Takoyaki, or octopus balls, are one of Japan's most famous street snacks, originating in Osaka. Whether you make traditional takoyaki with pieces of octopus or other fillings, these ball-shaped dumplings are fun to make with friends or family.
Takoyaki (たこ焼き) is a Japanese snack shaped like small round balls filled with pieces of octopus. Takoyaki literally translates to "fried/fried octopus", so some people call them "octopus balls" or "octopus dumplings".
Best Homemade Takoyaki Recipes
Since we already know what taco means, let's look at the word "yaki". it comes from the word "yaku", which means "to fry or fry".
Takoyaki is often called "konamono", which literally means "floury things". It falls into the same konamono category as Okonomiyaki and Ikayaki as they are all made from flour dough (called "Kona" in Japanese).
Most Japanese words are a combination of two different words combined into one to describe someone or something, in this case takoyaki.
Yakisoba 焼きそば
Yakisoba is one of the symbols of Japanese street food. Have you already noticed how many “yaki” there are in the names of Japanese dishes? “Yaki” means fried, then the name already includes what exactly will be fried.
Although there is soba in the name, and everyone is accustomed to thinking that soba is buckwheat noodles, there is no soba in the dish itself. Let's be clear: in Japan, the word soba can be used to describe any thin noodle, even without buckwheat flour. Therefore, yakisoba literally means fried noodles.
The basis of yakisoba is wheat noodles, less often - egg noodles. To prepare yakisoba, noodles are fried in a special sauce along with small pieces of pork, chicken or beef, Chinese cabbage and carrots.
At festivals, it is prepared in large portions at once on a huge surface, like a stove, but it looks as if it is being fried on the table. The chef uses two special spatulas to make it convenient to stir a lot of noodles at once. Then the yakisoba is simply divided into small portions and given away. Sometimes it is also poured with mayonnaise on top, sprinkled with kotsuboshi - tuna shavings, or greens are added.
History of Takoyaki
Takoyaki from Japan?
Takoyaki originated from Osaka, around 1935. The fried octopus ball is a transformation of what used to be called choboyaki. Choboyaki has the same ingredients as takoyaki. A man named Tomekichi Endo invented takoyaki and popularized it in Osaka in 1935. He is a street vendor, but was quite a smart cook for his time.
But instead of a round ball, the choboyaki looked more like a flat square. Another difference is the filling, since choboyak uses beef instead of octopus.
Choboyaki then evolved into Rajoyaki, the same food but with a spherical shape like today's takoyaki.
People still use beef as a filling, although more recently people have started replacing it with octopus. This marked the birth of takoyaki.
This street snack quickly gained popularity due to the unique taste of octopus. The chewy texture and slight salty flavor of the meat complement the dashi and toppings perfectly.
People also try to use many other things as fillings, but the name Takoyaki remains.
You can eat the ball with shrimp, cheese or tofu (for vegans). However, the most popular version is still the octopus.
Konamono takoyaki is derived from akashiyaki, which is a small spherical dumpling (made from a dough rich in egg and octopus) that originates from the city of Akashi in Hyogo Prefecture.
With the introduction of the new flavor to the streets of Akashi City, its popularity eventually began to spread to various regions including Kansai, Kanto, as well as the rest of the country.
It is believed that the first takoyaki snacks were introduced among Yatai street food stalls, which later evolved into the specialty takoyaki restaurants widespread in the Kansai region.
Today, takoyaki has gained such fame that it has become a household name in Japan. It is also sold in commercial stores such as convenience stores and supermarkets.
Takoyaki is also a very popular dish in Taiwan. Historically, the island nation has been a common trading partner of Japan since ancient times. He took over some Japanese cuisine and adopted them into his culture, such as takoyaki.
The oldest known takoyaki shop is Aizuya in Osaka, founded by the cuisine's inventor himself, Tomakichi Endo, in the 1930s. The store is still open today.
Before takoyaki became famous for its octopus meat as one of the main ingredients, Endo first experimented with beef and konjac, and improved the flavorings for the dough!
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Favorite Asian Recipes
Takoyaki, nicknamed "octopus balls", were first known by this name before being called takoyaki today. It became widespread throughout Japan as it was one of the most popular street food stalls drenched in brown sauce.
Takoyaki in Osaka
Although takoyaki is now widely popular and available throughout Japan, you still need to head to Osaka if you're looking for an incredible culinary adventure with these fried balls.
There are over 650 takoyaki shops in the city, with subtle differences in taste between them.
While most people serve takoyaki with multiple toppings, in Osaka you'll see some takoyaki garnished with just a pinch of salt to bring out the strong dashi flavor in the batter.
