Japaneats その2 - お好み焼き (おこのみやき - Okonomiyaki)

Japaneats 2 features my favourite Japanese food - お好み焼き. It's one of the most famous specialties of the 関西 (かんさい - Kansai) area and with good reason. It's easy to make, delicious, filling and you can put nearly anything you want in it. In fact, the name literally means "grilled things you like". What could go wrong?

お好み焼き is probably best explained as a cross between a pancake and a pizza. It's made mainly with eggs, flour and shredded cabbage, beaten up into a thick batter and poured straight on to the 鉄板 (てっぱん - teppan - hot plate). Depending on the restaurant, 鉄板 might be set into each table or up at the bar with everyone seated on stools. If you have your own 鉄板 at a table, one of the staff might come around and cook everyone's お好み焼き, bring a half-cooked one and finish it off on your 鉄板 or just give you the batter and leave it up to you to cook it (which is what I'll explain today)! In any case, they'll be more than happy to help if you ask, particularly if you have no idea what you're doing.

The first step is to work out what kind of お好み焼き you want. The most common fillings are strips of 豚肉 (ぶたにく - butaniku - pork), いか (ika - squid), 海老 (えび - ebi - prawn) and ミックス (mikkusu - mixed), but some restaurants also have カキ (kaki - oyster), チーズ (chi-zu - cheese) and ねぎ (negi - spring onion). Once you've ordered, if you're lucky enough to make it yourself, the ingredients arrive ready to be beaten up and poured.

Grab the bowls and mix up the batter with the spoon. Make sure everything is nicely combined - you don't want it to cook unevenly. Once you're ready, pour the batter out on to the 鉄板, being careful not to burn yourself. Use the spatula to make sure it's nice and round.

Once it's on and cooking, place the 豚肉 on top if you have any - that way, it will end up nice and crispy when you flip it. It takes quite a long time to cook so be patient - the restaurant staff will probably let you know when it's time.

Now comes the fun bit - grab a spatula or two, scoop it up and carefully flip it over. Remember that it's still half raw at this stage so it's easy to make a mess of it. Try not to drool on the 鉄板 as it finishes cooking.

When it's done, it's time to dress your お好み焼き. お好みソース (okonomi so-su - okonomiyaki sauce) is the first thing that goes on. It's a thick, dark sauce that tastes a bit like Worcestershire but sweeter. It usually sits next to the 鉄板 with a brush that you can use to paint the お好み焼き. Next, you can put on some 青のり (あおのり - aonori - powdered seaweed) and かつお (katsuo - dried bonito flakes) if you like. Finally, and most importantly comes the マヨ (mayo - mayonnaise). Japanese マヨ is much more savoury than ours - it's a bit like whole egg mayonnaise and is put on nearly everything, including お好み焼き. It's normally just put on in stripes and not in pictures like the photo above - drawing Hello Kitty was a very unique claim to fame of the restaurant in Osaka we went to.

Once you've garnished your お好み焼き to your liking, it's time to dig in. The spatulas you used to cook it double as eating utensils - you use them to chop bits off and eat it straight off the 鉄板. I've seen people eating it straight off their spatulas but I wouldn't recommend it - it's usually still boiling hot so it's a better idea to use a side plate and take your time.

Once you're ready to be a bit more adventurous, you can try some of the other versions available. モダン焼き (modanyaki) is the same thing but with 焼きそば (yakisoba - fried noodles with お好みソース) inside, in case a regular お好み焼き doesn't fill you up (which I doubt!). Alternatively, if you don't have time to sit down, give たこ焼き (takoyaki) a try - balls of お好み焼き batter with a piece of たこ (octopus) inside. They're garnished the same way as お好み焼き but can be eaten with a toothpick on the run - great festival food. 広島焼き (ひろしまやき - hiroshimayaki) is Hiroshima's take on お好み焼き - similar, but layered instead of mixed, ending up a bit more like an omelette than a pancake. The 関東 (かんとう - kantou) area's version is called もんじゃ焼き (monjayaki), made with a runnier batter that ends up the consistency of melted cheese or fondue when it's cooked. You can get any of these almost anywhere in the country so there's no excuse not to give them a bash!

I think it's the generosity of お好み焼き that I like the best - it's big, thick and unsophisticated in a land of light and delicate. The flavours and textures go together nicely - crispy, pork on top of a fluffy pancake topped with creamy mayonnaise and sweet sauce. I can't think of anything better on a cold night. Next time you're in the area, don't miss an opportunity to pull up a stool next to the 鉄板, strike up a conversation with some of the gruff workers who'll be in there and enjoy a side of Japan that you don't often see.