Japanese Okonomiyaki recipe

July 25, 2016 By

For those who love Japanese food; you may already be familiar with Okonomiyaki (O-konomi-yaki). If not, it is a must try! This vegetarian Japanese Okonomiyaki recipe is something we’ve been wanting to try making at home for months.

Okonomiyaki is a Japanese savoury pancake containing a variety of ingredients. The name is derived from the word okonomi, meaning “what you like” or “what you want”, and yaki meaning “grilled” or “cooked”.

As the name insists, you can do what you like. But there are some differences in ingredients that change the style of the dish depending on the region of Japan. There are two main types of okonomiyaki. Osaka (or Kansai) style or Hiroshima. For us, it is all about the former style – Osaka, as this was the variety we “sampled” the most while travelling around Japan earlier this year. Our first attempt at making okonomiyaki was at a cooking class in Osaka called Eat Osaka which is well worth doing if you are ever in Osaka.

To make the okonomiyaki, it is a simple flour based mixture combining vegetables (predominantly cabbage) and if you want a non-vegetation option, you could add some cooked pork, chicken or prawns.

At a restaurant traditionally the Okonomiyaki is cooked on a hot plate in front of you, however, our homemade Okonomiyaki recipe can be cooked using a non-stick fry pan with a little vegetable oil.

To finish your okonomiyaki the best part is the toppings! Okonomiyaki sauce is essential. It is a dark brown sauce combining Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, ketchup, and a dash of sugar or a teaspoon of honey. The dominant okonomiyaki sauce brand is Otafuku. You then need to use Japanese mayonnaise; Kewpie Mayo is the most popular brand or any other Japanese mayo which is thicker and sweeter than other varieties. To finish, top off your okonomiyaki with Aonori; a green seaweed close to powder form and Dried Bonito Flakes (if you like). In our house, if you like a little spice, you can also use sriracha or some Nanami Togarashi (dried chilli powder)!

Looking for other vegetarian recipes then check out or vegetarian rice paper rolls.

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Vegetarian Japanese Okonomiyaki – Recipe Instructions

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Japanese Okonomiyaki Recipe
 
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Okonomiyaki is a Japanese savoury pancake containing a variety of ingredients. The name is derived from the word okonomi, meaning "what you like" or "what you want", and yaki meaning "grilled" or "cooked".
Author:
Recipe type: Main
Cuisine: Japanese
Serves: 4
Ingredients
Japanese Pancake mixture
  • 120g Okonomiyaki flour or plain flour
  • ¾ cup water
  • 3 eggs, lightly beaten
  • 500g Cabbage, finely shredded
  • 1 carrot, grated or finely sliced
  • 4 Spring onions, sliced (half for recipe, half for decoration)
  • Vegetable oil
Toppings
  • Okonomiyaki Sauce
  • Japanese Mayonnaise
  • Aonori
  • Dried Bonito Flakes
  • Pickled Ginger
Instructions
  1. In a large bowl, whisk together flour and Water until smooth.
  2. Add the eggs to the batter and whisk to combine. Stir in the cabbage, carrot, and spring onions.
  3. Meanwhile, heat a non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat.
  4. Add Okonomiyaki mixture. Using a spatula and form pancakes until ½” thick and approximately (6”) across.
  5. After about 3 minutes, flip over pancake and cook for 4 minutes.
  6. Remove to plate and drizzle with Okonomiyaki sauce, Kewpie mayonnaise and sprinkle with Aonori and dried Benito flakes.

 

Filed Under: Vegetarian Tagged With: , ,

Vegetarian rice paper rolls

April 25, 2016 By

These Vietnamese vegetarian rice paper rolls are full of fresh flavours and taste amazing. Making them at home is so easy and you can tailor them to your audience by adjusting the fillings. If you want to leave a couple of ingredients out for fussy tastebuds it’s no issue with rice paper rolls.

Rice paper rolls are extremely versatile and whilst this recipe is for vegetarian rice paper rolls they be made with whatever fresh ingredients you have on hand. Other variations, which Brooke has made in the past, include chicken rice paper rolls and prawn rice paper rolls.

Rice paper rolls are easy to prepare once you have mastered the tuck and roll technique to wrap them ready to eat. There is a bit of pre-prep to get all your ingredients slice ready for the production line, but once that is done it’s just a matter of rolling these tasty little pastels ready to go. The trick to the best tasting rice paper rolls is to serve immediately after preparation, as the rice paper can dry out if left too long, and cause them to stick to one another.

Not only are these vegetarian rice paper rolls healthy, they’re also incredibly varied in taste and texture! The filling consist of creamy avocado, crunchy carrots and cucumbers, silky vermicelli noodles, spicy Sriracha tofu, fresh spring onion, chives, mint and coriander tossed in for that classic Vietnamese flavour (add fresh chilli for good measure if your that way inclined also!). Top it all off by serving with a combo of hoisin sauce and satay sauce and you have an incredibly easy-to-make, fresh, vegetarian recipe which is absolutely delicious.

These light rice paper rolls are packed with goodness so if you’re looking to whip up a quick, inexpensive and yummy meal for yourself, friends, and family these are definitely the way to go.

If you like this recipe – then check out our other recipes for stuffed mushrooms or vegetarian savoury muffins. 

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Tofu vegetarian rice paper rolls recipe instructions

Vegetarian rice paper rolls
 
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Vegetarian rice paper rolls consist of creamy avocado, crunchy carrots and cucumbers, silky vermicelli noodles, spicy Sriracha tofu, fresh spring onion, chives and mint and coriander tossed in for that classic Vietnamese flavour.
Author:
Recipe type: Vegetarian
Cuisine: Vietnamese
Serves: 24
Ingredients
  • 2 carrots, peeled and cut into matchsticks
  • 1 large avocado, cut into slices
  • Spring onions, cleaned and cut into matchsticks
  • Fresh herbs (chives, coriander or mint)
  • 1 ounce cooked rice noodles/rice vermicelli (optional)
  • Rice paper wrappers
  • Fried tofu, sliced
  • 1 tbsp Sriracha sauce
  • 1 tbsp brown sugar
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 2 tbsp rice flour
  • Vegetable oil
Instructions
  1. Combine Sriracha sauce, soy sauce and brown sugar in a small bowl. Set aside.
  2. Preheat a large fry pan over medium heat. Toss tofu in 2 Tbsp rice flour and cook in vegetable oil, cooking until golden brown. Turn the heat down and add Sriracha sauce mixture to the pan coating the tofu in the sauce. Cook for a couple of minutes until the sauce is sticky and covering all the tofu. Remove and set aside.
  3. Cook the dried vermicelli noodles to packet instructions. Drain and cool.
  4. Once your vegetables are prepped and you’re ready to assemble the rolls, fill a shallow dish with warm water.
  5. Dip one rice paper wrapper into the water for thirty seconds, remove and place on a clean flat surface.
  6. Place a couple of tofu pieces along a third of the wrapper. Top with noodles, and a couple of slices of cucumber, carrot, spring onion, avocado and a few herbs. Fold in the sides of rice paper. Then roll from the bottom up, tucking into a tight spring roll shape. (Most rice paper packaging will have directions).
  7. Repeat with the remaining rice paper wrappers and filling.
  8. Serve the spring rolls whole, or sliced in half with a nice dipping sauce.

 

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