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–+ servings
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Okonomiyaki

Thick savory pancakes with cabbage, bacon, and various flexible toppings!
Prep Time45 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Resting time1 hour
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Japanese
Servings: 4 people

Equipment

  • 1 electric grill & metal spatulas optional; regular pan also works
  • 1 grater

Ingredients

For the batter (1st stage)

  • 120 g all-purpose flour
  • 0.25 tsp salt
  • 0.25 tsp white sugar
  • 0.25 tsp baking powder
  • 160 g nagaimo aka Chinese yam
  • 180 ml dashi stock e.g. using instant powder

For the batter (2nd stage)

  • 0.5 head green cabbage aka white cabbage
  • 1 tbsp coarse salt
  • 50 g beni shoga
  • 4 eggs
  • 50 g tenkasu optional
  • some neutral oil for frying / grilling

Toppings (recommendations)

  • 150 g bacon slices
  • some okonomi sauce
  • some Kewpie mayonnaise
  • some aonori
  • some katsuobushi
  • some beni shoga

Instructions

Prepare the batter (1st stage)

  • Make the dashi broth according to package instructions of your instant powder.
  • Peel the nagaimo and grate it using a ceramic or cheese grater. I recommend using a glove or quickly washing your hands after, as it irritates the skin.
  • Combine flour, salt, sugar, and baking powder in a large bowl.
  • Add in the grated nagaimo and dashi, mix thoroughly.
  • Store it in the fridge.
  • Wash the cabbage, then slice into pieces of 1-2cm width and length. To achieve this, remove the tough stem, cut into slices and then slice them again lengthwise.
  • In a large bowl, thoroughly mix the coarse salt into the cabbage.
  • Let the batter and cabbage rest for at least one hour.

Drain the cabbage

  • After an hour or more, pour out the extracted water from the bowl of cabbage.
  • Place the cabbage in the middle of a large, clean kitchen towel.
  • Fold up the ends of the towel around the cabbage and twist over your sink.
  • Squeeze out as much water as you can (but be careful not to rip the towel). Afterwards, the cabbage should weigh very roughly 500g.

Prepare the batter (2nd stage)

  • Take the batter mix out of the fridge.
  • Mix in the cabbage, beni shoga, tenkasu, and crack in four eggs. Stir thoroughly.

Make the okonomiyaki

  • Have your toppings handy, as they will be added right at the end of this step.
  • If using bacon, slice it into ~10cm long strips.
  • Heat up some neutral oil in a frying pan over medium high heat or ideally on an electric grill at 200°C. A cast iron or stainless steel surface is best so you can use metal spatulas in the following steps.
    Note: If you have two pans or a large enough grill surface, you should make two at a time.
  • Once the oil is hot, add one fourth of the batter to it and shape it into a round disk that is about 15cm in diameter and about 2 cm high. (Yes, they're pretty thick!)
  • If using bacon, place some slices on top of each pancake. Make one layer of slices and another one on top of it at a 90° angle.
  • Cook for about five minutes until golden brown on one side.
  • Flip the pancake(s) over and cook for another five minutes.
  • Throughout this whole process, regulate heat and add oil as needed to ensure even browning. Use spatulas occasionally to keep the round shape intact.

Add the toppings

  • The following toppings are classic choices, and I highly recommend them. However, you can make your own variation. After all, "okonomi" means "as you like".
  • Add a layer of okonomi sauce and spread it over the full surface so it forms an even layer, then zigzag some Kewpie mayo over it.
  • Sprinkle some aonori on top, then katsuobushi and some extra beni shoga.
  • Serve immediately. Enjoy!