Quick Bites: Okonomiyaki

Posted on 08/27/2021 Last updated on 05/30/2022

Previously used photo: “Hiroshima-Style Okonomiyaki” by Ajay Suresh from New York, NY, USA, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license (cc-by-2.0). No changes or alterations were made. Wikimedia Commons Link

A member of our MUSUBI family shares a little about their favorite Japanese food.

When I first came to Japan, I worked in a small town in Hiroshima prefecture. Like many other towns in the area, it had a number of small okonomiyaki restaurants. Over time I discovered and tried out many of them, and okonomiyaki quickly became my favorite Japanese food.

Why is that? I think, after having just arrived in Japan and with so many new and exciting foods to try, okonomiyaki was something new but at the same time not too unfamiliar to my palette. Okonomiyaki is sometimes translated as “as you like it”, and the dish itself consists of basically a batter and cabbage with select ingredients. These can range from meat & seafood to cheese and eggs to various vegetables The selected ingredients are the “as you like it” idea behind the name of the food.

As many may know (and as covered on this very blog in the past) there are two predominant styles of okonomiyaki; the more famous Osaka style (where the ingredients are mixed first and the end result is more pancake-like) and the Hiroshima style. Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki differs from Osaka’s and other variations through preparation and the ingredients used.

Photo Credit: Naocchi, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

First, rather than mixing everything before cooking, the ingredients are all cooked separately. This results in a number of thinner layers which are then stacked. At the very bottom is another Hiroshima-style staple, a layer of yakisoba (fried noodles). The whole thing is often topped with an egg that is allowed to cook over the stack, forming a sort of crepe.

When all is done, chefs normally add okonomiyaki sauce on the top of the ‘crepe’, followed by flakes of smoked bonito and then aonori (dried seaweed). And yes, I said chefs- Hiroshima-style is often cooked and served to you by the restaurant.

Nowadays, I live in Kanto, and I have come to realize that restaurants that seemed everywhere in that small town in Hiroshima are pretty much non-existent here in the big metropolis. I have many fond memories of my early days in Japan, with those small okonomiyaki shops being a big part of all that.

Photo Credit: ganちゃんさん on PhotoAC

When I next have an opportunity to go back to Hiroshima, the Peace Park, Atomic Bomb Dome or even watching the Hiroshima Carp won’t be at the top of my list for things to do. No, I want to soak up the atmosphere and enjoy the food from those small okonomiyaki restaurants once again!

Photo Credits:

Top Photo by チリーズさん on PhotoAC

Additional Images:

1) ” 広島風お好み焼き ” by Naocchi licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license (cc-by-sa 3.0). No changes or alterations were made. Wikimedia Commons Link

2) ganちゃんさん on PhotoAC

Previous Version: Otsukarekun via Flickr