Sourdough Discard Okonomiyaki Waffles

I’ve made waffled okonomiyakis before and sourdough discard okonomiyakis before, so I figured it was time to combine the two!  The use of sourdough discard in this recipe not only helps prevent waste, it also adds a little tanginess to the flavor, and adding a pinch of baking soda to the batter will cause it to get light and fluffy!  Using a waffle iron to make the okonomiyaki means that both sides get cooked at the same time (so no awkward flipping) and get a little crispier than just cooking it on a flat top.

You can add whatever fillings and toppings you want (it’s literally the definition of okonomiyaki); my preferences are bacon (easier for me to find than pork belly), and instead of chopping up my own cabbage, I usually grab a bag of pre-chopped coleslaw mix from the grocery store!  For toppings I like the homemade okonomiyakisauce from Just One Cookbook, Kewpie mayonnaise, bonito flakes, furikake, and chopped scallions.

Sourdough Discard Okonomiyaki Waffles
makes two 7’ round waffles

150 g (100% hydration) sourdough discard*
1 large egg
Pinch of salt
Pinch of sugar
Pinch of dashi powder
Pinch of baking soda
200 g chopped cabbage (or coleslaw mix)
4 slices bacon, cut so they’ll fit the waffle iron
Okonomiyaki sauce
Kewpie mayonnaise
Bonito flakes
Furikake
Chopped scallions

Preheat your waffle iron to medium-high.

Mix the sourdough discard, egg, salt, sugar, dashi powder, and baking soda until well combined.  Add the cabbage and mix again.

Place half the bacon on the bottom of the waffle iron and grease the top half.  Add half of the batter on top of the bacon and close the waffle iron.  When it’s golden brown and cooked through, remove from the waffle iron and repeat.  Top immediately with your desired toppings and serve hot.

*I haven't tried this myself yet, but if you don’t have any sourdough discard, you could try mixing together 75 g all-purpose flour with 75 g water and skip the baking soda, but it won’t have quite as much flavor or fluffiness.

Previously:  Hurricane Popcorn Marshmallow Treats
Next:  Taiwanese Braised Pork over Rice (滷肉飯)

Pork, Cabbage, and Tofu Dumplings

Next up in my updated posts is my mom's pork and cabbage dumplings!  I made these slightly healthier by substituting some of the pork for tofu and reducing the soy sauce, sesame oil, and sugar a bit.  See my original post from 9(!) years ago for a lot of tips and tricks to making and cooking the dumplings (as well as to see how my photography skills have improved over the years, haha).

Pork, Cabbage, and Tofu Dumplings
makes about 80

1-1.5 lbs. ground pork
1 medium head of napa cabbage, roughly chopped

1/2 teaspoon salt
19 oz. firm tofu
2 bundles of bean thread vermicelli
4 scallions, chopped
1/2 cup soy sauce
4 tablespoons sesame oil
1 tablespoon sugar
80 dumpling skins (about 2 packs)

Press the tofu between a couple layers of paper towels for 15 minutes.  Soak the bean thread vermicelli in lukewarm water for 15 minutes.

Use a food processor to finely chop the napa cabbage and transfer to a large bowl.  Mix the salt in and let rest for 15 minutes.  Squeeze handfuls of the cabbage over a sink to discard the water that's been released.  Add the squeezed cabbage back to the large bowl after drying it out.  Chop the softened noodles and add to the cabbage.  Crumble the tofu into the bowl and add the pork.  Add the scallions, soy sauce, sesame oil, and sugar and mix well.

Fill the dumpling skins and seal the wrappers with a little water on the edges.  Boil or steam-fry the dumplings and serve.  If not eating immediately, place the plates of filled dumplings in the freezer until firm, then transfer to freezer bags.

Next:  Candied Carrot Rose Tart
Previously:  My Mom's Steamed Bao Buns
Last Year:  Pull-Apart Scallion Swirly Bread
Three Years Ago:  Puppy Chow Pie
Four Years Ago:  Miso Pumpkin Soup
Five Years Ago:  Homemade Ramen Noodles
Eight Years Ago:  Tim Tam Slam Ice Cream
Nine Years Ago:  Pork and Cabbage Dumplings

Tropical Pulled Pork on Griddled Banana Bread Sandwiches

Back in January I found an incredible deal for airfare to St. Thomas so I went ahead and booked it along with four nights at the Marriott Frenchman's Reef using my points.  Even though the weather forecast the weeks up to the trip showed a lot of possible rain, it turned out to be beautiful and sunny every day we were there!

Sunrise at the Frenchman's Reef

On our third day, my friend Sooyun and I took the passenger ferry from Red Hook to Cruz Bay in St. John and hiked the Lind Point Trail to Honeymoon Beach.  After some relaxing time on the beach, we continued over to the Caneel Bay Resort for lunch.  Little did I know I was about to have one of the best sandwiches I had ever eaten.  We almost didn't order it (I was craving a turkey sandwich, and Sooyun almost ordered something else before I reminded her about the rum pork on crispy banana bread sandwich she had pointed out earlier), but after tasting it, I'm so grateful we did.  I think it was that perfect balance of salty pulled pork and sweet banana bread plus the crunch from a red cabbage slaw.  The memory of this sandwich haunted me for over a month before I finally decided to try and recreate it.

