Okonomiyaki

This delicious savoury Japanese pancake is squishy on the inside and crispy on the outside, and full of flavour from the miso, pickled ginger and rice wine vinegar! For years, I looked on in envy as others devoured the okonomikyaki at our local Japanese restaurant. It wasn’t until last year that I discovered Undivided Food Co’s olive oil mayo and decided it had to be eaten atop a gluten free version of okonomiyaki. I used a combination of brown rice flour and tapioca flour to bind the mixture together and it provides such a wonderful texture. I simply used my mum’s homemade tomato relish on top (it’s seriously good – trust me on this one) until I ran out and chose Uncle Steve’s as the next best option as it contains much better ingredients than other brands that were full of additives. I hope you enjoy these scrumptious pancakes as much as we do!

Makes 4 large pancakes 

1/4 green cabbage, finely shredded

1/8 red cabbage, finely shredded

1 carrot, grated

3 spring onions, thinly sliced

1 tbsp. toasted sesame seeds

1 tbsp. pickled ginger, finely chopped

2 tbsp. white miso paste

2 tbsp. rice wine vinegar

2 free range eggs

1 cup water

1 cup brown rice flour

½ cup tapioca flour

Uncle Steve’s Tomato Relish

Toppings:

·     Undivided Food Co. ‘Good Fat’ Mayonnaise

·     Extra spring onions, finely sliced

·     Extra sesame seeds, toasted

·     2 nori sheets, torn into small pieces

1.   Use a food processor to finely shred the cabbages (or use a very sharp knife to do it by hand), grate the carrot and slice the spring onions.

2.   In a large mixing bowl, combine the shredded cabbage, grated carrot, thinly sliced spring onions, sesame seeds and the pickled ginger. Stir well to combine.

3.   In a separate mixing bowl, add the white miso paste, rice wine vinegar and eggs. Whisk well to combine.

4.   Add the flour and the water and whisk again.

5.   Pour the wet batter over the top of the vegetables and stir through.

6.   Heat a non-stick crepe pan to medium heat, add a drizzle of oil (I use olive) and 2 large spoonful’s of the mixture. Press down gently with a spatula until it covers almost the entire bottom of the pan. Place a lid on to cook for a few minutes. Once the underside is golden and crispy, very gently flip the pancake over to cook the other side (a wide egg flipper is ideal). While the pancake is cooking in the pan, spread over about 1 tbsp. of the relish and pop the lid back on.

7.   Allow to cook on the other side until crispy and golden as well. Remove from the pan and keep warm while the process is repeated for the remainder of the mixture.

8.   To serve: Place a warm pancake on each plate, add the mayonnaise to a piping bag or squeeze bottle and squeeze over the top in a crosshatch pattern. Sprinkle over the top extra sliced spring onions, some nori flakes and extra toasted sesame seeds. Enjoy!

This recipe is adapted from the one created by Bonnie Coumbe for Harris Farm.