An easy and fun dessert that is a favorite in Japan! This fruit sandwich may seem a little weird, but it’s really just a different kind of simple cake, right?
Fruit is a really big thing in Japan. It’s often given as gifts and fruits parlors (fruit-themed cafes) are popular and can pretty easily be found across the country. Japan is also the king of designer fruit (yes – that is a thing). Japanese fruit, even at regular grocery stores, are flavorful and beautiful.
Because of how popular fruit is, fruit sandwiches only seem natural, and once you try one, you’ll understand why people are obsessed with them. Fancy ones can be found at fruits parlors but they are so popular that you can even find them packaged at konbini (convenience stores, like 7-Eleven and Family Mart).
Fruits Sando are basically just fruit and whipped cream between thick cut shokupan (Japanese milk bread). The fluffy and slightly sweet bread is perfect with the whipped cream and juicy, flavorful fruit. And while it may sound heavy, it’s actually quite refreshing. Both the milk bread and whipped cream is airy and light so the fruit really shines.
The best part is you can put ANY fruit you want inside. While strawberries are the most common and popular, I’ve seen everything from mangos to grapes inside! For my sandwiches this time, I used strawberries, kiwis, and mikan, Japanese tangerines. My favorite combo! You can cut the sandwich in halves or quarters to show all the pretty colors of the fruit.
Some Tips:
- Try to choose fruit pieces that are around the same size
- Think about how you want your fruit to look once it’s cut when deciding where to place your fruit. I typically put my fruit in an X pattern across the bread so once it’s cut, you will get cross sections of the fruit.
- While you can just cut and eat it right after assembling, I wrap the sandwich in plastic wrap tightly and refrigerate before cutting to make it cut cleaner. I also cut with the plastic wrap on so nothing slides around while being cut.
- I use metal mixing bowls that have been chilled to make my whipped cream so it whips faster.
Fruits Sando (Japanese Fruit Sandwich) / フルーツサンド
Ingredients
- 4 slices shokupan (Japanese milk bread) thick cut
- 8 strawberries
- 2 kiwis
- 1 mikan (tangerine)
Whipped Cream
- 1.5 cups heavy whipping cream
- 5 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Prep the fruit: cut off the tops of the strawberries, cut off the ends and peel the kiwi, and peel and separate segments of the tangerine.
- Using a standing or hand mixer, in a bowl, add the heavy whipping cream and whisk on low. (You can also whisk the whipping cream by hand but it will take longer).
- Add sugar and vanilla extract. Increase whisking speed to medium-high. Whisk until peaks form (it should be spreadable but not runny).
- Spread whipped cream evenly on each piece of bread. Make sure it reaches all edges.
- On two of the pieces of bread, align the fruit as desired. Fill in the gaps between fruit with extra whipped cream. (whipped cream will be pushed down once you plastic wrap it so it doesn't have to perfectly fill all the gaps at this point).
- Assemble the sandwiches by placing the other pieces of bread (with no fruit) on top of the bread with the fruit.
- Wrap each sandwich with plastic wrap TIGHTLY. Press down lightly onto the sandwich to makes sure the whipped cream fills all the gaps. Refrigerate for about an hour to let the whipped cream set.
- With the plastic wrap on, cut diagonally with a good knife (if your knife isn't sharp enough, you can take the plastic wrap off prior to cutting – just makes sure to push down lightly while cutting).
- Cut off the 4 edges/crusts of the bread while pushing down lightly. You can also cut it into quarters (halve the halves) if you would like smaller pieces.
- Separate pieces and serve!
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