Floating at Honeymoon Beach, St. John

For the pulled pork I pretty much followed my slow cooker kalua pork recipe except I added a quartered orange and garlic plus a splash of passion fruit rum.  For the banana bread I followed this basic recipe but you can just use your favorite recipe as long as the bread can be sliced and griddled without falling apart.  Then I made a quick cabbage slaw using coconut white balsamic vinegar, lemon sugar, and shredded red cabbage.  If you don't have smoked sea salt, passion fruit rum, coconut white balsamic vinegar, and lemon sugar, you should be fine using regular sea salt, another rum (or skipping the rum altogether), a light vinegar (like cider or rice wine), and regular white sugar.  But then where would be the fun in that? 

Tropical Pulled Pork on Griddled Banana Bread Sandwiches
makes about 8 sandwiches

For the pulled pork:
3 lbs. boneless pork butt/shoulder
2 tablespoons smoked sea salt
1 orange, quartered
6 garlic cloves, peeled
1/4 cup rum (tropical flavor like passion fruit or mango preferred)

Using a steak knife, poke the pork all over and rub with smoked salt.  Place in the slow cooker along with the orange quarters and garlic cloves.  Turn on low and cook for 12 hours. 

Halfway through, flip the pork and add the rum.

When done, remove the excess fat and shred the pork with a fork.

For the red cabbage slaw:
3 cups shredded red cabbage
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon coconut white balsamic vinegar (or other light vinegar)
1 teaspoon lemon or white sugar

Place the shredded cabbage in a salad spinner or a colander over a bowl.  Sprinkle the salt over the cabbage and mix.  Let sit for an hour, then rinse and squeeze/spin out the excess water.

Transfer the cabbage to a sealable container.  Add the vinegar and sugar and mix.  Cover and store in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes, until ready to use.

For the sandwiches:
2 loaves of your favorite banana bread (or just one loaf if you want to make open faced sandwiches)
Butter

Slice the banana bread to the thickness you prefer and butter both sides.  Heat a pan over medium-high heat and cook the banana bread slices, turning once, until both sides are browned.

Top one slice with the pulled pork and slaw and add the other slice.  Serve with plantain or yucca chips and die of happiness.

Sunset at Frenchman's Reef

Next:  The 4-Hour Baguette
Previously:  Pad Thai
Last Year:  Homemade Squid Ink Pasta
Two Years Ago:  Miso-Glazed Eggplant
Three Years Ago:  Peking Duck Pizza
Six Years Ago:  Bacon Fat Caramels
Seven Years Ago:  St. Patrick's Day Maki

Okonomiyaki

Last week I received a head of cabbage in my Boston Organics delivery and didn't really know what to do with it until I remembered that it's a main ingredient in okonomiyaki.  I'd never had it before, so I'm not sure if what I made is particularly authentic or not, but it's a perfectly delicious way to use up a head of cabbage!

Okonomiyaki is a savory Japanese pancake that you can pretty much put anything in.  The name itself means "what you like" and "grilled".  I loosely followed this recipe except I used bacon for the meat and substituted panko crumbs for the tempura flakes since I didn't have any of the latter.  I also subbed in 2 tablespoons of tapioca flour for the all-purpose flour to make the pancake more tender.

There is a traditional okonomiyaki sauce that is very similar to tonkatsu sauce--think tangy, slightly sweetened soy sauce.  I didn't have any on hand, so I just used soy paste mixed with some ketchup and Worcestershire sauce as suggested by my findings on-line.  If you have Japanese-style kewpie mayonnaise, I suggest using that, but otherwise regular mayonnaise would work.  The other toppings I added were chopped scallions, nori komi fuikake (Japanese rice seasoning with seaweed flakes and sesame seeds), and bonito flakes.  Feel free to use whatever you want and get creative!

Okonomiyaki
makes 2 large pancakes

For the batter:
1 cup all-purpose flour (substitute in 2 tablespoons of tapioca flour if you want)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons dashi stock or water
1/2 lb. cabbage, shredded
2 tablespoons scallions, chopped
1/4 cup panko crumbs or tempura flakes (optional)
2 eggs
4 strips bacon, cut in half (optional)
Vegetable oil

For the toppings:
Okonomiyaki sauce, tonkatsu sauce, or soy paste mixed with ketchup and Worcestershire sauce
Kewpie mayonnaise or regular mayonnaise
Chopped scallions
Nori komi furikake
Bonito flakes

Mix the flour, salt, and dashi stock or water together to make the batter.  Let rest in the refrigerator for an hour and up to 24 hours.

If using the bacon, cook over medium-low heat until the fat starts to render out but before it starts to brown too much.  Remove the bacon and set aside.  You can save the bacon fat to cook the okonomiyaki in.

To make one pancake, take half the batter (about 1/2 cup), 1/4 lb. shredded cabbage (about 1 cup), 1 tablespoon scallions, 2 tablespoons panko or tempura flakes, and 1 egg and mix together.

