Vegan Okonomiyaki Recipe! Here’s my vegan take on the popular Japanese street food, Okonomiyaki (savory pancakes). These tasty mini pancakes are super easy to make. You only need 5 INGREDIENTS to make the batter, plus simple pantry ingredients for the homemade Okonomiyaki sauce.

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Japanese Okonomiyaki

Okonomiyaki is a savory pancake that is popular as a street food in Japan. The name itself literally means “grilled as you like it”, and true to its name, Okonomiyaki is a versatile dish that allows you to customize the ingredients according to your preferences.

Traditionally, Okonomiyaki is made with a batter of flour, eggs, water, and grated yam, and filled with ingredients such as cabbage, meat, seafood, or cheese. It is then topped with Okonomiyaki sauce, mayonnaise, and bonito flakes.

Today, I’m sharing with you a more simplified (5 ingredients!), vegan version of Okonomiyaki. Plus, I have a very easy Okonomiyaki Sauce recipe, since most store-bought sauces are not vegan.

Ingredients for Vegan Okonomiyaki

Here are the ingredients you’ll need:

Ingredient Notes

Vegan mince – plant-based minced or ground meat work best. You could also use TVP (textured vegetable protein), but the batter will be slightly drier and more difficult to mold into patties. If using TVP, you can pour the batter into the frying pan instead of trying to make patties. (In Japan) I most often use Green Meat or SoMeat for this recipe.　

Potato starch – is most commonly used in Japanese cooking to thicken sauces or as a coating for fried food. You can use cornstarch if you don’t have it.

Sesame oil – is cooking oil made from sesame seeds. It has a slightly nutty but mostly neutral flavor, and it works well with many Japanese dishes. Use any neutral cooking oil if you need to substitute.

Vegan soup stock – or dashi, is used to add savory umami flavor. Traditionally, Japanese dashi is made from fish, but there are many vegan soup stock options available online or at most Asian supermarkets. (In Japan) Ohsawa Dashi and Vegan Weipa are two of my favorite dashi.

To see my curated list of essential ingredients for Asian cooking, check out my storefront on Amazon (US).

How to make Vegan Okonomiyaki

A detailed recipe is in the recipe card at the bottom of this post, but here’s a quick overview of the process.

1. Add shredded cabbage, vegan mince, potato starch and soup stock to a large bowl. Mix well until combined.

2. Take a portion of the mixture, and form small patties. Try to keep each patty small, around palm-size, because it’s easier to flip them in the pan. (If the mixture is too dry and won’t stick together, you can simply pour small portions into the frying pan)

3. Heat sesame oil in a frying pan, and place the patties in the pan. Cover with a lid, and cook on medium heat for 3~4 minutes on each side, until golden brown.

4. In a small bowl, mix together the ingredients for the Okonomiyaki sauce (Japanese Worchestire sauce, ketchup and maple syrup).

5. Place the patties on a serving dish and brush the tops with the sauce. Garnish with nori flakes and chili pepper (optional). And ENJOY!

Looking for other vegan Japanese dishes?

• Hayashi Rice
• Agedashi Tofu
• Congee (Rice Porridge)
• Miso Garlic Pasta
• Maitake Mushroom Steak
• Spicy Edamame
• Japanese Meatballs

Thank you for visiting my blog! If you made this recipe, or any other recipes of mine, be sure to tag me @veganesetokyo on Instagram and use the hashtag #veganesetokyo. I would love to see your creations❤️