![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.withaglass.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/oko2p.png\" "\\"oko2p\\"")
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Okonomiyaki (\u304a\u597d\u307f\u713c\u304d<\/a> ) can be translated roughly as “grill what you like” (“okonomi” means “what you like\/want” and \u00a0“yaki” means here “grilled”). This thick savoury pancake with an impressive variety ingredients might look weird, messy, not very appetising and definitely not photogenic, but I can assure you it is one of the most palatable dishes I have ever had in my life. In my opinion, if well advertised and popularised, okonomiyaki could conquer the whole world, just like Italian pizza did. It has certainly won over the whole Japan, even though it has origins in Osaka and Hiroshima. For me this is another example of a typically Japanese, but universally enjoyable dish.\u00a0Depending on the ingredients and toppings, okonomiyaki could satisfy even the pickiest eaters and those who are afraid of the Japanese cuisine (yes, they do exist).<\/p>\n As its name suggests, okonomiyaki can be prepared with practically everything. At first it looks and tastes as if the ingredients were chosen randomly. In reality, in spite of many different okonomiyaki versions, there are certain recurring items such as a thick pancake batter, shredded or cubed cabbage or grated mountain yam (yamaimo). There are also\u00a0two main okonomiyaki styles: Kansai (Osaka) and Hiroshima style. Both are very well described and accompanied by detailed recipes\u00a0on Shizuoka Gourmet blog<\/a>.\u00a0Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki contains noodles, while Osaka (Kansai) style is lighter and doesn’t include them. My okonomiyaki is rather Osaka-style (thank you, Hiroyuki).<\/p>\n I heard – or rather read – \u00a0about okonomiyaki for the first time on Hiroyuki’s blog on Japanese Cooking<\/a>. Then I realised Robert-Gilles (Shizuoka Gourmet<\/a>),\u00a0Charles (Five Euro Food<\/a>), Nami (Just One Cookbook<\/a>) and\u00a0Arudhi (A Box of Kitchen<\/a>)\u00a0have also posted okonomiyaki recipes.\u00a0Hiroyuki’s award winning okonomiyaki<\/a> included several types of\u00a0 mushrooms and was vegetarian, Nami’s recipe<\/a>\u00a0included squid, Arudhi’s<\/a> shredded beef, Charles’s recipe<\/a> was surprisingly Europeanised and free-style, while Robert-Gilles<\/a> has posted a whole encyclopedia of different okonomiyaki styles, including the recipes… All these fascinating posts proved extremely useful, informative and helped me to choose the ingredients for my first experiment.<\/p>\n Here is my very first version of okonomiyaki. I must say it will be one of the most beautiful food memories of my life. The first bite of okonomiyaki is a magical experience. It is like an explosion of different flavours, colours and \u00a0textures, which surprisingly stay in a perfect harmony. I love okonomiyaki also because it can be made with leftovers, because it is quick, healthy and because it encourages me to be creative. Thank you \u00a0so much, my blogging friends, for your for help, inspiration, detailed information and, most of all, for making me discover this extraordinary dish.<\/p>\n My version doesn’t reproduce any of the mentioned okonomiyaki recipes because I have picked ideas from each of them and adapted to my taste. I wanted to keep my okonomiyaki as Japanese as possible, so I used dashi, dried shrimp, mountain yam, eringi and Japanese toppings too. I am very happy I have opted for the smoked and not raw bacon because it proved excellent here.\u00a0If you want to start experimenting with okonomiyaki, I advise reading attentively all the above-mentioned posts and choosing what you feel will please you most.<\/p>\n TIPS: I find mountain yam (yamaimo) in organic shops in France, so maybe it is also easy to find in this type of shops in other countries.<\/p>\n Special equipment: a very big pancake turner is very useful here<\/em><\/p>\n Preparation: 20 minutes<\/em><\/p>\n Ingredients (serves two):<\/em><\/p>\n Batter:<\/em><\/p>\n 5 slightly heaped tablespoons flour<\/em><\/p>\n 30 ml\/about 1 oz\u00a0dashi<\/a> (Japanese stock, home-made<\/a> or instant)<\/em><\/p>\n 1 egg<\/em><\/p>\n 3 cm\/about 1,2 in grated mountain yam (yamaimo)<\/em><\/p>\n salt<\/em><\/p>\n 1\/2 teaspoon baking powder<\/em><\/p>\n (pepper)<\/em><\/p>\n Filling:<\/em><\/p>\n 2 big white cabbage leaves chopped or finely cubed (the hard central “vein” removed)<\/em><\/p>\n 2 handfuls chopped eringi mushrooms<\/em><\/p>\n