Okonomiyaki (Japanese Savory Pancake) (Wheat-Free)
お好み焼き（小麦なし） · Okonomiyaki
By Aoi, licensed nutritionist · From a Japanese preschool lunch menu
Okonomiyaki is Japan's beloved savory pancake, packed with cabbage and finished with a sweet-and-tangy brown sauce and a sprinkle of green seaweed. This version swaps the usual wheat flour for rice flour and potato starch, and uses silken tofu instead of egg. The tofu keeps the batter soft and moist, and because the pork is cooked before it goes in, every bite stays tender and easy for little ones to chew. In preschool kitchens we serve it as an afternoon snack, cut into small pieces that fit neatly into small hands.
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Ingredients
Amounts for 1 child (1 serving). An adult counts as 2 servings.
One serving here is 1.5× the portion served to a child in a Japanese preschool, sized for Western appetites. An adult counts as two servings. Tap an ingredient to check it off.
Ingredients
- 15 gthinly sliced pork (komagire)Small, thin offcuts of pork sold in Japan for quick stir-fries and simmered dishes. Substitute: Thinly sliced pork shoulder or loin cut into bite-size pieces.
- 37.5 gcabbage
- 15 grice flour
- 4.5 gpotato starch (katakuriko)Japanese potato starch used for thickening sauces and coating fried foods. Substitute: Cornstarch: start with the same amount and add a little more if it is still thin. It thickens a little less than potato starch and needs a couple of minutes at a gentle bubble to reach full thickness.
- 19.5 gsilken tofu
Seasonings
- 0.8 goil (for stir-frying)
- 19.5 gwater
- 0.8 gkatsuobushi (dried bonito flakes)Paper-thin shavings of dried, smoked skipjack tuna that add a savory, smoky depth as a topping or stock base. Substitute: A pinch of dashi powder, or omit.
- 2.3 goil (for pan-frying)
- 4.5 gchuno sauce (Japanese medium-thick brown sauce)A sweet, tangy, fruit-and-vegetable-based brown sauce that sits between thin Worcestershire and thick tonkatsu sauce. Substitute: Tonkatsu sauce, or Worcestershire sauce mixed with a little ketchup.
- 0.1 gaonori (green seaweed flakes)Fine, fragrant flakes of dried green seaweed sprinkled over dishes like okonomiyaki and yakisoba. Substitute: Crumbled nori sheets, or omit.
About the Japanese ingredients in this recipe
- thinly sliced pork (komagire) (豚こま切れ肉)
- Small, thin offcuts of pork sold in Japan for quick stir-fries and simmered dishes. Substitute: Thinly sliced pork shoulder or loin cut into bite-size pieces.
- potato starch (katakuriko) (かたくり粉)
- Japanese potato starch used for thickening sauces and coating fried foods. Substitute: Cornstarch: start with the same amount and add a little more if it is still thin. It thickens a little less than potato starch and needs a couple of minutes at a gentle bubble to reach full thickness. Read the guide: Katakuriko (Japanese Potato Starch) and What to Use Instead → Guide: japanese-school-lunch.com/articles/katakuriko-potato-starch/
- katsuobushi (dried bonito flakes) (かつお削り節)
- Paper-thin shavings of dried, smoked skipjack tuna that add a savory, smoky depth as a topping or stock base. Substitute: A pinch of dashi powder, or omit.
- chuno sauce (Japanese medium-thick brown sauce) (中濃ソース)
- A sweet, tangy, fruit-and-vegetable-based brown sauce that sits between thin Worcestershire and thick tonkatsu sauce. Substitute: Tonkatsu sauce, or Worcestershire sauce mixed with a little ketchup.
- aonori (green seaweed flakes) (あおのり)
- Fine, fragrant flakes of dried green seaweed sprinkled over dishes like okonomiyaki and yakisoba. Substitute: Crumbled nori sheets, or omit.
Directions
- 1
Cut the pork into 1 cm strips and stir-fry in a frying pan with a little oil. Roughly chop the cabbage. Drain the tofu in a colander.
- 2
In a bowl, combine the rice flour, potato starch, the pork, cabbage and tofu from step 1, the water and the katsuobushi, and mix well.
- 3
Heat a little oil in a frying pan, pour in the batter and spread it out, and cook over medium heat. Flip, reduce to low heat, cover with a lid and cook through.
- 4
Once cooked, brush with the chuno sauce, sprinkle with aonori and cut into pieces.
Nutrition
| Per | 1 serving | 1 adult serving | Your total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | 148.5 kcal | 297 kcal | 148.5 kcal |
| Protein | 6.1 g | 12.3 g | 6.1 g |
| Fat | 5.4 g | 10.8 g | 5.4 g |
| Carbohydrates | 19.7 g | 39.3 g | 19.7 g |
| Fiber | 1 g | 2.1 g | 1 g |
| Salt equivalent | 0.3 g | 0.6 g | 0.3 g |
| Calcium | 36 mg | 72 mg | 36 mg |
| Iron | 0.8 mg | 1.5 mg | 0.8 mg |
| Potassium | 180 mg | 360 mg | 180 mg |
| Energy | Protein | Fat | Carbs | Fiber | Salt equiv. | Calcium | Iron | Potassium | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 serving | 148.5 kcal | 6.1 g | 5.4 g | 19.7 g | 1 g | 0.3 g | 36 mg | 0.8 mg | 180 mg |
| 1 adult serving | 297 kcal | 12.3 g | 10.8 g | 39.3 g | 2.1 g | 0.6 g | 72 mg | 1.5 mg | 360 mg |
Values are per serving (1.5× the Japanese preschool portion); an adult serving is double. They were calculated by a licensed Japanese nutritionist using the Standard Tables of Food Composition in Japan. "Salt equivalent" is sodium × 2.54, the standard Japanese measure. Allergen flags cover egg, milk and wheat only and come from the nutritionist's records. Soy sauce and miso are made with wheat but are usually allowed on Japanese wheat-free school menus, so check with your doctor.
