Hiroshima-style Okonomiyaki with Garlic and Egg
by Nagataya, Hiroshima, Japan
In Japan, the city of Osaka is probably the most famous place to get okonomiyaki, a type of savory pancake made from wheat flour batter, cabbage and, traditionally, pork, seafood, bonito (dried fish flakes), and dried seaweed. The name itself means something like "whatever you like grilled", so you can usually choose a variety of options. Okonomiyaki is cooked on a teppan, a sort of traditional Japanese flat griddle.
However, the southern Honshu city of Hiroshima, which actually boasts more okonomiyaki restaurants than any other Japanese prefecture, has its own special style of okonomiyaki, and you would be remiss if you visited the area without giving it a try!
Topped with a pile of green onion, a raw egg yolk, and crispy deep-fried garlic chips, a Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki is a special local delicacy that I was eager to try. One evening, I headed to the famous Nagataya Restaurant to try this special dish.
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| Hiroshima-style layered okonomiyaki with fried garlic chips, green onion, and egg yolk |
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| hitokuchi lemon and pork gyoza at Nagataya, Hiroshima, Japan |
In Hiroshima, okonomiyaki is served in layers, rather than having all of the ingredients mixed into the batter, and typically incorporate noodles, which is rare in other parts of the country.
I ordered the original okonomiyaki with garlic (¥1740), which started out as a wheat flour pancake made with pork, shrimp, and squid rested upon a bed of thick and chewy udon noodles, which became crispy on the bottom as they cooked on top of the griddle. The pancake was topped with a mountain of thinly sliced green onion and the raw yolk of an egg (both Hiroshima signatures). Since I had ordered the house special garlic okonomiyaki, the entire dish was sprinkled with crispy deep-fried garlic chips to add extra crunch and aromatic flavors.
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| okonomiyaki by Nagataya, Hiroshima, Japan |
What began as a postwar austerity measure of layering various available ingredients atop one another and cooking them okonomiyaki-style on a griddle has become a beloved local favorite.
Location
Nagataya is located in downtown Hiroshima at Japan, 〒730-0051 Hiroshima, Naka Ward, Otemachi, 1 Chome−7−19 重石ビル １F.
It's a very popular restaurant, and if you come at rush hour, you may have to queue up for a while. I ended up waiting in line for about an hour, but the food was entirely worth the wait. Arrive early to avoid the crowds. The staff moved the line along quickly and had a very efficient system for seating customers and showing them the menu while they were waiting in line so that things continued moving along nicely.
If you are able, try to get a table near the kitchen so that you can watch the staff preparing the guests' okonomiyaki on the huge teppan grill.
If you are able, try to get a table near the kitchen so that you can watch the staff preparing the guests' okonomiyaki on the huge teppan grill.
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| chefs preparing okonomiyaki at Nagataya in Hiroshima, Japan |
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