Japanese Savoury Pancakes: A Paleo Recipe
By: Susan Joy
Japanese Pancakes (Okonomiyaki) are a popular street food in Japan. These pancakes have a lovely soft centre from the moist vegetables with a firm outside. The main vegetable used in Japanese pancakes is shredded cabbage. I’ve also added sweet potato to my version to increase the nutrients and fibre, plus I’ve swapped flour with almond meal and a little arrowroot. They are a light and fluffy savoury pancake. Therefore, don’t press down on the mixture when cooking as it will make the pancake dense. You can also add meat or prawns to the mixture but slice it very thinly so it cooks easily. Drizzle with mayonnaise when serving.
Ingredients
- 2 – 3 Tbsp olive oil, or coconut oil for cooking
BATTER:
- 1 1/2 cups almond meal/flour, (from blanched almonds)
- 1/2 cup arrowroot flour, or tapioca
- 1/2 tsp baking soda (bicarb)
- 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
- 1/3 tsp black pepper, ground
- 1/2 cup chicken broth/stock
- 2 lge egg(s), lightly beaten
- 3 Tbsp coconut aminos
VEGETABLES:
- 2 1/2 cups finely shredded Chinese cabbage, or 1/4 of a sml Savoy cabbage
- 1 1/2 cups fresh bean sprouts
- 1 sml (approx. 300g) sweet potato(s), grated
- 3 spring onion(s), finely sliced and include some of the green tops
Directions
Add the almond meal, arrowroot, baking soda, salt and pepper to a large bowl. Mix to remove any lumps then make a well in the centre.
Pour in the chicken broth, eggs and coconut aminos. Whisk well to make a smooth batter (the batter will seem a bit thick but some water will start to come out of the cabbage after sitting a few minutes).
Stir in the cabbage, bean sprouts, sweet potato and onions, making sure all vegetables are distributed evenly. The mixture will be more vegetables than batter.
Heat a large 32cm frying pan on medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of oil and swirl to coat the pan. Add approximately 1/2 cup of the vegetable batter to the pan and spread the vegetables out a little to form a round shape but don’t press down as you want a light fully pancake. I find I can cook 3 pancakes at once in my pan. Cover the pan for approximately 5 minutes to allow the vegetables to cook a little. Remove the lid and check the base is golden brown then flip the pancakes over using a large spatula. Add more oil and cook the second side uncovered until golden brown.
Transfer the pancakes to a heat-proof pan and keep warm in a medium oven while cooking the remaining mixture.
Serve drizzled with egg mayonnaise and some extra sliced green tops.
Article supplied with thanks to The JOYful Table.
About the Author: Susan is an author of The JOYful Table cookbook containing gluten & grain free, and Paleo inspired recipes for good health and wellbeing.
Feature image: Supplied
