3 Okonomiyaki sauce recipes you should try and taste [+video]
One of my favorite Japanese comfort foods is okonomiyaki. It’s like the Western pancake, except it’s filled with meaty treats, seafood, eggs, and vegetables. Plus, its batter is made from a mixture of eggs, dashi stock, and other spices.
Not only does this Japanese pancake taste a whole lot better, but it’s healthier too!
But if you think that this Japanese pancake is already delicious on its own, then you haven’t tried its accompanying sauce yet.
Here’s a great one in video form:
Of course, you can always buy okonomiyaki sauce in stores. But if you’re feeling ambitious or just don’t want to run out on a shopping trip, I’ve got 3 recipes for you to try!
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3 excellent okonomiyaki sauce recipes
Best okonomiyaki sauce recipe
Equipment
- Sauce pan
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 6 oz can tomato paste
- 2 tbsp vinegar
- 1 tbsp blackstrap molasses
- 2 tbsp raw honey
- 1 tbsp coconut aminos or soy sauce
- ¼ tsp allspice
- ¼ tsp onion powder
- ¼ cup sake or white wine if you don't have any
Instructions
- Get a small saucepan and place it on top of the stove, then set the temperature to medium-high heat.
- Combine all the ingredients in the saucepan and cook for 20 minutes while stirring occasionally every 2-3 minutes.
- After 20 minutes or so, turn off the stove and transfer the sauce into a small dipping sauce bowl and serve.
Best store-bought okonomiyaki sauce
Before I get into the other recipes, I’d like to share my favorite choice of okonomiyaki sauce because it’s actually quite good.
It’s this Okonomi sauce from Otafuku and it has a great authentic taste you can easily add to your dish the next time you’re making okonomiyaki.
Making the complete dish (including the sauce) can be satisfying, of course, so here are my other recipes.
Okonomiyaki sauce #2
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 1 & 1/2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoon sake
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon mirin
- 1/8 teaspoon ginger; ground, in a jar
- 1 teaspoon honey
Cooking directions
- Heat up a small saucepan on the stove and set the temperature to medium-high.
- Put all the ingredients in the saucepan in order to mix and turn them into okonomiyaki sauce.
- Let it simmer for approximately 1 minute and stir the mix thoroughly.
- If the taste is too tangy, then add more honey or sugar to make it sweeter or give it a sweet & sour flavor.
- If the opposite occurs and the sauce ends up too sweet, then pour 1-2 teaspoons more of soy sauce.
- Turn off the stove and transfer the okonomiyaki sauce into a dipping sauce bowl.
- Allow to cool for 5 minutes before serving.
Easy Okonomiyaki sauce #3
Ingredients
- 3 & 1/2 tbsp of Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tbsp of oyster sauce
- 1 & 1/2 tbsp of sugar
- 4 tbsp of ketchup
Cooking directions
- Get a small bowl and add all the ingredients to it.
- Whisk them together for about 1-2 minutes.
- Adjust the sauce according to your taste.
Want to know more about okonomiyaki vs monjayaki? Read on in this post I’ve written about it (or read on for more on how to make the sauce)
Okonomiyaki sauce adds and enhances the flavor
The Japanese people essentially make everything in their life artwork. From how they hold honor as the highest esteem in their behavior to how many ingredients they include in their dishes, they make sure it’ll be of the highest quality.
The teppanyaki, takohiki, and okonomiyaki all have one thing in common: they have lots of ingredients that are already very delicious on their own.
However, Japanese chefs would always outdo themselves and create an even greater okonomiyaki dipping sauce to saturate your taste buds with exploding flavors.
Their meticulous nature in doing things in their life makes Japanese cuisine the favorite of many.
All over the world, people know that Japanese food is among the best in terms of its savory flavors and health benefits.
Is tonkatsu sauce the same as okonomiyaki sauce?
The sauces for tonkatsu and okonomiyaki are actually very similar, but they aren’t the same. While they both contain corn syrup, soy sauce, corn starch, and vinegar, and are mostly sweet sauces, okonomiyaki sauce has a bit more spices, and shiitake mushrooms are added to it to give it the umami flavor.
The best tonkatsu sauce is this one by Bull-Dog:
Whip up a tasty dinner with an equally tasty sauce
Now that you know more about okonomiyaki and more importantly, how to make okonomiyaki sauce, you’re well on your way to being a master at Japanese cooking. So make yourself this Japanese style pancake, some delicious dipping sauce, and go crazy!
Check out our new cookbook
Bitemybun's family recipes with complete meal planner and recipe guide.
Try it out for free with Kindle Unlimited:
Read for free
Joost Nusselder, the founder of Bite My Bun is a content marketer, dad and loves trying out new food with Japanese food at the heart of his passion, and together with his team he's been creating in-depth blog articles since 2016 to help loyal readers with recipes and cooking tips.
