By Andrea Nguyen
Last week, I made a St. Paul sandwich featuring egg foo yung. I'd never heard of the sandwich until I read about the Denver (Western) omelet or sandwich while trying to understand 1970s egg foo yung.
I used a ciabatta type of Italian bread for my first take on the sandwich. The result was good but the rustic chewiness of the bread eclipsed the egg pancakes.
This time, I used old fashioned white bread from Whole Foods. My local grocery store didn’t carry Wonder bread, which would be perfect as its soft sweetness recalls that of white rice, the natural accompaniment to egg foo yung. The white bread I used had more character. It is probably more akin to the original version made by Chinese American cooks to appease the hunger of demanding workers.
Here’s a recipe for the multicultural St. Paul sandwich:
Makes 1 sandwich
2 slices white sandwich bread
Whole egg mayonnaise, purchased or homemade
Sliced tomato
Sliced dill pickle
2 Egg Foo Yung pancakes, at room temperature or warmed in microwave oven
1 butter lettuce leaf
1. Lightly toast the bread so that it has a tinge of color but remains soft. In the photo above, I mistakenly over toasted the bread and it was too crisp.
2. Slather on the mayonnaise. Layer on the tomato, pickle, and egg foo yung. Finish with the lettuce. Top with the remaining slice of bread. Cut in half, if you like, or attack the whole sandwich at once.
Note
Use the master banh mi sandwich recipe to make an egg foo yung banh mi. Or, convert the above St. Paul into a banh mi by adding a shot of Maggi seasoning sauce (or regular soy sauce) after putting on the mayonnaise. Then sprinkle on coarsely chopped cilantro. Add some thinly sliced jalapeno chiles and a layer of dill pickle or cucumber slices.
Add the egg foo yung and cover with the other slice of bread. You’re missing the pickled daikon and carrot in the converted version but the sandwich still tastes good. It has the Viet touches.
For the low down on this sandwich, read: Eating Asian in the 1970s: Egg Foo Yung, Omelet Sandwiches, and James Beard
More Recipes: All
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- Hawaiian Tofu Watercress Salad Recipe
- Vietnamese Chile Sauce Recipe (Tuong Ot Vietnam)
- Persimmon Spice Cookies
Reader Interactions
Comments
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Never heard of this but it looks so yummy. My family will enjoy this!
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Then sprinkle on coarsely chopped cilantro. Add some thinly sliced jalapeno chiles and a layer of dill pickle or cucumber slices. These all are great to know about it.
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marlon
That the efforts of men and women are of no significance alongside the force of movements and events now not all success, obviously, is worth esteeming, nor all ambition worth cultivating.
shimie
The St. Paul Sandwich originated in St. Louis. Steven Yuen of Park Chop Suey wanted to create a menu item that would cater to American tastes. Yuen's hometown was St. Paul Minnesota. It has always amazed me that the rest of the country had not caught on to this sandwich yet. The sandwich has been served in the St. Louis area for as long as my memory goes back. The traditional sandwich is a standard egg foo young patty with the excess grease pressed out by squeezing it between two slotted spatulas. The basics: square white bread, miracle whip, lettuce,tomato pickles and the well drained egg foo young patty of your choice (it is not a pancake but a true egg foo young patty).
St. Paul lover
So true..this recipe is not a real St. Paul Sandwich. Far from it. I have lived here in St.Louis and have been eating St. Paul's for a good 30 years and this is no St.Paul..
Terry
Don't toast the bread. I am from St. Louis where the St. Paul originated. Have been eating them for years. Part of the charm is the soft white bread wrapped around the hot egg foo young with tangy dill layered in. Eat it right out of the kitchen - don't let it cool off..
Andrea Nguyen
Love that tip for keeping the bread squishy! And, I'm a kitchen counter sandwich eater too!
