Modan-yaki (Okonomiyaki with Noodles)

Name: Modan-yaki (Okonomiyaki with Noodles)
Total time: 45 min
Yield: Makes 2 (serves 2)
Ingredients: Thinly sliced pork belly 4 slices (about 80 g); Egg 2; Cabbage 1/6 head (about 200 g); Steamed yakisoba noodles 2 packs; All-purpose flour 100g; Dashi granules (Japanese soup stock) 1 tsp; Tenkasu (tempura bits) 4 tbsp; Okonomiyaki sauce 6 tbsp; Aonori (green seaweed flakes) 1 tsp; Bonito flakes 1 pack (2–3 g); Water 100 ml + 2 tbsp; Vegetable oil 1 1/2 tbsp; Mayonnaise 2 tbsp

💪 If you exercise 🍲 Cooking for a group

Makes 2 (serves 2) · About 45 min
Okonomiyaki batter with cabbage, layered with yakisoba noodles fried in sauce and cooked together. You get okonomiyaki and yakisoba in one.

① Cut the cabbage→② Make the batter→③ Fry the yakisoba→④ Layer the batter, noodles and pork→⑤ Flip and cook→⑥ Finish with sauce

What to buy

Meat & eggs

Thinly sliced pork belly4 slices (about 80 g)Egg2

Vegetables

Cabbage1/6 head (about 200 g)

Noodles

Steamed yakisoba noodlesYou do not need the sauce packet that comes with it2 packs

Flour, dry goods & seasonings

All-purpose flour100gDashi granules (Japanese soup stock)1 tspTenkasu (tempura bits)4 tbspOkonomiyaki sauce6 tbspAonori (green seaweed flakes)1 tspBonito flakes1 pack (2–3 g)

Check what you already have

Water100 ml + 2 tbspVegetable oil1 1/2 tbspMayonnaise2 tbsp

Tap an item to check it off (checks clear when you close the page). Tools: frying pan (about 26 cm, with a lid), 2 spatulas, bamboo skewer.

How to make it

Cut the cabbage and pork

About 5 min

On a cutting board, cut the cabbage into about 1 cm squares. Slice the hard core thinly
Cut the pork belly slices in half crosswise (you get 8 pieces)
When you finish cutting, wash your hands, knife and cutting board with dish soap (you will use them again to cut in step 6)

How to tell it's doneThe cabbage and pork are cut.

Make the batter

About 3 min

Crack 2 eggs into a bowl and beat them. Add 100 ml water and 1 tsp dashi granules and mix
Add 100 g cake flour and whisk until there are no lumps
Add the cabbage and 4 tbsp tenkasu (tempura bits) and mix in big strokes, scooping from the bottom

How to tell it's doneAll the cabbage is coated in batter, and there are no lumps of flour at the bottom of the bowl.

Fry the yakisoba noodles and take them out

Medium heatAbout 3 min

Put 1/2 tbsp vegetable oil in a frying pan, heat over medium heat, and add 2 packs of yakisoba noodles
Sprinkle on 2 tbsp water and fry, loosening the noodles with cooking chopsticks
Add 2 tbsp sauce and toss to coat. Move to a plate and divide into 2 halves

How to tell it's doneThe noodles are loosened and all sauce-colored.

Layer the batter, noodles and pork

Medium heatAbout 4 min

Quickly wipe the frying pan with a paper towel, add 1/2 tbsp vegetable oil and heat over medium heat
Use half the batter for 1 pancake. Pour it in, holding back 1 ladleful, and spread it into a circle about 18 cm across and 1.5 cm thick
Spread half the yakisoba on top, then pour the ladleful of batter you held back over the noodles
Lay 4 pieces of pork on the very top, not overlapping

How to tell it's doneThe batter at the edges is dry and set, and when you lift it a little with a spatula, the bottom is golden brown.

Flip it and cook with the lid on

Medium-low heat, lid onAbout 6 min + 2 min

Slide 2 spatulas deep under it from the left and right, and flip it over in one go. The pork is now on the bottom
Put the lid on and cook over medium-low heat for about 6 min
Flip it once more (pork on top), take off the lid and cook for 2 min

How to tell it's doneThe pork is crispy and has no pink parts. Stick a bamboo skewer into the center and pull it out: no raw batter sticks to it.

Be carefulDo not press down hard on it with the spatula. The batter gets squashed and hard.

Finish with sauce and mayonnaise

Heat offAbout 2 min

Move it to a plate with the pork still on top and spread on 2 tbsp sauce
Drizzle on 1 tbsp mayonnaise in thin lines, then sprinkle on half of the aonori (green seaweed flakes) and half of the bonito flakes
Cook the rest of the batter, yakisoba and pork the same way, following steps 4–6

ReadyThe bonito flakes are waving from the heat. Cut into 4 with a knife on a cutting board, or cut with the spatula, and eat.

📚 Learn more about this dish

🥬 Ingredient guide

Dashi Eggs Katsuobushi (bonito flakes)

🔪 Cutting & cooking tips

Heat levels (high, medium, low)

If it didn't work out

It fell apart when flippedIn step 4 you flipped it before the bottom was cooked. Flip once the edges are set and the bottom is golden brown. Push any broken pieces back together with the spatula to fix the shape.

The inside is undercookedThe steaming with the lid in step 5 was too short. Put the lid on and cook 2–3 more min.

The noodles and batter come apartNo batter was poured over the noodles. In step 4, pouring 1 ladleful of batter over the noodles makes them stick together.

The bottom burnedThe heat is too high. After flipping, use medium-low heat.

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Made by YUU, a teen who loves cooking → About me