I’ve made chef Tim Anderson’s okonomiyaki from memory for years, realising only recently that rice is not a traditional ingredient and that his recipe is, in fact, for rice yaki, a speciality of Kyushu. It’s the first cousin to okonomiyaki in that it’s a crisp cabbage pancake, but with cooked rice as the main ingredient; after that, however, it’s up to you what you put in. I like to make this mini mushroom version because, miraculously, my children eat it. And the secret to a super-crisp pancake? A good gluten-free flour (I like Freee) – the combination of flours in a gluten-free mix gives you an amazingly crisp pancake.
Mini mushroom okonomiyaki
I really like finely chopped kimchi and greek yoghurt on the side. After all, okonomi means “as you like it”, which I take as a green light for “anything goes”.
Prep 15 min
Cook 15 min
Serves 2-3
2 tbsp sesame oil, or neutral oil
150g shiitake mushrooms, roughly chopped
1 garlic clove, peeled and finely grated
2½cm piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated
1½ tsp flaky sea salt
2 eggs, beaten
100g white cabbage, thinly sliced
200g cooked white rice
50g cheddar, roughly chopped
40g gluten-free flour
3 spring onions, finely sliced
To serve
Mayonnaise and brown sauce, or Kewpie and okonomi sauce, if you have it
Heat a tablespoon of oil in a nonstick frying pan, then add the mushrooms, garlic, ginger and a half-teaspoon of flaky salt. Stir-fry for four to five minutes, until the mushrooms are just cooked through, then tip into a bowl.
Add the beaten eggs, cabbage, cooked rice, cheddar, flour, spring onions and the remaining teaspoon of salt to the mushroom bowl, and mix well to combine.
Heat the remaining tablespoon of oil in the same frying pan, then, working in batches, add tablespoons of the mixture and flatten each one into a rough disc. Fry the mini okonomiyaki on a medium heat for two to three minutes on each side, until golden brown (the cheese will melt in patches and crisp up), then transfer to a plate lined with kitchen roll and keep warm in a low (70C (50C fan)/gas very low) oven while you cook the rest of the mixture.
Serve hot with your choice of sauces: Japanese mayonnaise and okonomiyaki sauce are traditional, but regular mayonnaise and brown (or, indeed, tamarind) sauce are good, too, if that’s what you have.