I know, I know, two cabbage recipes in a row? While I’m sure some of you are delighted, some might be totally “over” cabbage. But I’m all about reducing waste over here, so I needed to find a recipe to use up my leftover cabbage, carrot, and green onion from my Beef and Cabbage Stir Fry. I decided to try my hand at Okonomiyaki, or Japanese savory cabbage pancakes. And as per usual, this is my interpretation of Okonomiyaki, not a traditional representation of the dish. I love putting spins on classics to make them work for my pantry and taste buds.
What Else Can You Add to Cabbage Pancakes?
What attracted me to this dish is the extreme flexibility of ingredients, which makes it a great “sweep the kitchen” recipe. And you know how I love recipes that accept whatever leftovers you might happen to have in the fridge at the time!
I didn’t buy anything special ingredients for my cabbage pancakes. Instead, I used all the ingredients that I had on hand, and you can too. Other vegetables that would be great in these pancakes include:
- kale
- bean sprouts
- radish
- shredded broccoli or Brussels sprouts
- zucchini.
In addition to vegetables, you can toss all sorts of meat into your pancakes. Try:
- shrimp
- canned salmon
- shredded chicken
- pork
- bacon
Have Fun with Toppings!
And that’s just what you can put IN your cabbage pancakes. Don’t even get me started with what you can put ON your pancakes. Traditionally, Okonomiyaki has a special sauce that is kind of sweet-salty-tangy (here’s a great Okonomiyaki Sauce recipe from Just One Cookbook if you want to give it a try!). But since I was using what I had on hand today, I went a different route.
I kept it simple with a drizzle of sriracha mayo, sesame seeds, and sliced green onion, but you could do hoisin sauce, toasted seaweed snacks, a fried egg, bonito flakes, pickled ginger, kimchi, or anything else you like. Honestly, the toppings are where it’s at for this recipe. It’s like pizza (and sometimes called Japanese pizza). The toppings make it fun, unique, and just all around extra special.
So, what do you have in your fridge that you could put in or on a savory cabbage pancake?
Cabbage Pancakes (Okonomiyaki)
Servings 6 6-inch pancakesIngredients
PANCAKES
- 2 extra large eggs ($0.53)
- 1/2 cup water ($0.00)
- 1.5 Tbsp soy sauce ($0.14)
- 1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil ($0.33)
- 3/4 to 1 cup all-purpose flour ($0.07)
- 4-5 cups shredded green cabbage ($1.78)
- 1 carrot ( $0.11)
- 3 green onions ($0.17)
- 2 Tbsp oil for frying ($0.04)
TOPPINGS
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise ($0.28)
- 2 Tbsp sriracha ($0.10)
- 1/2 Tbsp sesame seeds ($0.04)
- 2 green onions ($0.11)
Instructions
- Remove any wilted leaves from the outside of the cabbage. Cut the cabbage into quarters and remove the core. Thinly slice or shred half of the cabbage, or until you have 4-5 cups shredded cabbage. Peel the carrot and shred it using a large-holed cheese grater. Slice the green onions.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, water, soy sauce, and sesame oil until smooth. Begin whisking in the flour, 1/4 cup at a time, until it forms a thick, smooth batter (about 3/4 to1 cup total flour).
- Add the cabbage, carrots, and green onion to the batter and stir until the vegetables are mixed and everything is evenly coated in batter.
- Heat 1/2 Tbsp oil in a non-stick or cast iron skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add 3/4 cup of the vegetable and batter mixture. Press it down into the hot skillet to form a circle, about 6 inches in diameter and 1/2 inch thick. Place a cover on the skillet to hold in the steam, which will help the cabbage soften as it cooks. Cook the pancake until golden brown on the bottom (3-5 minutes), then flip and cook until golden brown on the second side. Pile the cooked pancakes on a plate and cover with foil to keep warm until ready to eat. Add more oil to the skillet as needed as you cook the pancakes.
- To prepare the sriracha mayo, mix together 1/4 cup mayonnaise and 2 Tbsp sriracha in a small bowl. Drizzle the sriracha mayo over the pancakes just before serving, followed with a sprinkle of sesame seeds and sliced green onion.
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Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make Cabbage Pancakes – Step by Step Photos
Begin by shredding the vegetables. You can use a food processor, mandolin, or just a knife. Just remember, the thinner the better. Shred 1/2 of a small head of cabbage (4-5 cups once shredded), 1 carrot (about 1/2 cup), and slice three green onions.
In a large bowl, whisk together 2 extra large eggs, 1/2 cup water, 1.5 Tbsp soy sauce, and 1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil until smooth.
