Make Okonomiyaki at home

The series Midnight Diner, which is available to watch on Netflix, tells the story of various working people in Tokyo and of their favorite simple dishes, which they enjoy at a diner open from midnight until 7am. The show is as warm and comforting as the dishes, and it usually makes me want to do some at-home Japanese cooking. If I was a character on the show, I might order okonomiyaki, because it’s one of my favorites.

Okonomiyaki is a portmanteau of two words: “to like,” and “to grill.” So it’s a grilled dish of the ingredients you like. It became popular after World War II because of rice shortages. Basically, the dish mixes batter, cabbage and a protein like pork into a pancake that’s heated on a griddle. Hiroshima Okonomiyaki adds soba noodles, but the cooking is more involved with building the pancake in layers and flipping twice, so when I cook at home I opt for Osaka style, which mixes everything together and only flips once.

You’ll probably need to stop by an Asian grocery store for a few ingredients. I like using thin-sliced pork belly (it looks a lot like bacon), which is easy to find at Mega Mart or Osaka Marketplace in Fremont. You can also find Otafuku Okonomiyaki Sauce and Kewpie Mayo at these stores. Kewpie is a little lighter and sweeter than regular mayo, but that will do in a pinch.

A pan is perfectly serviceable for cooking okonomiyaki, but a griddle gives you space to cook multiple pancakes at once. If you set up the griddle on the table, it feels like you’re at the bar at a Japanese Okonomiyaki restaurant, where they serve right from the long teppan griddle.

Since this dish is about cooking to your preference, you can make it a seafood version by swapping pork for tiny shrimp. Other bonus flavors I like are chopped kimchi, shredded cheese and scallions. (Add a small handful to the mix before you cook the pancakes.)

Okonomiyaki for two

4 cups chopped cabbage

2 eggs

4 slices of pork belly (chopped into small pieces)

2/3 cup flour

1/2 cup water

Prep ingredients and mix everything together in a large bowl. Heat your griddle to 350 degrees fahrenheit or your pan to medium high. Add neutral oil to the cooking surface so the okonomiyaki won’t stick. Using a large spoon, scoop the mixture onto the griddle and shape into two pancakes, each about a half inch thick. Remember that it will need to both cook through and keep its shape.

Cook the okonomiyaki for about five minutes per side, flipping in between with a plastic spatula or two metal spatulas if you have them. Don’t worry if your okonomiyaki falls apart a little; just use the spatula to reshape it. Okonomiyaki should be a little browned on top but not burnt.

When the Okonomiyaki is ready, turn the griddle off, top with okonomiyaki sauce and mayo, divide pancakes into nine pieces using the spatulas, and serve onto small plates. If you’re cooking in a pan, transfer the pancake to a larger plate and divide it there. Eat with chopsticks, of course!

My husband thinks Japanese beer like Asahi or Kirin Ichiban—also available at Asian grocery stores—is perfect with okonomiyaki. I agree, but green tea or ramune are nonalcoholic options that also give Japanese vibes.

Before you dig in, steeple your fingers like you’re praying and say “itadakimasu!” That’s the Japanese equivalent of bon appetit!