Okonomi-yaki

Posted February 4th, 2009 in Food 10 Comments »

Here is another Osaka food recipe. After posting about Takoyaki , many people actually asked me “we don’t have a Takoyaki grill plate, but really want to try making them!”. Indeed. People shouldn’t have this special grilling plate at home. As I said earlier, it’s pretty difficult to find one of those in Perth or elsewhere outside Japan. Then, I thought I should post a recipe of Okonomi-yaki. Okonomi-yaki uses almost same ingredients as Takoyaki, and you don’t need any special equipments to cook. Here is the recipe.

<Okonomi-yaki> makes 4 x 15cm φ

1/4 small cabbage
2~3 tbs red ginger (40g)
60g plain flour
2 eggs
1/4 cup water
20g dried shrimps
2tbs chopped spring onions

<Sauce> (same as Takoyaki)

3 tbs Worcester sauce
3 tbs tomato ketchup (tomato sauce)
3 tsp oyster sauce
3 tsp honey

Japanese mayonnaise
ao-nori (green laver)
bonito flakes

Chop up cabbage and dried shrimps.
Place flour and water in a mixing bowl, and whisk. Add cabbage, shrimps, red ginger, spring onions and eggs to the bowl, and mix together. Add your favorite meat or seafood if you like.
Grease a frying pan and heat up over medium heat. Pour 1/4 of the mixture (about 1 ladle) into the pan, and cook until the bottom sets. Once the bottom is set and golden, flip it over using 2 spatulas. The trick to flip is the timing and the speed. Make sure that the bottom is completely cooked, or it will break apart while flipping.
Cook another side over low heat until cooked. You can place a lid to make sure it’s cooked through – or flip around few times to cook both sides until it’s cooked.
Mix the “sauce” ingredients.
Move to a serving plate, and decorate with the sauce, mayonnaise, bonito flakes and ano-nori. Repeat with the remaining.

I made 3 kinds of Okonomi-yaki: with thinly sliced pork belly, with nori sheets, and with seafoods.

If you have an electric hot plate, I recommend to use it to make okonomi-yaki. You can make okonomi-yaki while watching tv, and eat fresh made one straight from the hot plate. You won’t even need to use a serving plate – simply spread the sauce over while sizzling and decorate with the toppings. That’s how we eat okonomi-yaki in Japan anyway!

Tags: Japanese Food, Kansai, Recipe

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10 Comments on “Okonomi-yaki”

1 Yutsuki said at 12:43 pm on February 6th, 2009:
One of my most favorite food is Okonomi-yaki!!
My mom’s recipe is the best..I believe(^^)
She uses a lot of eggs and yamaimo(a kind of yam) that should be grated and adds just a pinch of flour.
I wanna you to try yamaimo if you can get it there!

I also recommend that you use karashi(mustard)-mayonnaise.
It goes very well with the sauce♪
2 umepontarou said at 1:49 pm on February 6th, 2009:
Yutsuki
Wow your mom’s recipe sounds very delicious! You live in Osaka, so you eat Okonomi-yaki quite often at home?
My mom never made Okonomi-yaki at home. Well, maybe 2~3 times in my life, actually. For me, Okonomi-yaki is a type of food we eat outside, or at festivals.

I just found out that my company sells frozen Tororo (yamaimo), so I will try making with it next time.

Karashi mayo… ummm sound delish! (>v<)
3 goma-apple said at 11:57 am on February 7th, 2009:
Hello!\(^o^)/
First, thank you for visiting my homepage.
Your comment gives me great “happy” surprise!(>U<)

My mom is very good at making Okonomiyaki.
In fact she spent all of her childhood in Hyogo and Osaka.
She often made okonomiyaki as a snack.
I grew up in Kansai,too, but I can’t believe the enthusiasm for “Konamon” of kansai people…

Now Iive in Kanto so I really miss “Okonomiyaki”.
Your Okonomiyaki reminds me of my “Kansai-spirit”;I want to eat something with plenty sauce!!

Your nori-seaweed Okonomiyaki seems fresh to me.
I’ll try it when I buy delicious yams.

Thank you for nice recipes!(^o^)
4 umepontarou said at 1:13 pm on February 8th, 2009:
goma-apple,
Thanks for your comment 🙂

>Now Iive in Kanto so I really miss “Okonomiyaki”.
Do you get Okonomi-yaki in Kanto too? or the taste is different??

>Thank you for nice recipes!(^o^)
Your welcome! Hope you enjoy it ***
5 Bishonencam said at 11:57 am on May 16th, 2009:
I first tried okonomiyaki back when I first went to Japan in 1997. It was so good and it was unlike any Japanese food I had heard of (back then sushi was only just becoming popular in Perth… a bit old-fashioned perhaps?) so it came as a total surprize when I tried it.
When I came back to Australia, I went to all the japanese restaurants I could find and asked if they do Okonomiyaki…
“We only do Kastu, noodles and Sushi!” they all said.
I was depressed.
So I forgot about Okonomiyaki for years until I went back to Japan and went to an Okonomiyaki restaurant, which re-ignited my passion for okonomiyaki!
Even though I still can’t find anyone in Perth who makes it, I just make it myself now ^_^
I usually make it huge (it takes up the whole pan!) as that’s how I first saw it made. Plus I’m a total pig! (Kuishinbou! :P)
But I like this recipe as the Okonomiyaki are much smaller and they look cute and tasty.
After seeing this I might try this recipe today or tomorrow (with ribs!…. yeah, that’s the pig thing again!)
6 missfattyfoodie said at 1:03 pm on September 8th, 2009:
i will make these very soon! thank you for sharing the recipe
7 Mica said at 8:12 pm on October 27th, 2009:
Your okonomiyaki sounds sooo delicious! I will definitely try this sometime soon and get back to you! I am keeping my fingers crossed that it will come out as delicious and visually appetizing as what you did!

I love Japanese food!
8 umepontarou said at 1:59 pm on October 28th, 2009:
Bishonencam,

Okonomiyaki with ribs… sound interesting ! 🙂
Yes it’s shame that there is no okonomiyaki restaurant in Perth…. we have to make by ourselves.
9 umepontarou said at 2:00 pm on October 28th, 2009:
missfattyfoodie

Enjoy okonomiyaki ~ 🙂
10 umepontarou said at 2:00 pm on October 28th, 2009:
Mica,

I hope you enjoyed it.