A popular Japanese street food originating in Osaka, okonomiyaki is a savoury pancake that’s usually made with a batter containing wheat flour, egg and shredded cabbage along with a variety of other ingredients that may include meat, seafood and cheese.
Fun to eat in more ways than one, these okonomiyaki bites are gluten free, but you would never know the difference – they’re a must-try!
Ingredients:
Batter:
- 100g rice flour
- 50g tapioca starch
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ⅛ tsp white pepper
- ⅔ cup room-temperature water
- 2 tsp dashi granules
Fillings:
- 200g finely chopped napa cabbage
- 150g protein of choice, cut into small chunks (shrimp, scallop, octopus, pork belly, etc)
- 2 spring onions, chopped finely
- 2 eggs
Sauce:
- 2 tbsp ketchup
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tbsp honey
- 2 tsp oyster sauce
Other garnishes/toppings:
- Kewpie mayonnaise
- bonito flakes
- furikake
- sesame seeds
- nori strips
- chopped spring onion
Method:
Sauce:
- Combine the ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, honey and oyster sauce in a bowl and mix until well combined. Set aside.
Okonomiyaki:
- Preheat oven to 230°C.
- In a medium-sized bowl, combine the rice flour, tapioca starch, baking powder and white pepper and whisk together.
- Mix the room-temperature water with the dashi granules until they have dissolved.
- Add the dashi solution to the dry ingredients and whisk until well mixed and the batter is fairly smooth.
- Add the chopped napa cabbage, protein of your choice, chopped spring onions and eggs to the bowl containing the batter. Mix very well.
- Scoop the mixture into a greased muffin tin, evenly dividing it into each cup. Slightly flatten the filling into the cups.
- Bake for 15 minutes, or until the edges are browned.
- Serve immediately and garnish with the sauce, Kewpie mayonnaise, bonito flakes, furikake, sesame seeds, nori and chopped spring onion, as desired.
Recipe notes:
- If you’re not a gluten-free eater, feel free to use the equivalent weight (150g) of regular plain flour for your okonomiyaki batter.
- The napa cabbage should be finely chopped into very small pieces.
- For the protein choices, you can use whatever combination you like of raw shrimp, scallop, octopus, pork belly, bacon, etc.
- Cut your protein into small pieces so that there is even distribution amongst the muffin cups.
- Some people like mixing grated cheese into the okonomiyaki batter.
- Be sure to grease the muffin tin well to ensure the okonomiyaki bites come out easily as well as to encourage browning on the sides and bottoms.
- If you choose to use muffin tin liners, use foil or parchment liners for easier removal.
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