Take all the flavors of a bowl of Japanese tonkotsu ramen with chashu pork, strip away the noodles, then stuff everything that’s left into a sandwich. It sounds kind of wacky, but I’m glad someone thought to try it.
I found this chashu pork sandwich at The Trough Sandwich Kitchen in Rancho Santa Margarita, a new deli spinoff of the nearby gastropub The Blind Pig.
The star of the sandwich is obviously the chashu pork, that slow-cooked fatty pork belly – emphasis on fatty – that is the best part of a bowl of ramen. In ramen, the fat dissolves into the hot broth, adding a savory creaminess and rich viscosity. But in a sandwich, all that fat retains its consistency and becomes much more pronounced. It’s almost too much, too decadent. But somehow it works. Everything is balanced just right.
A thick, chewy cornmeal bun helps absorb the excess fat. A layer of fresh, crisp arugula cuts through and provides a bright, peppery counterpoint. The bun is slathered with Kewpie mayonnaise, a popular Japanese condiment known for its high levels of MSG, which further amplifies the taste of umami. Every other bite contains either a slice of pickled ginger or a semi-gelatinous lump of soft-boiled egg.
In the end, it doesn’t taste remotely like a bowl of ramen. It tastes like a brand-new kind of sandwich that will surely be copied elsewhere soon. It is easily one of the best sandwiches I have ever eaten.
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