Emi’s okonomiyaki

Each family of Osaka has its secret recipe of okonomiyaki. This post is pure spying. I am going to reveal you how my friend Emi makes hers. It’s a delicious simple version very rich in eggs. Before you start, make you sure you have tasty farm eggs.

Then, you need thinly shredded cabbage. She cuts it with her big knife. The flavors are tenkasu (tempura crumbs) and thin slices of pork breast.

The batter : It’s about a tbs of grated yama imo (Japanese yam), water and flour. Whip.
In a bowl, mix batter, cabbage, some tempura crumbs and an egg.

To be always ready, Emi has a reserve of servings of grated yama imo in her freezer.

On the oiled hot plate, first some batter-cabbage mix. Then slices of pork. Then more batter. Then flip.

Then… Why that ? The goal is to make the surface uneven so the sauces will stay on top.

Garnishing : the sauces are poured on top and layered with a brush. Then she puts fish flakes.
So the sauce are :
-okonomiyaki sauce (a mix of the thick sauce and of the more liquid Worcester sauce)
-mayonnaise
And in between ?

Do you recognized ? It’s mustard that gives a spicy tone to the sauces.

So you know all the tricks, you can enjoy it at home too.

Cilantro marinated cucumber, served 2 ways

Two version for a fresh veggie side. Lunch and dinner.

There were leftovers to use or lose. I’ve mixed these 3 and added a little Jalapeno Tabasco sauce. Let marinate in the fridge for the next day.

That’s fresh, hot and flavorful.

At lunch, I’ve added cherry tomatoes and…

…chips made with a broken tortilla, that I’ve toasted in a frying pan.

At night : added natto fermented soy beans and tenkasu (crumbs of tempura)

Pork and oyster okonomiyaki

A filling Osakan lunch : Okonomiyaki.
Today’s garnished with pork and oysters.
For details, there is a special page with all explanation in French and English: okonomiyaki

Main ingredients.

Well cooked. You can see the meat that I put in the bottom of the pan.

Painted with shoyu soy sauce, garnished with aonori seaweeds, negi leeks, fish flakes and pickled ginger.

Disappearing champuru

So many items and you no longer see the main dish… It’s really a big Okinawan champuru (see here) under that.

It’s tofu and egg scramble. I flavored it with some bits of salmon skin that I stir-fried, ginger and negi leeks, sea salt.

But you no longer see that base on the plate. Stirred in red cabbage, kabocha, goya, negi…

And lots of Romaine around around it.

That’s not finished : I added ten kasu (tempura crumbs) and chili powder.

A good lunch full of veggie and crunchiness…

Negi-yaki with black and white mushrooms

A ‘shroom version of Osaka’s classic… pizza. No ! Negi-yaki. Some people call okonomiyaki and negiyaki Japanese pizza, but it’s a bit ridiculous. The only common point is both are round.
The basic recipe is here.