Tomatoes turn genuinely incredible where I’m from once summer really sets in – sweet, sun-warmed, and honestly good enough to eat standing over the sink. Naturally, I started craving a BLT. But not the crisp, straightforward kind. I wanted something creamier.

And then it hit me: I’m a huge tamago sando fan, so why not force the two into a hybrid? A BLT reimagined through the lens of Japan’s favorite egg salad sandwich, with smoky bacon and juicy tomato folded straight into the filling, a proper hit of chili, and a chipotle mayo standing in for the usual plain one.

It’s silky, a little spicy, a little smoky, and dangerously easy to eat two of before you’ve even sat down.

Tamago BLT – About the dish

Tamago sando is one of Japan’s great convenience-store inventions: pillowy shokupan (Japanese milk bread) wrapped around hard-boiled eggs mashed into Kewpie mayonnaise until almost custardy. It’s cheap, humble, and sold by the millions at konbini counters across the country -proof that a great egg salad sandwich needs very little to shine.

The BLT needs no introduction on this side of the world: bacon, lettuce and tomato, stacked between toast. Here, I’ve folded its classic flavors straight into a tamago-style egg salad instead of layering them separately, swapped the lettuce for fresh chilies, and built the mayo around chipotle instead of leaving it plain. Same comfort, different accent.

Tamago BLT – Recipe

Ingredients – Advice & key points

• Eggs: boil them for 9–10 minutes for a fudgy, slightly jammy yolk that still holds together once chopped. Straight into an ice bath the moment they’re done, or they’ll keep cooking.
• Bacon: go for a good quality strip you can get properly crisp. It’s doing a lot of the smoky, salty work in this sandwich, so don’t skimp here.
• Tomatoes: Roma tomatoes hold up best since they’re less watery. Dice them and let them drain for a few minutes on paper towels so the filling doesn’t turn soggy.
• Fresh chilies: I like a mix of jalapeños and aji amarillo for a fruity heat, but use whatever you can find. Be generous in order to get some crunchiness, or swap them for red onion if you’d rather skip the heat entirely.
• Shokupan: regular soft sandwich bread works fine too, the softer the better. You want something that gives, not something that fights back.
• Kewpie mayo: its richer, tangier profile is what makes tamago sando taste like tamago sando. Regular mayo works in a pinch, but Kewpie is worth tracking down.
• Chipotle in adobo: the canned kind. One pepper plus a spoonful of the sauce is enough to bring smoke and heat without overpowering the egg salad.
• Lime juice: cuts through the richness of the mayo and eggs. Add more to taste if you prefer things sharper.

Recipe – Advice & key points

• Ice-bath your eggs immediately: this stops the cooking and makes them much easier to peel cleanly.
• Crisp the bacon properly: cook it until deeply crisp, then drain well on paper towels. I personally bake it, 190°C (375°F) for 14–16 minutes works well -keep an eye on it since ovens vary. Add a splash of water (about 2 tbsp) to the tray to keep things from smoking, and let it rest 2–3 minutes out of the oven so it crisps up further.
• Drain your tomatoes and chilies: a few minutes on paper towels keeps the egg salad from turning watery once everything is folded together.
• Blend the chipotle mayo until completely smooth: you want an even, spreadable sauce with no chunks of pepper, then season with salt and plenty of black pepper.
• Fold, don’t mash: combine the chopped eggs with the fillings and chipotle mayo just until everything is creamy, so you keep a bit of texture from the egg.

Make the chipotle mayo ahead if you like -it keeps in the fridge for a few days and makes the whole thing come together in minutes. Enjoy!

Print Recipe

Tamago BLT

Author: Multicarbs Cooking Method: Pan-frying Cuisine: American cuisine, Japanese cuisine Courses: Sandwiches

Difficulty: Beginner Prep Time 20 min Cook Time 15 min Total Time 35 mins

Servings: 4

Description

A summer BLT reimagined through the lens of Japanese tamago sando: smoky bacon, ripe tomato and fresh chilies folded into a creamy egg salad, bound with a smooth chipotle mayo and piled onto soft shokupan.

Egg salad

Servings

Egg salad

• 8 eggs
• 180 grams bacon
• 2 Roma tomatoes (or 1 large), diced
• 3 fresh chilies (jalapeño & aji amarillo), finely diced (be generous; swap for red onion if you don't like heat)
• 8 large slices shokupan (or regular sandwich bread, the softer the better)

Chipotle mayo

• 6 tablespoons Kewpie mayo
• 1 chipotle in adobo (canned)
• 1 tablespoon adobo sauce (from the can)
• 3 tablespoons lime juice
• ¹⁄₄ teaspoon salt
• ¹⁄₄ teaspoon black pepper

Sandwich bread

• 8 shokupan slices (or classic sandwich bread)

Instructions

1. Cook the eggs

   Boil the eggs for 9-10 minutes. Transfer to an ice bath, peel, then chop into small chunks. Preheat the oven to 190°C (375°F).

2. Prepare the fillings

   Dice the tomatoes and let them drain on paper towels.

   Finely dice the fresh chilies.

   Cook the bacon until deeply crisp (see my oven bacon method). 

3. Make the chipotle mayo

   Blend the Kewpie mayo, chipotle in adobo, adobo sauce and lime juice until completely smooth. Season lightly with salt and plenty of black pepper.

4. Finish the egg salad

   Fold the tomatoes, chilies and bacon along with the chipotle mayo into the chopped eggs until creamy.

5. Slice the bread

   Slice the shokupan into pieces around 2cm thick. Alternatively, use the softest sandwich bread you can find. 

6. Assemble

   Spread a generous layer of the chipotle egg salad onto the bread.

   Close the sandwiches, trim the crusts if desired, and cut in half.

Keywords: tamago sando, BLT sandwich, egg salad sandwich, chipotle mayo, Japanese egg salad, summer sandwich