Spring Onions Okara Pancakes

Why You Will Love This Recipe

• Making spring onion okara pancakes is a great way to use the leftover soybean pulp after making homemade soya milk.
• The batter is quick to prepare and easy to cook. 
• Made to be eaten with an easy dipping sauce these taste fantastic.
• They keep well, freeze well and reheat well which means they are great for meal prepping.

Ingredients

Please note that below is a guide for some of the ingredients we used in the recipe. The printable recipe further down the page has the complete list of ingredients, including quantities and step-by-step instructions.

Fresh okara - this is the damp soya bean pulp that is left after making soya milk. 

Eggs - we use large eggs, with an average weight of about 58 grams (2 ounces).

Flour - use plain white (all-purpose flour).

Spring onions - flavor these pancakes, but you could also use chives or a mixture of the two.

Milk - soya milk is used in the recipe, but you can use cow's milk or another plant milk.

Ginger - gives freshness and an added Asian flavor to the pancakes. Use fresh ginger for the best taste.

Salt and pepper - are for seasoning - add these to taste.

What is Okara?

Okara is the leftover pulp from making soy milk or tofu, known as a Japanese term.

It is packed with fiber, calcium, protein, and other minerals, making it a healthy ingredient for various dishes.

While fresh okara is commonly found in Japan, Korea, and China, it is not as easily available elsewhere unless you make soy milk or tofu at home.

If you are curious about using okara, check out our helpful article on "What To Do With Soya Bean Pulp," where we discuss how to cook, store, dry, and even turn it into a powder.

For more insights into okara, you can also read our post "What Is Okara?"

Can You Eat Uncooked Okara?

To know if okara is safe to eat, it is important to know where it comes from: if it was made from cooked or uncooked soybeans.

You can figure this out by understanding how it was used when making soy milk.

There are two methods of making soymilk:

• One method is to grind soaked uncooked beans, squeeze the milk from the pulp, then heat the pulp free milk for safety. The raw okara from this method requires cooking for dishes like salads but can be used in recipes that involve cooking, to ensure safety.
• The other method is to cook soaked beans in water, then grind and extract the milk from the pulp. Okara from this method is already cooked and safe for use, especially in cold dishes.

If there is any uncertainty about how it was made, it is best to cook the okara to ensure safety.

If you are using powdered okara, it has already been cooked and is safe to use in cooking.

Instructions

Dipping Sauce

Place all the ingredients for the dipping sauce into a small mixing bowl and stir well.

Leave to stand for a minimum of 30 minutes or overnight for the flavors to infuse.

Pancake Batter

Step 1 - In a large mixing bowl whisk the eggs, okara, and spring onions together. 

Step 2 - Add the flour, milk, and sesame oil.

Step 3 - Mix to make a thick batter and season with salt and pepper.

Step 4 - Heat a non-stick frying pan over medium/low heat. Add ½ tablespoon oil and pour in a scant ¼ cup of pancake batter. Cook for 4-5 minutes on one side until the bottom has turned golden brown.

Flip the pancake and cook on the other side unit it turns golden brown.

When cooked, transfer the pancake to a plate and continue to cook the remaining pancakes. Stack the cooked pancakes on top of each other and keep them under a clean cloth to keep warm.

Serve the spring onion okara pancakes with individual bowls of dipping sauce.

Recipe Tips

• If the batter seems too thick, add a little more milk.
• Don't skimp on the spring onions - after cutting the spring onions, you might look at it and think that it is too much, but it is not - it is just right.
• Use a non-stick pan - not only will this stop the pancakes from sticking to the pan, but you can also reduce the amount of oil needed, making it a lighter and healthier dish.
• If you are not making the dipping sauce, add a pinch more extra salt to the pancakes. The pancake recipe is underseasoned due to the amount of salt in the soy dipping sauce.

Substitutions

Not able to get fresh okara or don't want to go to the trouble of making soy milk to get it. You can replace the okara with an equal amount of plain flour to make the pancakes.

You may have to adjust the consistency of the batter by adding a little more liquid because flour is drier than fresh okara.

Serving Size

We have given three pancakes (each made with a scant quarter cup of batter) as a serving size for this recipe, but this will vary depending on your appetite.

Calories Per Serve

As a guide and based on 12 okara pancakes made with fresh okara and cooked with very little oil in a non-stick pan, each would be about 115 calories with 6 grams of fat.

If using plain flour instead of okara, each pancake would be about 150 calories.

Serving Suggestions

These savory okara pancakes are very nice with the soy dipping sauce that is listed in the recipe. However, if you don't like soy sauce, Asian sweet chili sauce is just as nice.

Variations

Meat-free addition - Give the pancakes added texture and crunch by mixing in roughly chopped pieces of water chestnuts.

Meat addition - Add roughly chopped pieces of shelled and deveined prawns.

Meal Prepping

For easy breakfasts or quick snacks, make these pancakes in advance. They will keep well in the fridge for about 4 days or freeze in small packs for quick defrosting and heating on busy days.

Storage

Refrigerator: Store room temperature pancakes in an airtight container or tightly wrapped in plastic in the fridge for about 4 days.

Freezing: These pancakes freeze well. Make small stacks of pancakes separating each layer with a piece of parchment paper to prevent sticking. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap or place in zip lock bags with the air squeezed out. Freeze for 3- 4 months.

Reheating

These pancakes reheat very well, and the quickest way is to heat one or two at a time in the microwave for a short time on high.

We have an 850-watt microwave oven and will microwave them at 15 - 20 seconds intervals until hot.

Frozen pancakes need thawing before reheating.

More Easy Recipes

• Vanilla okara pancakes
• Chocolate chip okara pancakes
• Banana okara pancakes

See all recipes using okara.