Sando is just the Japanese word for sandwich, so as you can likely tell by the title this Potato Salad Sando is just a sandwich filled with potato salad. Of course this recipe uses Japanese potato salad which is full of crisp and crunchy veggies and dressed in an umami packed mayonnaise.
In Japan it is common knowledge that the convenience stores actually provide good food. So common in fact that many people even blog about the best foods at the various brands of store! One of the classic staples found at most every store is a potato salad sando, which uses of course Japanese Potato Salad.
For this recipe I made my potato salad from scratch, but if you live in East Asia then it’s likely you can pick up a pack of potato salad at your local grocery store. As most of my readers are from America you might be able to find it at a Mitsuwa, Marukai, or even H-Mart (Korean but often has Japanese foods as well).
How To Make Japanese Potato Salad
The ingredients in this recipe are fairly common and easy to find. Probably why this is such a popular homestyle dish. The one thing you absolutely do need is the Japanese mayonnaise as the flavor it imparts to this salad are so unique. If you don’t want to make your own Japanese Mayonnaise (very easy) then you can try to order it online or pick it up at an Asian grocery store.
Ingredients
- 3 large Potatoes – I use a few Russet potatoes which work well in this recipe. You can use any potato that you would use for fries as it will likely work just fine.
- 1 large Carrot – peeled and sliced into very thin quarter-rounds.
- 2 Persian Cucumbers – or one long English cucumber. Halved and sliced into thin half-rounds
- 1 cup Corn – you can use frozen or canned, both work well in this recipe.
- 2 Eggs – hardboiled
- 75 grams Ham – this is about a couple sheets of thick style lunchmeat ham or about half a cup of julienned cut ham.
- 2 tbsp Japanese Mayonnaise – or to taste. Start with 2 heaping tablespoons and then add more later if necessary (I often go up to 4 but it really depends on how wet your potatoes and vegetables are).
- 1 tbsp Rice Wine Vinegar
- 1 tsp White Pepper – or to taste
- Salt – to taste, plus for salted the boiling potato water
- 1 tbsp Sugar – optional, if you feel the dish would benefit.
- Green Onion – optional, for garnish
Making The Potato Salad Step By Step
Step one in making this salad is to boil the potatoes. Peel them and cut them into chunks, then place in a pot. Fill the pot with water so it is one inch (2.5cm) above the tops of the potato pieces. Bring to a boil and let them cook until the potatoes are fork tender.
While the potatoes are cooking you should work on everything else. Cut your cucumbers into half moon slices and sprinkle them with about two teaspoons of salt. Set them aside and work on cutting the carrots and ham.
Once your potatoes are fork tender, about 25 minutes, give them a very rough mash. You don’t want creamy mashed potatoes. Just use the masher to chunk them up a bit like the picture above.
Next add the carrots, corn, and ham.
Take your salted cucumber pieces and run them under ice water to rinse them of the excess salt. This will keep the cucumber from bringing too much salt to the potato salad, as well as keeping them nice and crisp.
Add the cucumber, chopped boiled egg, Japanese mayonnaise, vinegar, and white pepper to the bowl. If you are adding sugar you can add it now, or just wait until after mixing and then add to taste.
Give everything a good mix with a paddle or rubber spatula. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed. Then place in a serving bowl. Garnish with some chopped green onion and enjoy!
How To Make A Potato Salad Sando
Once you have your Japanese potato salad all you need is the bread! In Japan they use a soft white bread similar to what you would find all over the world. However you can use a different bread if you desire, I am just using this bread as it is the one traditionally used in Japan.
On one of the slices just add a heaping amount of the Japanese potato salad. Make sure to pile it thick, and spread it out all the way to the corners. Then simply top with the other slice of bread and cut the sandwich in half diagonally.
Feel free to cut the crusts off if you like. You can even serve these with afternoon tea. It’s not nearly as traditional as cucumber tea sandwiches for example, but hey, you’re eating it so do what you want.
Potato Salad Sando
Ingredients
- 1 loaf Sliced White Sandwich Bread
- 3 large Potatoes I use a few Russet potatoes which work well in this recipe. You can use any potato that you would use for fries as it will likely work just fine.
- 1 large Carrot peeled and sliced into very thin quarter-rounds.
- 2 Persian Cucumbers or one long English cucumber. Halved and sliced into thin half-rounds
- 1 cup Corn you can use frozen or canned both work well in this recipe.
- 2 Eggs hardboiled
- 75 grams Ham this is about a couple sheets of thick style lunchmeat ham or about half a cup of julienned cut ham.
- 2 tbsp Japanese Mayonnaise or to taste. Start with 2 heaping tablespoons and then add more later if necessary. I often go up to 4 but it really depends on how wet your potatoes and vegetables are.
- 1 tbsp Rice Wine Vinegar
- 1 tsp White Pepper or to taste
- Salt to taste plus for salted the boiling potato water
- 1 tbsp Sugar optional, if you feel the dish would benefit.
- Green Onion optional, for garnish
Instructions
Instructions
- Begin by peeling the potatoes. Cut them into chunks and place them in a pot, then add water until over 1 inch (2.5cm) the top of the potatoes. Put on a boil.
- While the potatoes are boiling cut the cucumbers into half rounds and then slices. Place on a plate and sprinkle over about 2 tsp of salt. Set aside.
- Prep the carrots and ham.
- When the potatoes are done (fork tender), drain them and give them a very rough smash. You don’t want mashed potatoes, just a few smashes to keep rough chunks in there. Place into a bowl.
- Add the carrots and ham and corn.
- Run the cucumbers under cold water to rinse off the excess salt and chill them a bit. Shake them off and add them to the bowl.
- Finally add the rest of the ingredients and give everything a good mix with a paddle or rubber spatula. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed. Move to a serving bowl and place in the fridge for one hour to chill.
- Place a heaping amount of the potato salad onto a slice of bread. Cover with another slice and then cut diagonally and serve. Enjoy!
Potato Salad Sando
