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Malaysian · Singaporean

Roti john

Non-vegetarian

A split baguette pressed face-down onto a spiced minced beef and egg omelette on the griddle, then loaded with chilli sauce, mayonnaise and ketchup — a night-market favourite.

Roti john is a Malaysian sandwich, ready in about 30 minutes and made with crusty bread / baguette, ground beef and egg. It serves 4 and is rated easy to cook.

Start cooking
Close-up of a tasty Spanish omelette filled baguette on a wooden board.
Photo: Nano Erdozain / Pexels · Pexels License
Prep
10 min
Cook
20 min
Total
30 min
Serves
4
Level
Easy
Calories
635

Ingredients

4 servings

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Brown the beef in a dry pan, breaking it up, until cooked. Cool slightly, then mix with the eggs (opens in a new tab), onion (opens in a new tab), curry powder (opens in a new tab), salt and pepper (opens in a new tab).

    Food safety: Minced beef should be cooked through to 71 °C; whole steak pieces can be served pink if seared on all sides.

    Meat searing in a hot pan
    How it looks · Photo: Skylar Kang on Pexels

  2. Step 2

    Melt a quarter of the butter (opens in a new tab) on a griddle and pour on a quarter of the egg (opens in a new tab) mixture in a strip the size of the bread.

    • 1 min
    • medium heat
    A flatbread cooking on a hot griddle
    How it looks · Photo: Muhammad Khawar Nazir on Pexels

  3. Step 3

    Immediately press a piece of bread, cut side down, onto the egg (opens in a new tab). Cook until the egg is set and stuck to the bread, then flip and toast the crust side briefly. Repeat.

    Food safety: Cook eggs until set if serving young children, pregnant people or anyone vulnerable.

  4. Step 4

    Cut into pieces and zigzag with chilli sauce (opens in a new tab), mayonnaise (opens in a new tab) and ketchup (opens in a new tab). Add lettuce (opens in a new tab) and cucumber (opens in a new tab) if you like.

    • 2 min

About this dish

Origin
Not attributed to one place · Origin disputedClaimed by both Singapore and Malaysia; it is a fixture of Malaysian Ramadan bazaars.Also popular in Malaysia, Singapore
Dish
Lunch · Dinner · Snack · Sandwiches · Street food
Cooking method
Pan-fried
Taste
savoury, sweet & spicy, rich
Diet
No nut ingredients · High-protein
All labelsNon-vegetarian · No nut ingredients · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · High-protein
With the listed swaps: Beef-freeWorked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Street food · Child-friendly
Cook more with
Crusty bread / baguette · Ground beef · Egg · Onion · Curry powder · Butter
Techniques
Pan-frying

Allergens

  • Contains: Milkfrom butter
  • Contains: Eggsfrom egg, mayonnaise
  • Contains: Wheatfrom crusty bread / baguette
  • Contains: Glutenfrom crusty bread / baguette
  • May contain: Sesamefrom crusty bread / baguette
  • May contain: Mustardfrom curry powder, mayonnaise, tomato ketchup
  • May contain: Celeryfrom curry powder, tomato ketchup

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

635 kcal per serving

Calculated

1 serving ≈ 280 g · recipe makes 4

Where the energy comes from

  • Protein 19%
  • Carbohydrate 38%
  • Fat 43%
Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
NutrientPer servingPer 100 g*
Energy635 kcal227 kcal
Protein29.5 g10.5 g
Carbohydrate60.3 g21.5 g
Net carbohydrate57.1 g20.4 g
Sugars10 g3.6 g
Added sugars——
Fibre3.2 g1.1 g
Fat30.5 g10.9 g
Saturated fat10.7 g3.8 g
Trans fat0.8 g0.3 g
Cholesterol249 mg89 mg
Sodium1409 mg503 mg
Salt equivalent3.5 g1.3 g
Vitamins & minerals per serving
Potassium
484 mg
Calcium
105 mg
Iron
6.5 mg
Magnesium
57 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)
149 µg
Vitamin C
5 mg
Vitamin D
1.1 µg
Vitamin B12
1.8 µg
Folate (DFE)
205 µg

How these numbers were made

  • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
  • *Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
  • Optional ingredients are not included: lettuce, cucumber.
  • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
  • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

  • Work fast: the bread must go onto the egg while it is still runny so it soaks in.

Common mistakes

  • Letting the egg set before the bread goes on — press the bread on immediately so they fuse.
  • Too much filling per strip, so the egg stays raw in the middle; spread it thinly.

Serve with

  • Cut into chunks and share as a snack.

Storage

  • Best eaten hot.

Variations

  • Roti john sardin: Made with mashed tinned sardines instead of beef.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

Sauces, chutneys & dips for this dish

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Grouped by each ingredient’s role in the dish. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

What the dish is built around

Main ingredient

Used in steps 1, 2, 3, 4

Masalas in this recipe

Make the masala first, then come back to finish the dish.

Reviews & corrections

Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

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