Start heating a tablespoon of vegetable oil in a frying pan over medium heat or use the bacon fat left over from cooking the bacon.  Once the pan is hot, add the okonomiyaki batter and form into a circle.  If using the bacon, arrange half the bacon slices on top of the (uncooked side of the) okonomiyaki.  Cook for 5-6 minutes on each side. 

Plate the okonomiyaki and drizzle the okonomiyaki sauce (or equivalent) and mayonnaise on top.  Sprinkle with some chopped scallions, nori komi furikake, and bonito flakes, or whatever you like.  Serve warm.

The bonito flakes are so thinly shaved that the steam rising up from the okonomiyaki will make it look like it's dancing.  It's kind of creepy if you've never seen it before because it looks like it's alive, but once you get over that, it's pretty cool.  This pancake kind of reminds me of Korean pa jeon except there's less of a moist batter and more of crunchiness from the shredded cabbage.

Next:  Hotter Crash Potatoes
Previously:  Squid Ink Spaghetti Aglio e Olio
Last Year:  Cauliflower Steak with Cauliflower Purée
Five Years Ago:  New England Clam Chowda and Homemade Oyster Crackers

Ramen Cabbage Salad

Here's another super simple dish that always gets rave reviews when I bring it to potlucks.  The first time I had this salad was at a church potluck.  The pastor's wife had brought it, and when I asked her what it was, she called it a Chinese salad.  I was like, "Are you sure?"  Because I was pretty sure that it wasn't Chinese in origin.  But regardless of the name, it's really delicious.  You get a nice crunch from the cabbage, instant ramen pieces, and almonds, and the dressing is enhanced by adding the seasoning packet from the ramen into it.

The secret to keeping the ramen and almonds crunchy is to dry toast them in a pan and mix it in with the rest of the salad just before serving.  And you'll want to heat up the vinegar and soy sauce a bit to make sure that the sugar dissolves into it.

 
Ramen Cabbage Salad
serves 15-20

1 package instant ramen (I usually use Maruchan's chicken flavor)
1/2 cup slivered almonds
3 tablespoons sesame seeds
14 oz. bag of coleslaw mix (I like to get the kind with green and red cabbage and carrots for color)
4 scallions, chopped
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup canola oil
1 tablespoon sesame oil

 
Crumble the ramen into small pieces (I find it easiest to do this while the bag is still unopened).  Save the seasoning packet for the dressing.  Toast the ramen pieces, almonds, and sesame seeds on a dry pan over medium high heat until lightly browned.  Set aside and let cool.

 
Mix the coleslaw mix with the chopped scallions in a large bowl.  Set aside in the refrigerator.

 
In a small bowl, mix the vinegar, soy sauce, and sugar.  Microwave for 30 seconds and stir until the sugar is dissolved.  Pour into a small jar.  Add the oils and ramen seasoning packet.

 
Just before serving, add the toasted ramen pieces, almonds, and sesame seeds to the cabbage mix.  Shake the dressing and toss into the salad.

Next:  Mashed Potato Pizza with Roasted Garlic and Bacon
Previously: Corn Souffle

St. Patrick's Day Maki

So after I blogged about receiving cabbage in my bi-weekly Boston Organics delivery and asked what to do with it, I had multiple people suggest making corned beef and cabbage since St. Patrick's Day was coming up. Well, I'm not really into boiled dinners (other than ramen, haha), but I did see this link on The Kitchn for corned beef and cabbage rolls and thought it was a cute idea. The dipping sauce seemed a little difficult to make, however, compared to the ease of making the rolls so skipped that part and decided to add mashed potatoes inside the rolls instead so it would look more like a normal maki roll.

St. Patrick's Day Maki (adapted from here)
makes 24 rolls

2 medium sized Idaho potatoes, peeled and cubed
1/4 cup butter, cut into 4 pieces
2 tablespoons milk
Salt to taste
1 medium size head of green cabbage
1 1/2 lbs. cold corned beef

Add the cubed potatoes to a large pot and add enough cold water to cover. Bring to a boil and cook for 15-20 minutes, until potatoes are soft when you insert a knife.

Drain and transfer to a medium bowl. Add butter and milk and mash until there are no lumps. Salt to taste and set aside to cool.

Start boiling a large pot of water.

Gently peel off the cabbage leaves, keeping them whole. In two batches, simmer the leaves for 8-10 minutes or until soft. Transfer from the pot to an ice-water bath. Pat the leaves dry and set aside.

Slice the corned beef into long strips.

Lay out a single cabbage leaf. Spread mashed potatoes over the bottom 2 inches, and place 2-3 strips of corned beef in the middle of the potatoes. Roll the cabbage leaf up tightly. After all the leaves are rolled, cut into bite-sized pieces and serve.

I found that the maki was flavorful enough not to need a dipping sauce, but I guess you can use a mustard or honey mustard if you really want. I brought these to a party on Saturday and didn't get to ask anyone what they thought of them, but when I went back at the end of the night, they were all gone except for two pieces, so I assume people liked them. =) Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone!

Next up: What to do with leftover corned beef and potatoes:  Corned Beef Hash (and Pasties)!