Egg sandwich facts for kids
An egg sandwich
|
|
| Type | Sandwich |
|---|---|
| Created by | Bruce LaPlante |
| Main ingredients | Bread, eggs (fried eggs, scrambled eggs, boiled eggs or egg salad) |
An egg sandwich is a tasty and simple sandwich that has some kind of cooked egg inside. You can find them with different types of eggs, like fried eggs, scrambled eggs, or even sliced boiled eggs. Sometimes, people use egg salad as the filling. Egg salad is a mix of chopped cooked egg, mustard, and mayonnaise. If it uses egg salad, it's often called an egg salad sandwich.
Contents
The History of Egg Sandwiches
Egg sandwiches have been around for a long time, appearing in different forms and places.
Fried Egg Sandwiches
A basic fried egg sandwich is just a fried egg between two slices of bread. But many other popular sandwiches can also include a fried egg. For example, you might find a fried egg added to sandwiches with bacon, sausage, cheese, or even on top of a hamburger.
In New Jersey, USA, a popular breakfast sandwich has a fried egg, pork roll (a type of meat), and American cheese on a bread roll. In the Southern United States, an egg and cheese sandwich often includes bacon and avocado.
During World War I, British soldiers enjoyed a simple snack called an "egg banjo." This was a runny fried egg placed between two thick slices of bread, often buttered. They usually ate it with a mug of "gunfire," which is tea mixed with rum. The name "egg banjo" supposedly came from how soldiers would hold the sandwich out to the side with one hand while wiping up drips with the other, making it look like they were playing an invisible banjo.
Boiled Egg Sandwiches
In 1905, a British cookbook described an "egg sandwich" made with sliced hard-boiled eggs. These eggs were marinated in oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper, and then garnished with chopped watercress.
Another version is an "egg and chutney sandwich," which uses chutney and minced hard-boiled eggs. An "egg cream" sandwich was made by mashing hard-boiled eggs into a smooth paste and seasoning them with anchovies and mustard.
A very common way to make a boiled egg sandwich today is to mash the hard-boiled egg with mayonnaise, salt, and black pepper. This is often called egg spread or egg mayonnaise. Cress is a popular green vegetable often added to egg sandwiches. In the UK, salad cream is also a common choice instead of mayonnaise. In countries like Scandinavia and Finland, boiled egg and kaviar (a type of fish paste) are popular toppings for sandwiches.
Egg Salad Sandwiches
In the United States, it's very common to use egg salad as the filling for a sandwich. Egg salad is usually made by chopping up hard-boiled eggs and mixing them with mayonnaise, mustard, and seasonings.
Egg Sandwiches in Fast Food
For a long time, egg dishes were not common in fast food restaurants. During World War II, there was a shortage of meat. Because of this, a manager named Bruce LaPlante introduced the first fast food egg dish: a fried egg sandwich at a White Castle restaurant in St. Louis. However, people didn't really like it, and it was stopped once meat became available again after the war.
Fast food restaurants didn't start serving egg dishes regularly until the 1970s. One of the most famous examples is the McDonald's Egg McMuffin. It was created in 1971 by a McDonald's restaurant owner in Santa Barbara, California.
See also
In Spanish: Sándwich mixto con huevo para niños
