Okonomiyaki
Okonomiyaki
Okonomiyaki is a Japanese style savory pancake, sometimes also referred to as a Japanese pizza. These are very popular as an appetizer, snack, or if you are a high ass as myself, a main course. Okonomiyaki originated from Osaka, Japan. In the recipe, all of the batter ingredients are mixed together. There is also a slight variation that came from Hiroshima. The difference is instead of mixing all the batter ingredients together, they are layered over the pancake while cooking with more of the batter poured over the top to give the illusion of it being stuffed. This recipe is a lot simpler having everything mixed in.There a many variations of ingredients and toppings that can go into making an Okonomiyaki. They typically all have cabbage in them. The one I made has very thinly sliced shiitake mushrooms, green onions, and pork belly. You can substitute bean sprouts for mushrooms if you’re not a fan of them. For the toppings, I used Okonomi sauce, Japanese mayo, bonito flakes, and green onion. You can find okonomiyaki sauce, Japanese mayo, and bonito flakes in any asian grocery store. DO NOT USE AMERICAN MAYO! It is not the same as the Japanese variety. The brand I use and what most people use is Kewpie. Bonito flakes are dried flakes of the bonito fish. While smelling fishy, it sure doesn’t taste fishy when combined with all of these ingredients. It adds a nice saltiness to the pancake. Another great topping variety is Okonomiyaki sauce, a fried egg, and crushed nori.In this recipe, I used pork belly for the protein. If you can’t find pork belly, thin sliced bacon will work fine. For the pork belly, I purchased some skin on, pre sliced. It was about an 1/8″ thick. I used my food mallet to hammer it down thinner. The goal is to get the belly crisp. Once you pour the batter into a pan, lay the belly slices across the top, making sure that nothing overlaps. Make sure to press the belly into the pancake. Once flipped, flatten the pancake even more by using a wide spatula.
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1/2 cup okonomiyaki pancake flour
- 1/2 cup dashi stock
- 1 large beaten egg
- 1 shiitake mushroom cap thin sliced
- 2 green onions chopped
- 1 cup shredded cabbage
- 3 slices pork belly thinly sliced, cut in half
Okonomiyaki Toppings
- Japanese mayo
- okonomiyaki sauce
- bonito flakes
- green onion
Instructions
- Mix together the okonomiyaki flour and the dashi stock. Mix in the beaten egg. Then mix in the cabbage, shiitake mushrooms, and the green onion.
- Unless you happen to get slices of pork belly that are almost paper thin, I recommend hammering them down with a food mallet.
- On a griddle or large skillet, heat the sesame oil over medium high heat. Pour all of the batter in the pan.
- Lay the pork belly slices across the top of the pancake. Try not to have them overlap. Cook the pancake for 3 minutes on the first side.
- With a wide spatula, careful flip the pancake over. Gently press down on the top of the pancake with the spatula to help flatten it. Cook for 3 minutes.
- Flip the pancake over again. As you can see, the pork belly is browned and stuck to the pancake. Press down across the top again with the spatula to help flatten it some more. Cook for another 3 minutes.
- Flip the pancake over for the last time. Cook for 3 minutes.
- Plate up your okonomiyaki.
- Top with okonomiyaki sauce, Japanese mayo, bonito flakes, and green onion.
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