Begin whisking in flour, 1/4 cup at a time, until it forms a thick, smooth batter. You’ll need between 3/4 to 1 cup flour.
Add the cabbage, carrots, and green onion to the batter, then stir until everything is well mixed and coated in batter.
Since eggs and flour both like to stick to surfaces when cooked, I highly suggest using some sort of non-stick surface in addition to the oil. I used a cast iron skillet. Heat about 1/2 Tbsp cooking oil in the skillet over medium heat. Once hot, place about 3/4 cup of the vegetable and batter mixture into the skillet. Press the mixture down to form a 6-inch circle that is about 1/2 inch thick. Place a lid on the skillet to hold in the steam (this helps soften the cabbage) and cook until it is golden brown on the bottom (3-5 minutes). Flip the pancake and cook on the second side until golden brown as well. I could actually fit two pancakes in this skillet, but doing one at a time made for prettier pictures. :P
To make the sriracha mayo, stir together 1/4 cup mayonnaise with 2 Tbsp sriracha.
Drizzle the sriracha mayo over the savory cabbage pancake and then top with a sprinkle of sesame seeds and more sliced onion. Dig in!
Super delicious! My husband is a little suspicious of anything savory being called a “pancake” so I told him they were “Japanese cabbage hashbrowns” and he loved them lol
Will make again for sure!
Okay so I made this with 1/2 a cabbage and didn’t realize until halfway through that I had essentially doubled the recipe. Made ingredient changes accordingly, but making these form pancakes was a struggle. I divided the batter between 2 well-greased and foil-lined rimmed baking sheets and baked them for 40 minutes at 400 F, switching them halfway through. Basically did a bulk sheetpan hashbrowns thing. It totally worked and saved me some effort and my meal! Terrific with sriracha and fried eggs.
These are wonderful, like vegetable comfort food. This is my preferred way to use a leftover 1/2 cabbage. Delicious!
I know you made it clear that this is your own version of okonomiyaki, but I prefer the original okonomiyaki, Hiroshima style. Nothing beats that. And never top with mayo!
I am trying this recipe right now!
I agree that I prefer the original okonomiyaki – but it’s traditional to top with mayo :) to be exact, mayo, okonomiyaki sauce, and bonito flakes!
My daughter literally said “Dad did you put drugs in these? They are addicting!”
Hahaha! I love it. :)
Super tasty and easy, great way to use up extra shredded cabbage! I made these as two big pancakes and next time I’ll make them smaller little pancakes for easier meal prep. Will be cooking this again!
Made it with ground Turkey and they couldn’t get enough. Came out really good. 😃
The family loved it. Thank you :)
Do theses freeze well? If so, how to serve after?
Fully cooked Okonomiyaki freeze well. Do not add toppings. Transfer fully cooked and cooled pancakes into an airtight container and store in the freezer for 1-2 months. Thaw and reheat until steaming.
Thank you for the great recipe! I mixed in half pancake mix and half flour, and used our panini maker with buttered griddle pans. My kids and I had a great time making these delicious okonomiyoki!
Cabbage Pancakes, Yummy I can’t wait to try it. It reminds me of Egg Foo young. I am super excited!!
I loved the concept and adapted it to what I harvested from the garden: radishes and radish greens. (No cabbage) Worked out wonderfully! Also added shredded carrots and green onions like the recipe. Thanks!
Hi. Any clue what I could substitute for the toasted sesame oil, and do you think I could use red onion and cabbage instead of the green alternatives? Thanks!
The toasted sesame oil is pretty unique and does bring a lot of flavor to the pancake batter. I’m not sure there’s anything similar that you could replace it with, but you could definitely try toasting some sesame seeds in a skillet then adding them to the batter. You can try red onion and red cabbage, just keep in mind that they will change both the flavor and appearance of the pancakes.
second time making these… added some prawns this time and served with an easy sauce (ketchup, sugar, worcestercire, soy sauce, srirach) this time. chefs kiss. love this for a cheap easy dinner
While I was cooking these up I put some rice in the pan and frozen dumplings in the steamer of my rice cooker. Made a nice whole meal with pretty minimal effort and cost
Had some cabbage and shredded chicken that needed used up, so used this recipe as a base. Subbed the scallions for red onion, left out the carrots (already roasted some for a side), and used chipotle ranch for the sauce. Made for a super tasty dinner that also helped clean out the fridge!
Can you cook these in an air fryer? Thanks
Since this recipe wasn’t developed for the air fryer, and we haven’t tested it that way, I hesitate to give you any specific suggestions because they may not be successful. That being said, you can always test out a small amount in the air fryer and see how it goes — and then if it doesn’t work out, you can switch over to the method we outlined in the recipe! ~ Marion :)