2021 Domaine Billard, Hautes-Côtes de Beaune Rouge + Mami's Okonomiyaki

With Chef and Co-Owner Austin MilleR

 
 

Okonomiyaki has been a staple on the Mami menu since opening. A beautifully simple, flavor-loaded, protein-heavy cabbage pancake that can be topped generously with your favorite pickled fixings and aiolis, this dish is ridiculously delicious and comforting. It’s affordable to make, easy to customize, simply executed, and pairs BEAUTIFULLY with the 2021 Domaine Billard, Hautes-Côtes de Beaune Rouge (Pinot Noir) included in this April’s Wine Club delivery.

High in the legendary Côtes de Beaune sub-region of Burgundy, this family-owned winery creates their gorgeous wines with traditions in mind – such as the ancient foot-pressing method they use for delicate extraction without any machines. From a small-plot, this delightful cool-climate pinot noir has a medium-minus concentration of ruby and is beautifully aromatic with notes of ripe and crunchy red cherries, pomegranate, raspberries, currants, violets, and rose petals, and smells like a walk in the woods on a spring morning, with subtle backing spices and a hint of caramel in the background. It pairs well with rich, comforting flavors like in the Okonomiyaki, where creamy Kewpie, salty-savory bacon and Okonomi sauce, and umami-packed Bonito flakes provide big flavors for the Burgundy to match. 

Okonomiyaki looks a little different depending on where in Japan you are finding it. Mami makes an Osaka-style, thicker pancake, and dresses it liberally with Katsuobushi, mayonnaise, Okonomi sauce, scallions and pickled ginger. But Chef Miller says it's easy to riff on. Chef and his wife Hana Tamaki found their favorite style by trying out different hole-in-the-wall izakaya in rural Japan where Okonomiyaki was the only thing on the menu. He uses bacon, but encourages you to experiment with thinly sliced seafood or vegetables. 

Note on where to find the ingredients:

This ingredients list is a one-stop shop at Sun Oriental Market in Portland and most likely at any local Asian grocery. In fact, tell the cashier you’re making Okonomiyaki, and they will probably be delighted to point you in the right direction. Some of the labels will not have their English names, so here’s what they look like:

RECIPE

MAMI's Okonomiyaki

 

MAKES

1 pANCAKE

Prep Time

10 min

Cook Time

20 min

 
 

Equipment:

  • Frying pan

  • Large mixing bowl

 

Ingredients:

  • Approx a 1/4 head of cabbage (1 big handful) of thinly sliced cabbage (knife or mandolin work great)

  • 1 /2 large white onion thinly sliced

  • Dashi batter* (see ingredients + recipe below)

  • 4 slices of Bacon

  • Okonomi sauce generously lathered

  • Kewpie mayo generously lathered

  • Aonori (dried seaweed)

  • Katsuobushi (bonito flakes)

  • 1/4 C scallions chopped

  • Benishoga (pickled ginger)

  • A small amount of Vegetable oil

*DASHI BATTER

Hondashi is a powder version of Dashi, which is a kind of richly flavored stock that Mami makes with Kombu and fish sauce. Intensely savory and salty, it adds immense flavor to the dish. Chef says you can substitute it with Hondashi like how you would a bouillon cube for chicken stock. It’s a shortcut that they don’t take at Mami, but Chef Austin says it can save a lot of time for the home cook, and still produce a great flavor.

  • 1 Pint Warm H20

  • 2 Tablespoons of Hondashi

  • 1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour or okonomi flour; either works great.

  • 4 eggs

Mix all dry ingredients together, add water and mix until smooth, then add eggs and mix until incorporated.

 

Instructions:

  1. Mix cabbage and onions thoroughly with batter until lightly binding everything together.

  2. Heat frying pan to medium with a thin layer of vegetable oil

  3. Empty the contents of the bowl directly onto the frying pan, forming an inch-thick pancake; spread even and round the edges with a spatula

  4. Layer 3-4 strips of bacon onto pancake, separating them slightly so that air bubbles do not form between the meat and the batter

  5. Fry until a very thin crust starts to form on top, then flip

  6. Flip back and forth until golden brown, to cook evenly for about 6 - 8 minutes

  7. Remove from pan, cut in half, and press down lightly on one of the halves to be sure no batter comes out

  8. Pancake should be medium-firm to indicate it is not too mushy (overcooked) nor hard (undercooked)

  9. Starting with Okonomi, then kewpie, dress the pancake generously

  10. Sprinkle Aonori on top

  11. Cover pancake with Katsuobushi (you might notice them “dancing!”)

  12. Finish with scallion and pickled ginger on top

Meet your Chef:

Austin and Hana were entrenched in the Portland food scene when they decided to strike out on their own and open a food truck serving Osaka style street food. About 8 years later, their business has blossomed into a cozy, flavor-packed Izakaya located at 339 Fore Street. Their mission is to “fill your stomach with happiness, your mind with inspiration, and make sure you leave with a smile.” Farm, fish, and forage-to-table is a major priority for Mami, and they have been a major supporter of Maine’s efforts to diversify its aquaculture industry, and encourage Maine grown seaweed and kelp forests in Portland restaurants.

If this is your community, this is your club.

 
Wine Wise