It's been over a month, and I still have yet to post any pictures from Hiroshima. The truth is, I have not yet gone through them :-( When shooting digital, you tend to go crazy, and when you're back from vacation, you have over a thousand pictures to sort through, delete, and organize. Wish me luck.
In the world of okonomiyaki (お好み焼き), there are two different variations: Kansai (Osaka) and Hiroshima styles. Up until recently, I've only tried the Kansai version which is meat and vegetables mixed up in a flour batter and fried on a hotplate like a pancake. While it's pretty tasty, I've never been a huge fan.
Osaka-style Okonomiyaki by SpiceMan
Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki is quite different than Osaka's in that it's made in stages. First, two layers of batter is ladled onto the griddle (teppan: 鉄板), spread out as thin as a crepe. After they're cooked, next comes the noodles (soba or udon) and a healthy heap of shredded cabbage. After that, your "toppings" are added on top. In Hiroshima, toppings can be the usual sliced beef, pork, shrimp, etc, but you should be sure to get the local oysters. Once the toppings are in place, the second "crepe" is added to the top then pressed and pressed until the cabbage is cooked down and it's pretty much flat. Finally, the whole thing is flipped over on top of a couple eggs. The dish is finished with Otafuku Sauce (オタフク・ソース) and there's NO MAYONNAISE like in Osaka.
In the end, they place the okonomiyaki right on the griddle in front of you, and you just eat it right there with a small spatula (kote: こて), cutting off bite sized chunks.
While I find Kansai-style a bit heavy, Hiroshima's combination of ingredients is perfection. During our stay in Hiroshima we ate okonomiyaki everyday, and I never grew tired of it. If you end up in Hiroshima just head over to Okonomi Village (Okonomi-Mura: お好み村) and join in on the action, any shop... you can't go wrong. But, if in doubt where to go, just look for the longest line.
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