Osaka Okonomiyaki (お好み焼き)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Wide cast-iron skillet or electric hot plate
• •Two broad spatulas
• •Oroshigane grater for nagaimo, or a fine Microplane
• •Fine-mesh strainer lined with cloth for dashi

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the dashi

   Wipe the konbu with a damp cloth, but don't wash it. Put it in the cold water and warm it slowly until small bubbles climb the sides of the pan, then lift the konbu out before the water boils. Add the katsuobushi, take the pan off the heat, and let the flakes sink for two minutes. Strain without squeezing. Boiling the kelp dulls the stock, and squeezing the flakes presses out rough, oily flavors you don't need here.

   You need only 3/4 cup dashi for the batter, but making a full cup gives you room for evaporation and tasting.
2. 2

   Prepare the cabbage

   Shred the cabbage finely, about the width of matchsticks, and keep the pieces short enough to fold easily into the batter. Big, long shreds make the pancake fall apart when you turn it. Fine cabbage softens quickly and lets the batter hold it without asking for more flour.

3. 3

   Mix the batter

   Whisk the flour and salt together, then stir in 3/4 cup cooled dashi until smooth. Add the grated nagaimo and eggs and stir just until loose and even. Don't beat it hard. You want the nagaimo's light, slippery body, not a tough batter.

4. 4

   Fold in cabbage

   Add the cabbage, scallions, tenkasu, and beni shoga to the batter and fold with a spoon until every shred is lightly coated. It should look like too much cabbage and not enough batter. That's correct. If it pours like cake batter, it will cook like cake, and this dish has better manners than that.

5. 5

   Shape and top

   Heat a wide skillet or hot plate over medium-low heat and brush it with oil. Mound half the mixture into a round about 6 inches across and 1 inch thick, then lay half the pork belly slices across the top in a single layer. Shape the edges lightly with a spatula, but don't compact it. Air inside the cabbage is what keeps the center tender.

6. 6

   Cook the first side

   Cook for 5 to 6 minutes, until the underside is deeply golden and the edges begin to set. The sound should be a steady, quiet sizzle, not an angry crackle. Too much heat browns the outside before the cabbage has softened, and then the center stays raw and sulky.

7. 7

   Flip once

   Slide one wide spatula under the okonomiyaki and steady the top with a second spatula, then turn it in one confident motion so the pork is underneath. Cook 5 to 6 minutes more, until the pork is browned and the pancake feels set when you press the edge. Do not press the surface. Pressing drives out moisture and flattens the lift you made with the nagaimo.

8. 8

   Finish and serve

   Turn the okonomiyaki back pork-side up if you like the pork visible, or leave the browned side down for a softer top. Brush with okonomiyaki sauce, stripe with Japanese mayonnaise, and finish with aonori and katsuobushi. Serve at once, while the surface is glossy and the inside still soft.

Chef Tips

• •Choose cabbage that feels heavy and crisp, with pale, tightly layered leaves. Old cabbage tastes flat and watery, and no sauce will make it young again.
• •Nagaimo is the lift in Osaka okonomiyaki. If you cannot find it, yamaimo works. Leaving it out still makes supper, but the texture becomes heavier, so don't pretend nothing changed.
• •Tenkasu adds little pockets of richness and helps the inside stay loose. If you don't have it, use a small handful of plain tempura crumbs from a Japanese market, not sweet fried onions.
• •Cook smaller rounds if you're nervous about flipping. Two small okonomiyaki are more honest than one heroic one broken in three places.
• •Okonomiyaki sauce is part of the dish's modern Osaka character. Brush it on thinly. The cabbage and pork should still speak through it, nothing hidden.

Advance Preparation

• •The dashi can be made up to two days ahead and kept refrigerated.
• •The cabbage can be shredded a few hours ahead and kept covered in the refrigerator, but mix it into the batter only just before cooking.
• •Do not hold the mixed batter for long. Salt and dashi draw water from the cabbage, and the mixture turns loose before the pan ever sees it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 460g)