From banh mi to ice cream bread, here are 8 distinctively Asian sandwiches
There is a debate—immortalised in an episode of The Big Bang Theory—about the true origins of the sandwich. Some people hold to the tale that the world-famous meal was invented by John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich, as a way to keep his hands clean whilst gambling. Others point out that, by technical definition, the first variations of the sandwich are depicted in documents showing people in China eating meat between bread as early as the Tang Dynasty.
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Wherever you fall on the sandwich origin debate, one thing is clear: this assembly of bread and filling has become the world’s most egalitarian dish. And while Asia may not be the first region that comes to mind when one thinks of sandwiches, it has taken the concept and reinvented it in bold, surprising and utterly delicious ways.
Forget deli meats and mayo—here, the sandwiches are stuffed with pork floss, pandan custard, frozen desserts or fiery chilli oil. Some are sweet, others savoury, but all are engineered for indulgence. Whether wrapped in toast, buns, flatbread or flaky biscuits, these creations speak to the region’s flair for reinvention and flavour. Below, we round up the most iconic and irresistible sandwiches across Asia.
Banh mi (Vietnam)
The banh mi is a legacy of French influence reimagined with Vietnamese soul. (Photo: Quang Nguyen Vinh / Pexels)
There’s a reason this one’s gone global. The banh mi is Vietnam’s greatest culinary remix: a legacy of French influence reimagined with Vietnamese soul. Start with a crusty rice-flour baguette (lighter and airier than the Parisian kind), add pork pâté, headcheese, pickled carrots and daikon, cucumber, cilantro, chilli and a squirt of seasoning—and you’ve got balance in handheld form.
Each region has its own take—grilled pork, sardines, meatballs—but the foundation is always the same: contrast. Heat versus cool, crunchy versus creamy. You won’t find a better flavour bomb for an affordable price.
Sando (Japan)
Sando is satisfying without being heavy, elegant without being precious. (Photo: Alex Gonzo / Pexels)
White bread can, in fact, be elevated. The sando isn’t trying to be rustic or crusty. It is all clean lines, pure ingredients and meticulous construction. The most iconic version is the katsu sando, made with panko-breaded pork cutlet, shredded cabbage and tonkatsu sauce on milk bread so soft it might qualify as a pillow. It’s satisfying without being heavy, elegant without being precious.
Other hits in the genre include the tamago sando (creamy egg salad), which deserves a separate entry, the strawberry sando (whipped cream and fresh fruit) and the Wagyu sando (luxury in sandwich form). Think of sandos as the bento box’s cooler cousin: portable, photogenic and always in control.
See more: Load up on indulgent Japanese-style sando at these spots in Singapore
Roujiamo (China)
A pork version of roujiamo or rougamo (Photo: Steetsweet / Wikimedia Commons)
This is allegedly the oldest of all sandwiches. Often called “Chinese hamburgers”, roujiamo are flatbread pockets filled with slow-cooked meat. Pork, beef or lamb is braised in a spiced broth that tastes like it’s been simmering for centuries. The bread is pan-seared or baked for crisp edges and a chewy bite. The meat is shredded, juicy and infused with star anise, cinnamon and chilli.
It’s widely believed that roujiamo has been around for over 2,000 years, which would make it one of the earliest known sandwiches, long before baguettes or brioche ever got their rise.
Kaya toast (Singapore and Malaysia)
Pandan kaya in a milk loaf (Photo: You Le / Unsplash)
Kaya toast is Southeast Asia’s answer to pain grillé: thick slices of white bread toasted over charcoal, slathered with cold butter and kaya—a coconut jam made with eggs, sugar and pandan. It’s often served with soft-boiled eggs and dark soy sauce on the side for dipping, creating a salty-sweet morning ritual beloved across Singapore and Malaysia.
Ice cream sandwich (Singapore)
For the rest of the world, an ice cream sandwich is a pair of cookies or wafers sandwiching ice cream. But in Singapore, it’s a snack cart icon that rewrites everything you thought you knew about dessert. If you’ve ever wandered Orchard Road on a hot afternoon, you’ve probably spotted this classic. Blocks of rainbow or durian ice cream (there are other flavours, too) are sandwiched between slices of neon-green pandan bread or even plain sliced bread. No cones. No spoons. Just one perfect, hand-sized bite of nostalgia.
What it lacks in structure, it makes up for in pure joy. Pro tip: go for the sweet corn or red bean flavours. They’re chaotic but in a good way.
Gua bao (Taiwan)
So, does gua bao count as a sandwich? Technically, it’s a folded bun—not sliced bread—but when you’re holding a soft, fluffy parcel filled with braised pork belly, pickled mustard greens, crushed peanuts and cilantro, you stop asking questions. Anyway, it falls under the technical requirement: meat between bread.
Call it a bun, a bao or a Taiwanese taco—it’s all semantics. Gua bao delivers fat, acid and crunch in one warm, two-bite package. That’s sandwich energy.
Shokupan egg mayo sando (Japan)
Tamago sando is cult favourite in Tokyo cafés and bento boxes. (Photo: Mak / Unsplash)
Yes, another sando—but this one deserves its own entry. The Japanese egg salad sando might look plain, but the devil’s in the details: jammy soft-boiled eggs chopped with kewpie mayo, spread generously between slices of shokupan, a milk bread so rich and tender it basically eats itself.
It’s a convenience store staple, but also a cult favourite in Tokyo cafés and bento boxes. No one does understated satisfaction quite like Japan.
Pork floss sandwich (China, Taiwan, Southeast Asia)
Here, fluffy meat meets fluffy bread in a cloud of umami. Pork floss, or rousong, is a dried, shredded pork product that looks like savoury cotton candy. It’s sweet, salty and slightly smoky, and it gets packed into soft buns or laid between slices of white bread with a slick of mayo. You'll find versions in Taiwan, China, Malaysia and even the Philippines. It’s not loud, but it’s addictive—and an instant nostalgia trip for anyone who grew up near an Asian bakery.
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