Okonomiyaki with Cabbage and Bacon Recipe
Okonomiyaki is a Japanese “pancake” with cabbage, fried in a pan and served with a characteristic sauce and mayonnaise. In Japan it’s often made together at the table on a small griddle, a bit like our at‑home pancake evenings. It’s a great dish for a relaxed get‑together with friends – everyone can have their own pancake and decorate it their own way.
This simplified okonomiyaki brings the atmosphere of Japanese street food into your kitchen with ingredients that are easy to find. The combination of crispy cabbage pancake, savoury bacon and sweet‑tangy sauce makes it both comforting and a bit exotic at the same time.
Chef's tips
Chop the cabbage really finely – large pieces make it harder to form compact pancakes and they may fall apart when flipping. Fry over medium heat rather than high so the inside cooks through before the outside burns. If flipping is difficult, make smaller pancakes that are easier to turn.
How to serve
Serve the pancakes straight from the pan, with extra sauce and mayonnaise on the table so everyone can adjust the flavour. They go well with light, crunchy sides like cucumber salad, pickled vegetables or a simple green salad. For a more Japanese touch, you can sprinkle them with toasted sesame seeds or nori strips.
Ingredients
- white cabbage finely chopped - 300 g
- wheat flour - 120 g
- water cold - 120 ml
- egg - 2 piece
- bacon slices thin slices - 100 g
- spring onion chopped - 2 piece
- vegetable oil for frying - 2 tablespoons
- ketchup for the sauce - 2 tablespoons
- Worcestershire sauce for the sauce - 2 tablespoons
- mayonnaise for serving - 3 tablespoons
- salt - 0.5 teaspoons
Preparation
- Finely chop the cabbage, almost like for a slaw, and slice the spring onion into thin rings.
- In a bowl, mix the flour, water, eggs and salt until you get a thick but pourable batter, similar to pancake batter, just a bit thicker.
- Add the chopped cabbage and most of the spring onion (reserve a little for sprinkling), and mix thoroughly so the vegetables are evenly coated with the batter.
- In a small bowl, mix the ketchup with the Worcestershire sauce – this will be a quick okonomiyaki‑style sauce.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Spoon in 1/3 of the mixture, shaping a pancake about 1.5–2 cm thick and 12–15 cm in diameter.
- Arrange a few slices of bacon on top of the pancake, pressing them lightly into the mixture.
- Fry for 4–5 minutes, until the bottom is golden and slightly crispy. Carefully flip the pancake to the other side (ideally using two spatulas) and fry for another 4–5 minutes, until the bacon is browned and the centre is no longer raw.
- Transfer the cooked pancake to a plate and repeat with the remaining batter, adding a little more oil to the pan if needed.
- Spread each pancake with a thin layer of the ketchup–Worcestershire sauce, drizzle mayonnaise over the top in a zigzag pattern and sprinkle with the remaining spring onion.
- Serve hot, cutting the pancakes into quarters like a pizza.
Storage
No storage information available for this dish.
Okonomiyaki is one of those dishes that are as much about the fun of making and decorating as about the taste itself. It’s perfect for evenings when you want to cook together and let everyone customise their own plate.
