Yes, it’s a corn sandwich. Not a sandwich with corn as some sort of minor ingredient or garnish. Just corn. Cold. With wallops of mayo.
Then there’s this. Words failed me the first time I saw this carbs-on-carbs noodle sandwich, a hot dog bun filled with yakisoba fried noodle goodness.
And this. As if fried pork cutlets weren’t carbalicious enough on their own.
But if what you’re really craving is pizza for lunch and have zero attachment to what pizza really is, how about this cold white bread sandwich stuffed with pizza-like fixins’?
Or if what you’re jonesing for curry rice, but you’re too lazy to walk to the neighborhood curry shop (and trust me, there always is one)—would you settle for two slabs of wonder bread with beef curry in the middle?
On the other hand, if your tastes run to Chez Billionaire but your budget is more 7-11, what about this “3-mushroom gratin danish”? (If I couldn’t read the package, I’d be quite glad of those little mushroom mascots on the front, because the product photo lends itself to far more unsavory interpretations. Food Styling Fails of Japan: it’s a Thing.)
But this is Japan—why confine the almighty sandwich to main dishes? Behold the chocolate sandwich (yes, it’s two pieces of white bread with chocolate spread in between)…
Or a P, B & J without the P? We may not think of bread and jam as dessert, but in Japan, anything sweet qualifies…
even items only found elsewhere on breakfast menus
This one, though, takes the cake. Or should I say, the Mont Blanc. I can barely bring myself to imagine the disappointment of biting into something that tries to make two slices of brown bread filled with a smear of chestnut paste and whipped cream stand in for my favorite fall pastry.
And in case you suspect these sandwiches might lack other sandwich-like properties, here’s what Japanese sandwiches look like outside their wrapping
No crusts, edges sealed. Which means that egg salad filling won’t plop out the other side onto your lap when you bite into it. And THAT’s what makes these odd sandwiches the most Japanese of all!
•
Click here for more Why, Japan, Why? posts
•
Or get more amusing Japan stuff sent to your email every month when you subscribe!
•
•
Jonelle Patrick writes novels set in Japan, and blogs at Only In Japan and The Tokyo Guide I Wish I’d Had
Japanagram 