".
posted by Room 641-A at 7:12 AM on May 12, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by Room 641-A at 7:12 AM on May 12, 2013 [2 favorites]
This is pretty much the upper limit of bacon fetishism.
Challenge accepted.
posted by grouse at 11:09 AM on May 12, 2013
Challenge accepted.
posted by grouse at 11:09 AM on May 12, 2013
Potato-salad sandwiches on soft white bread are another excellent source of carb-on-carb, even more so if paired with a rice ball.
Oh, yes. Oh, yes.
Japan, of course, also makes the best goddamn potato salad. The best.
posted by KokuRyu at 5:11 PM on May 12, 2013
Oh, yes. Oh, yes.
Japan, of course, also makes the best goddamn potato salad. The best.
posted by KokuRyu at 5:11 PM on May 12, 2013
Speaking of sandwiches, I invented something new (for me, at least) on the weekend that was pretty amazing. Here in Korea, you can buy thin-sliced, raw duck meat, which is about 50% fat by weight, and not all that expensive. The idea is that you grill it, as most meats here, and eat it wrapped in leafy greens and samjjang.
But grilling meat -- especially the fatty stuff -- in our wee apartment leaves an unpleasant greasy film on things and is kind of just a pain all around, so: on impulse, I took a few hundred grams of the duck, a couple of boneless chicken breasts, some green onions and salt and pepper and a bit of cumin, ground it up in the food processor, and made burgers, topped with a little mayo and salsa.
Dear god, there were good. Most of the fat rendered out, but enough stayed that the chicken burgers were spectacularly juicy and flavorful, and... just yum.
I need to make this again. Or open a duckchickenburger place and get rich or something.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 5:15 PM on May 12, 2013 [5 favorites]
But grilling meat -- especially the fatty stuff -- in our wee apartment leaves an unpleasant greasy film on things and is kind of just a pain all around, so: on impulse, I took a few hundred grams of the duck, a couple of boneless chicken breasts, some green onions and salt and pepper and a bit of cumin, ground it up in the food processor, and made burgers, topped with a little mayo and salsa.
Dear god, there were good. Most of the fat rendered out, but enough stayed that the chicken burgers were spectacularly juicy and flavorful, and... just yum.
I need to make this again. Or open a duckchickenburger place and get rich or something.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 5:15 PM on May 12, 2013 [5 favorites]
Sandwiches are a snack. They're something eaten at a cafe with coffee, but not as a lunch, and most certainly not as a dinner.
Suddenly I feel like I understand everything I was doing wrong in Japan
posted by sunset in snow country at 9:41 AM on May 13, 2013
Suddenly I feel like I understand everything I was doing wrong in Japan
posted by sunset in snow country at 9:41 AM on May 13, 2013
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