Cabbage pancakes (okonomiyaki)
Crisp, savory Japanese pancakes packed with cabbage and finished with a sweet, tangy sauce and a zigzag of mayo, as fun to make as they are to eat.
- 35 min total
- 30 min hands-on
- Follow-a-recipe easy
- Serves 2
- About $1.23 a serving
- 480 calories
- Dairy-free
Dolly says: Read the steps once before you start. Everything goes smoother after that.
Ingredients
For 2 servings.
- 4 cups green cabbage, finely shredded
- 1 carrot, grated
- 3 large eggs
- 3 green onions, thinly sliced (optional)
- 3 tbsp ketchup
- 1 tbsp worcestershire sauce (optional)
- 2 tbsp mayonnaise (optional)
From your pantry
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup water
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp brown sugar
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil, divided
Each serving has about 480 calories, 17 g protein, 57 g carbs and 22 g fat, and costs about $1.23 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No green cabbage? Red cabbage or coleslaw mix works.
- No green onions? Chives work.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
Finely the cabbage with a knife and the carrot on the large holes of a box grater.
Shred. Shredding means making thin strips, either on the big holes of a grater or by pulling cooked meat apart with two forks. Shreds soak up sauce and mix evenly through a dish.
How you’ll know: Cooked chicken pulls apart into strands with little effort, and cheese comes off in long, loose strips.
Grate. Grating means rubbing food across the holes of a grater to make fine shreds or flakes. It spreads cheese, garlic or ginger evenly through a dish so it melts right in.
How you’ll know: Even shreds fall off the back of the grater, and you stop while the piece is still big enough to hold.
Dolly’s tip: Thin cabbage cooks through and holds together. Chunky pieces make the pancake fall apart.the flour, water, eggs and salt in a large bowl until smooth.
Whisk. Whisking means beating quickly with a whisk or a fork to blend things together. It smooths out lumps and mixes eggs, oil or sauces evenly.
How you’ll know: It all looks one even color and texture, with no streaks or lumps.
the cabbage, carrot and most of the green onions until every shred is coated in batter.
Fold. Folding means mixing gently by scooping from the bottom and turning it over the top, instead of stirring hard. It keeps light mixtures airy and soft things like berries or herbs in one piece.
How you’ll know: You use slow, wide strokes and stop as soon as there are no streaks left.
Stir the ketchup, soy sauce, brown sugar and Worcestershire together in a small bowl. This is your sauce.
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large nonstick over medium heat. Scoop in half the batter and press it into a round about ¾ inch thick.
Skillet. A skillet is a frying pan: wide and flat with low, sloped sides. The shape lets steam escape, so food browns instead of stewing.
How you’ll know: It’s the pan you’d fry an egg in, and a 10 or 12 inch one handles most recipes.
Medium heat
Cook 5 to 6 minutes, until deep underneath, then flip with a wide spatula and cook 5 to 6 minutes more, until firm in the middle when you press it.
Golden brown. Golden brown is the color of good toast, somewhere between yellow and light brown. It means the outside is cooked and crisp but not burnt.
How you’ll know: It looks like toast and smells toasty; dark brown with a bitter smell means it went too far.
Medium heatTimer: 5 min 30 sec
Dolly’s tip: If the spatula feels scary, slide the pancake onto a plate, put the pan over it, and flip the whole thing.Food safety: For the safest eggs, cook until the whites are fully set and the yolks begin to thicken. Dishes made with eggs are done at 160°F.
Move it to a plate and cook the second pancake the same way with the rest of the oil.
Medium heat
Brush the sauce over the pancakes, zigzag the mayonnaise across, and scatter the rest of the green onions. Cut into wedges.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
