VEGETARIAN OKONOMIYAKI (Japanese pancake)
A great way to use up leftover vegetables and ridiculously tasty. Makes 4 small or 2 large
Ingredients
1 cup flour (spelt or buckwheat but 50/50 rye/spelt mix works better)
1 cup water/stock (if using water add a tsp each of soy and sake)
1 egg
1/4 cabbage
1 small carrot, grated
1/4 cup spring onions finely sliced
1 tsp finely chopped chilli
1 Tbs finely chopped coriander stalks
1/2 tsp ginger, freshly grated
1 Tab oil (rice bran works well)
TOPPING: Sauce – okonomiyaki sauce or kecap manis or mushroom soy
Kewpie mayo
4 Tbs coriander leaves
4 tsp spring onion finely sliced
1/2 red chilli, finely sliced
pickled ginger or finely sliced radish (12 small slices of either)
Mix flour & liquid together until smooth. Finely slice/ shred your cabbage and add this to the batter along with the carrot, spring onion, coriander stalks, ginger, egg and chilli. Mix well to combine.
Using a small 15cm frypan on high-med heat, pour in half the oil – when hot and spread evenly around, add 1/4 (if you’re making bigger ones, add 1/2) of the mixture to cover base of the pan.
Make pancake 1-1.5cm thick, spreading mixture out, then press with a spatula to stick together.
Cook on first side 3-4 minutes then flip with the spatula: it should stay together. If not, press down firmly again & cook another minute. It should be golden when you flip it. Cook a further 3-4 minutes on second side then slide on to plate. Repeat with remaining mixture to get 4 pancakes. Add the rest of the oil before the 3rd pancake if you think you need it.
To serve: Drizzle oko or alt. sauce to zigzag across pancake. Use kewpie mayo in between.
Top with coriander, spring onion, chilli and the pickled ginger or radish. Dig in.
NOTES: can be reheated in a sandwich press.
