Japanese Wanpaku Sandwich. This epic sandwich is healthy and colourful with a delicious crispy pork cutlet. Easy to make and great for lunch.
These sandwiches are also known as a Wanpuka Sando for short.
If you're not a fan of pork cutlet, you can swap out the pork for chicken. However, this sandwich is not limited to a meat cutlet. You can stuff it with an egg or tuna mayo salad, the possibilities are truly endless!
This Japanese Wanpaku Sandwich became very trendy in Japan in 2016 and of course, because it's beautiful to look at and delicious.
My wanpaku sandwich recipe is fairly easy to make as I like to keep things simple in the kitchen.
This simple wanpaku sandwich was inspired by Just One Cookbook's Wanpaku sandwich except I decided to create a cabbage coleslaw instead of marinating the carrots. I also didn't include as many ingredients for the purpose of ease. I hope you check out her version. She is such an inspiration to me and I'm always learning about new Japanese foods through her blog.
What does a Japanese Wanpaku Sandwich taste like?
Picture a variety of crunchy veggies like cabbage, carrots, tomatoes, and lettuce. Sandwiched between two soft pieces of Asian milk bread with a crispy pork cutlet covered in a Tonkatsu sauce and mayo.
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For this recipe
You will need the following wanpaku sandwich ingredients:
Pork cutlet:
5 thin pork loins
Salt
½ cup panko bread crumbs
¼ cup flour
1 egg, whisked
¼ cup avocado oil, or as much as needed
Sandwich filling:
10 slices tomatoes
10 lettuce leaves
5 small carrots, peeled and peeled thinly
10 pcs milk bread
Tonkatsu Sauce (store bought)
Japanese Mayo
Cabbage Slaw:
⅓ cup Japanese mayo
4 tsp Vinegar
¼ tsp salt
½ purple cabbage, shredded or sliced thinly
Required: Cling Film, sharp knife, frying pan.
How to make this Wanpaku Sandwich
Slice your vegetables as specified above.
In a bowl, transfer sliced cabbage to a bowl and mix with vinegar, salt and Japanese mayo. Set aside.
Season pork with a sprinkle of salt on each side.
Separate your flour, whisked egg and panko breadcrumbs into 3 bowls. Coat your pork loins into flour first, then egg wash and panko breadcrumbs. Set aside.
In a hot pan set over medium heat, add avocado oil. Add pork cutlets and fry on each side until golden brown, about 2 minutes on each side.
To assemble sandwich:
Lay out a rectangle piece of cling film on your working surface. Place two pieces of bread on top. Spread some Japanese Mayo on each side. Layer lettuce on one piece of bread, followed by one piece of pork cutlet, a squirt of Tonkatsu sauce, cabbage slaw, carrots, tomato and another piece of lettuce. Cover with bread and gently push down.
Wrap your sandwich with cling film tightly. Then cover the sandwich with a flat plate for 5 minutes to allow the weight to press the sandwich. Do not rotate your sandwich so you know where to slice it in half to reveal the layers.
While keeping your sandwich in the cling film, slice it in half with a very sharp knife to reveal layers. Enjoy!
Give it a try!
Well I hope you give my Japanese Wanpaku Sandwich recipe a try! It always excites me when you guys make my recipes and I hope this is one you try.
Thanks for visiting my blog! If you enjoyed this wanpaku sando sandwich, please share it with your family and friends or on social media! Take a picture if you've made my recipe and tag me on Instagram @christieathome in your feed or stories so I can share your creation in my stories with credits to you!
Made this recipe and loved it?
If you could leave a star rating for my wanpaku sando, I would greatly appreciate it 🙂 Thanks so much!
Take care,
Christie
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Japanese Wanpaku Sandwich
Ingredients
Pork Cutlet
- 5 thin pork loins
- Salt
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs placed in a bowl
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour placed in a bowl
- 1 egg whisked and placed in a bowl
- ¼ cup avocado oil or as much as needed
Other ingredients for sandwich:
- 5 small carrots peeled and peeled thinly
- 10 slices tomatoes
- 10 lettuce leaves washed and dried
- 10 pcs bread
- Tonkatsu Sauce store bought
- mayonnaise Japanese kind
Cabbage Slaw:
- ⅓ cup mayonnaise Japanese
- 4 tsp white vinegar
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ purple cabbage shredded or sliced thinly
Instructions
- Slice your vegetables as specified above.
- In a bowl, transfer sliced cabbage to a bowl and mix with vinegar, salt and Japanese mayo. Set aside.
- Season pork with a sprinkle of salt on each side.
- Separate your flour, whisked egg and panko breadcrumbs into 3 bowls. Coat your pork loins into flour first, then egg wash and panko breadcrumbs. Set aside.
- In a hot pan set over medium heat, add avocado oil. Add pork cutlets and fry on each side until golden brown, about 2 minutes on each side.
To assemble sandwich:
- Lay out a rectangle piece of cling film on your working surface. Place two pieces of bread on top. Spread some Japanese Mayo on each side. Layer lettuce on one piece of bread, followed by one piece of pork cutlet, a squirt of Tonkatsu sauce, cabbage slaw, carrots, tomato and another piece of lettuce. Cover with bread and gently push down.
- Wrap your sandwich with cling film tightly. Then cover the sandwich with a flat plate for 5 minutes to allow the weight to press the sandwich. Do not rotate your sandwich so you know where to slice it in half to reveal the layers.
- While keeping your sandwich in the cling film, slice it in half with a very sharp knife to reveal layers. Enjoy!
Mmm, this sandwich looks so good... like a katsu sando! (Is there any difference between wanpaku vs katsu sando?)
Now this is my kind of lunch! I love a sandwich with lots of textures, and this really fits the bill! Delicious!
Love it when sandwiches have lots of layers! The pork looks tasty and the colourful veggies are so enticing!
Love the bright colors! This looks so healthy and delicious!
Thank you kindly!
Your beautiful sandwich is so perfect with that crispy pork right in the middle! 💕💕
Simple, quick and delicious! This is what I grab for a busy day!
Cool Kitchen Utensils Review
Christie,
Apparently wanpaku sando is a crowd pleaser amongst our Asian friend circle for pot luck dinners that we host every quarterly. This year covid has of course delayed our pot luck gatherings and here comes your recipe. Loved the filling and the flavours. Great!