This savoury pancake is a popular street food in Japan. I have created this plant based, protein rich, gluten-free variation with chickpea flour and either tempeh or tofu in place of pork belly! Okonomiyaki sauce, spicy mayo, toasted nori, and pickled ginger top it off! You can either purchase chickpea flour or grind dried organic chickpeas in a vitamix to make your own. If you want to go the extra mile, you can even sprout and dehydrate dried chickpeas before grinding into flour to make them even more nutritious! Okonomiyaki translates as “As you like it” so feel free to get creative with toppings! I add some chopped lacto-fermented carrots to pancake pictured below.
Ingredients:
makes two large pancakes, or 4 smaller
- 2 cups of finely sliced organic green cabbage
- 1 cup of prepared tofu or tempeh (recipe follows)
- 3 green onions, thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp. ground flax mixed with 6 tbsp. water
- 1 cup chickpea flour
- 1/2 tsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. sea salt
- 1/2 -3/4 cup of water
- lots of freshly ground pepper
- black sesame seeds (opt.)
- one recipe Okonomiyaki sauce (recipe follows)
- one recipe Spicy Mayo (recipe follows)
- toasted Nori cut into thin strips
- 1/4 cup pickled ginger, thinly sliced
The pancake:
Mix 2 tbsp. of ground flax and 6 tbsp. of water together in a medium sized bowl. Let sit for 10 minutes until thickened.
Add 1/2 cup of water to the flax emulsion along with the chickpea flour, salt, black pepper, and baking powder. Stir to combine creating a thick pancake-like batter.
Add the thinly sliced cabbage and green onion to the chickpea batter. The batter will be thick. If necessary, add a bit more water so the pancake is easier to flatten into a round in your frying pan.
At this point you can prepare the tofu or tempeh and sauces before frying up the pancakes!
Heat a large oiled fry pan over medium heat. Add 3-4 tbsp. of oil to the pan as this will ensure that the pancake gets crisp on the outside. Spoon half of the batter into the heated oiled fry pan. Smooth it out with a spoon or spatula into a 6 inch round that is about 1/4-1/2 in. thick. Sprinkle the top with black sesame seeds if using.
Cook for about 5 min. or until the edges begin to brown and small bubbles form around the outer rim of the pancake. Flip and cook on the opposite side.
To serve, drizzle Okonomiyaki sauce and spicy mayo over the pancake. Top with tempeh or tofu, toasted nori strips, and sliced pickled ginger. Serve with extra sauce on the side!
Tofu or Tempeh
- 1/2 block of firm tofu or one pkg. tempeh cut into small cubes
- 1/4 cup tamari
- 1 tbsp. rice vinegar
- 1 tsp. sambal
Toss tofu or tempeh with the rest of the ingredients. Allow to sit for 1/2 hour or longer to absorb the flavours. Pre-heat your oven to 375 degrees. Spread the tofu or tempeh on an oiled cookie sheet and bake for 20 min. tossing a few times throughout until browned.
Okonomiyaki Sauce:
- 4 Tbsp. of organic ketchup
- 2 Tbsp. tamari
- 1 Tbsp. maple syrup
Mix into a small bowl.
Spicy Mayo:
- 1/4 cup mayo of your choice
- 1 tsp. of sambal
Stir to combine.
