Okonomiyaki - West Coast Style

Okonomiyaki - Pacific Northwest Variation (with smoked salmon and pickled chanterelles)

Okonomiyaki - West Coast Style

A PNW variation on the classic Japanese grilled pancake! Smoked salmon and pickled chanterelle mushrooms put a delicious and distinctive twist on a simple-yet-versatile classic.

Course Appetizer, Main Course, Main Dishes

Cuisine Asian, Canadian, Fusion, Japanese

Keyword japanese fusion

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 30

Servings Servings

Calories 499kcal

Equipment

1 Stand mixer (or hand mixer)
1 Griddle (or large well-seasoned or non-stick frying pan)

Ingredients

Batter

1.5 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
4 large eggs whites and yolks separated
1.25 cups dashi (see note)
2 tbsp sesame oil
1/4 cup scallions green portions only, chopped
1/3 cup pickled chanterelle mushrooms chopped (see note)

Add-ins

3 cups napa cabbage shredded and loosely packed (see note)
4.4 oz smoked salmon (see note for vegetarian variation)

Toppings (see note)

okonomiyaki sauce
Japanese mayo
smoked salmon
ao-nori
katsuobushi (bonito flakes)
tenkasu (tempura bits)

Other

2-3 tbsp vegetable oil (for frying)

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

In a large, non-reactive bowl, whip the egg whites into foam. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, salt, sugar.
Stir in dashi, sesame oil, chopped pickled chanterelles, scallion greens, egg yolks, mix thoroughly.
Gently fold in whipped egg whites - just enough to incorporate.
Preheat a skillet or griddle with a tablespoon of vegetable oil (if you have a griddle, it makes these a lot easier to make as you can do more than one at a time).
Place a fairly large handful of cabbage (see note) and ~3/4 cup batter in the center of the skillet/griddle over medium heat and flatten a little with a spatula (see note on thickness below).
Lay a few strips of smoked salmon on top of the okonomiyaki, then cover the pan (or put a pot lid over the individual okonomiyaki if you're using a griddle). Cook for about 3-4 minutes.
Flip and cook uncovered for an additional 2-3 minutes. Cool slightly, then add okonomiyaki sauce, mayo, and any other desired toppings.
Repeat steps 5-8 above with remaining batter, cabbage, and toppings. Best served immediately, as each individual pancake is ready.

Notes

Dashi - this savoury stock is made with kombu (kelp) and other dried ingredients. Making your own dashi from scratch is quite simple, but you can also purchase dashi powders and sachets (akin to tea bags) from Japanese stores. If you can't make dashi, you can substitute 1/4 cup of vegetable stock plus 1 cup of water in this recipe.

Pickled Chanterelles - See recipe here. Substitution options include other pickled mushrooms, beni shoga (red ginger), and even kimchi. These will of course change the character of the okonomiyaki, but they all share similar sour, salty, and textural characteristics.

Cabbage - The actual amount of cabbage you'll need can be a bit tricky to characterize. There should be quite a lot of cabbage in okonomiyaki, but exactly how much can vary with personal tastes. I like to use a large but loose handful with each pancake.

Also note that the cabbage can be directly stirred into the batter if you prefer. This is easier, though it doesn't allow you to brown the cabbage against the griddle in the same way.

Thickness - Okonomiyaki should be made to be fairly thick when cooked (around 1 inch/2.5 cm), with cabbage contributing significantly to this thickness. You can go thicker too, but it can make cooking the pancake through a bit more complicated.

Toppings - Okonomiyaki can be topped with a wide variety of ingredients, but okonomiyaki sauce and Japanese mayo are virtually essential! Feel free to mix and match the remaining ingredients to your tastes - I personally like ao-nori (seaweed) and a little extra smoked salmon best.

All toppings (with the possible exception of smoked salmon) can be found easily at Japanese grocery stores. Okonomiyaki sauce and Japanese mayo are often found at well-stocked Western grocery stores as well.

Vegetarian Variation(s) - Any number of okonomiyaki variations are possible, but for a vegetarian variation with a PNW characteristic, try subbing in 150-200 grams of diced and butter-sauteed lobster mushrooms. Note also that many store-bought dashi mixes are made using some fish! Scratch-made dashi can be made with or without fish.

Nutrition