Okonomiyaki in Hiroshima

I went to Hiroshima again.

Japan is spring vacation season now.

Most of foreign country seems new semester start from September,

But we start from April.

School and workplace's new season starts from April too.

Before the new semester start, we came to see grand parents.

By the way, last topic of Hiroshima provokated big response from yours.

Just as I thought, Hiroshima is very famous place for worldwide, I actually felt.

There are some world heritage, Atomic Bomb Dome, Miya island and so on in Hiroshima.

I'll introduce famous food in Hiroshima in this time.

It called "Okonomiyaki".

The first picture is Okonomiyaki restaurant which I always go.

After World War Ⅱ, lots of Okonomiyaki restaurant were built in Hiroshima.

Originally, Okonomiyaki came from Kansai region(west side of Japan)

which include Osaka, you know.

There are still many Okonomiyaki restaurants in Osaka.

However, Hiroshima's Okonomiyaki is very different from Osaka's one.

Either way, when we suffered from hunger after World War Ⅱ, people made up

Okonomiyaki at first time to use cheap materials which is easy to get at that time.

Of course, we pursued goot taste and then materials getting better.

From these back ground, you should know Okonomiyaki is a symbol of Japan's

post war rehabilitation.

(Okonomiyaki is.... a thin, flat cake of unsweetened batter fried with various ingredients.)

Most of Okonomiyaki restaurant is like this picture.

There is a huge iron plate on top of the table,

A lady cooks Okonomiyaki for customers at here.

Let's see how to cook Hiroshima style Okonomiyaki!

This is also very rare scene for Japanese people except for citizens of Hiroshima!

At first, put a dogh with round form, very thin like crepe.

Depend on the restaurant, the ingredient of a dogh is different.

The recipe is secret of course!  At this restaurant, she uses 7 kinds of spices for

making dogh.

Put other ingredients on top of a dogh one after another.

At first, she put boiled soba(buck wheat noodles) or udon(wheat-flour noodles).

There are large size and small size. We called double about large size, the amount is

double as small size.

Generally speaking, big eater guy tend to order double.

Put a cabbage and beans sprouts on a noodles.

Especially, her Okonomiyaki is gigantic!

She is very particular about the preparation of Okonomiyaki.

She uses huge amount of materials which she chose very carefully by herself.

Put "Tenkasu" or "Ikaten".

"Tenkasu" is extra part of "Tempura". When we fried Tempura, there is some dregs

made by flour. This dregs called "Tenkasu". ( Ten meaning is "Fried", Kasu meaning is

"Dregs".) Tempura restaurant give us this "Tenkasu" with free.

(By the way, "Tenkasu" from good restaurant is yummy! Because of they uses good oil

and flour.) But, most of Okonomiyaki restaurant uses "Tenkasu" for business use now.

"Ikaten" is fried squid. "Ika" meaning is squid.

Put boned rib of pork, and then pour a dogh on top of pork.

An iron plate is so hot now.

Down side of Okonomiyaki has been alredy cooked,

so, flip a Okonomiyaki to cook the other side.

She has special skills to flipping!!

She uses only this big spatula for cook Okonomiyaki.

When we chatted, vesitable got soft, Okonomiyaki bacame small like in

this picture.

At last, break an egg on the plate, and put Okonomiyaki on the egg.

She cooks 6 Okonomiyaki which are for my family and another customer.

Most of customer is neighbors.

In this day, she refused few customers because of she already used up all materials

which she prepared for today.

Too many customers for less materials!

To my surprise, that customer said " I will buy materials by myself!!".

And he went to grocery store!

 Again flip Okonomiyaki the side which has pork and egg puts as at upside.

Poured "Otafuku source" a lots which is very famous source in Hiroshima.

Can you smell the burned source and sweet smell of the cabbage??

They made me so hugry!

Neighbor's ladies eats fresh Okonomiyaki at the corner of this big table.

You can eat on the dish too, but this way ↑is better to keep hot!

Oops! I forgot!! We put a green laver, sesame seed and plenty of leek, dried bonito

on top of Okonomiyaki. If you like mayonnaise, you can put as much as you want.

We uses only small spatula when we eat Okonomiyaki in Hiroshima.

No chopsticks and fork!

People who live in other prefecture says, this is difficult to eat.

I'm not a natural-born Hiroshima citizen same as my parents,

so I uses chopsticks somtimes.

In this case, my friend seems look down on me. She might be think like,

"What does she doing!?" 

 Now she finished cook for us!

I think it is dangerous for kids to eat beside on iron plate. ( Am I too protective mother?)

Therefore, I always bring my hot plate and then I will put Okonomiyaki into hot plate

in order to bring it back to home.

My way is so special isn't it??

Every customer will bring their own plate from home for to go.

But she said to me,

"You are the first person who bring hot plate for to go"

This is my mother's idea. She doesn't like to eat cold Okonomiyaki at all.

How was today's article?

There are many similar restaurant in Hiroshima.

It pay possibly on guide book?

Let's try to eat Okonomiyaki when you come to Hiroshima someday!

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