Recipes

Okonomiyaki ‘Your Way’ – Squid Pancakes

 

Serves 2-3
Makes 5-6 pancakes
Cooking time 30 minutes

This dish is one of our family favourites, both comfort food and street food rolled into one, it’s one of those ‘anything goes’ dishes.
In this recipe I have just used squid, sometimes we add prawns and  even cheddar cheese on the odd occasion.  You can adapt Okonomiyaki to suit your taste, so add your favourite seafood and enjoy.

Ingredients
350g of fish
1 cleaned small squid (chopped into 1 inch pieces)
prawns or
fish of choice
Batter
240g plain flour (2 cups)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp sugar
240g water (2 cups)
Vegetables
500gm chopped green cabbage (1 inch pieces) you can add more if you like
2 spring onions thinly sliced (both white and green parts)
4 large eggs
Neutral oil, such as rapeseed
Toppings
Okonomiyaki sauce or Japanese BBQ sauce
Mayonnaise – Kewpie
*1 small packet of Korean Gim – roasted seaweed chopped into confetti  (this is about 4 to five small slices of seaweed)
or Aonori green Nori flakes 
Katsuobushi (bonito flakes)
Beni Shoga – red pickled ginger (optional)

The Okonomiyaki sauce (a descendant of Worcestershire sauce but thicker and sweeter),  Bonito flakes (katsuobushi), Roasted Seaweed and Kewpie mayonnaise can be found in supermarket, specialist shops, and online.

Allergens: For those of you with allergies please remove or substitute accordingly

Method

  • Mix the dry ingredients in a large bowl, add the water, and mix until a thick batter forms. Put the batter aside.
  • Prepare your toppings.  Cut the squid into pieces and rinse, devein prawns (if you are using them), and slice lengthways put the fish into the fridge until you need it.
  • Whisk the eggs together and add the vegetables, continue to whisk until the vegetables are evenly mixed.  This whisking adds air to the pancakes and makes them lighter.
    Now add the batter to this mixture and stir gently until everything is coated.
  • Heat your frying pan on medium heat, and when warm, lightly oil the pan.
    Spoon in the mixture into the pan, don’t try to make them too large otherwise they won’t flip over easily.  Put a small handful in a single layer,  of squid (or your favourite fish) on top of the pancake.  Cook the pancake until the bottom has browned, about 3 – 4 minutes.
  • Flip the pancake over, if you don’t want to flip then lift the pan off the cooker heat. Cover the frying pan with a small plate and carefully turn both over so that the pancake drops onto the plate.
    If you need more oil add it to the pan now.
  • Do not press down on the pancake. Slide the pancake into the frying pan, fish side down, and cook for about 5 more minutes.

Serve
Working quickly slide the pancake onto a plate.
Top with Okonomiyaki sauce and a zigzag of Mayonnaise.
Sprinkle with bonito flakes and seaweed.

Enjoy

You can also serve these with red pickled ginger.

* We use Korean Seaweed (Gim) as it is seasoned with oil, salt and then roasted and prefer this taste on these pancakes.

 

 

 

 

This recipe was cooked and photographed by Ed Gyurko for Steve Hatt Fishmongers