After the okonomiyaki I've had in Tokyo, I've been thinking about the first okonomiyaki I had in the Kansai region. I had no plans after lunch so I stayed in Kobe with my host family and we went to Kapo for dinner. According to my host mother, a bunch of gourmands/foodies from her friend circle also really enjoy this place so I'm glad my memories of really enjoying the okonomiyaki still hold true.
Note that there are three main styles of okonomiyaki (to my knowledge anyways). The one from Tokyo is called "mondayaki," where the ingredients are grilled first before batter and such is added and then served. This creates a bit of a runnier interior but the exterior can get quite crispy since this can be typically finished in front of the customer.
The second style is Hiroshima
The third style I will mention is the kansai (or Osaka) style (or real okonomiyaki... :D ), where one starts with the batter and layers the ingredients on top after words (and maybe more batter can be added on top). I find there are a couple of advantages doing it this way. The first one is that it keeps better since the serving grill can be at a much lower temperature so the bottom doesn't get scorched. Additionally, ingredients that would benefit from delicate cooking like scallops or other seafood.
There are variations like negiyaki (replace the standard cabbage in the okonomiyaki with green onions) or the inclusion of an egg as a top layer. The one below appears to be both?
A typical picture of a Kansai-style okonomiyaki is depicted below.
Finally, as an additional treat, we got a sobayaki. I think it was grilled yakisoba noodles with, in the picture below, beef tendon and konjac (すじこん). It tastes like a very mild stewed beef tendons with yakisoba noodles and the other okonomiyaki accoutrements (seaweed, katsuobushi).
I don't really have any other comments since I was with most of my host family and we had a lot to catch up on (especially the host mother) so lots of Japanese and english going through the table, talking about my host mother's platform since she's trying to enter politics, having the daughter translate some of the tougher questions, asking how the daughter's study abroad program in America was, etc.
The burliness was my fault...
And ignore the empty beer mug.... :D
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