Another variation of takoyaki is takosen, two takoyaki balls sandwiched between two crackers.
In the best traditions
Every Russian can easily prepare a dish of any national cuisine. Even if you don’t have the required component on hand, you can always replace it with what’s in the refrigerator. For example, a Russian takoyaki recipe sometimes only mostly resembles the original. Then the culinary imagination begins to work.
It’s better not to change the octopus and dough, of course. Otherwise, it will be impossible to make exactly takoyaki. But the rest is quite amenable to adjustment. For example, you can add sausages and grated cheese along with pieces of octopus. It won't ruin the taste, quite the contrary. It will become more tender and soft. In addition, the cooking process itself can be carried out by the whole family. There is a job for everyone: one will cut the ingredients, another will prepare the dough, the third will put everything into molds and monitor the frying. This is very similar to how they used to make dumplings in Rus'. After all, our people like to do everything in a team. It is very comfortable. And the time spent working and having a pleasant conversation passes unnoticed.
5 Essential Ingredients for Real Takoyaki
To make traditional takoyaki, you will need 5 ingredients. Here they are.
- Dashi Flavored Dough - To make dashi flavored dough, add dashi stock cubes dissolved in water to the dough.
- Octopus – You will need boiled octopus meat.
- Beni Shoga - Red pickled ginger pieces add color and flavor to the takoyaki.
- Tenkasu - Tempura pieces add a rich umami flavor to the food. They make takoyaki crispy and creamy.
- Green onions are the best way to add color and flavor to takoyaki. Green onions are a popular addition.
Why is Takoyaki so good?
Takoyaki is a very popular street food in Japan. This is because it has a delicious aroma. The taste is described as umami, or spicy.
It's so good because the boiled octopus filling melts in your mouth and has a traditional seafood taste. Plus, the round dough balls are crispy and crunchy. They are easy to eat as small snacks.
Just remember to watch out because they get hot right out of the cast iron grill pan!
Preparation
It will take about 25 minutes to prepare takoyaki.
1. Prepare all ingredients.
2. Cut the green onions into small slices and grind the red pickled ginger.
3. Cut the octopus into 1.5cm pieces or smaller pieces for children.
4. Grind the katsuobushi (bonito flakes) into a fine powder.
5. Mix 1 cup (120 g) flour, 2 tsp. baking powder, ½ tsp. kosher salt in a large bowl.
6. Add 2 large eggs, 1 tsp. soy sauce and 1 ½ cups (360 ml) dashi.
7. Mix and whisk everything together thoroughly and transfer the batter into a measuring cup with a handle (or any pitcher with a spout for easy pouring).
8. Heat the takoyaki pan to 200 degrees over medium heat. Using a brush, generously coat the takoyaki pan with oil (both the holes and the connecting flat areas). When you see smoke coming out of the pan, it is hot enough. Then you can pour in the batter to fill the holes. Don't be afraid to overfill the holes a little, though. Usually when you add ingredients to the dough, they overflow.
9. Add 1-3 pieces of octopus to each well and sprinkle katsuobushi powder on top.
10. Then sprinkle on the tencasu, add the green onions and pickled red ginger.
11. After about 3 minutes, when the bottom of the balls has hardened a little, use skewers to remove the dough that remains between the holes. Then carefully rotate each ball 90 degrees, stuffing the edges as you turn. This will cause batter to flow out from the inside of each takoyaki ball, creating the other side of the takoyaki ball. Once you have finished turning all the balls, set the timer for 4 minutes. Keep turning constantly so that each ball has a nice round shape. A home takoyaki grill doesn't distribute heat evenly, so it's a good idea to swap the takoyaki balls around so they're all the same brown color.
12. Transfer the takoyaki balls to a plate and top with takoyaki sauce and mayonnaise. Finally, sprinkle them with katsuobushi and dried green seaweed. Serve them immediately, but keep in mind that they are hot inside.
Takoyaki Pan
Octopus takoyaki balls aren't much fun to make without a dedicated cast iron takoyaki pan.
The takoyaki pan, or its other nickname, takoyaki-nabe, is a cast iron pan studded with jagged, hemispherical shapes. [Read my full takoyaki casserole reviews here]
The unique iron pan heats the takoyaki evenly until the bottom hemispherical side is cooked through. The ball is then turned over using a special pick or a larger bamboo skewer (you know, the ones they use for yakitori too).
This allows the raw batter to cook at the bottom of the rounded cavity. It's kind of like deep frying, but each ball is in its own little shallow pocket of oil.
During Japanese open-air festivals, restaurants, street vendors or individuals use LPG or liquefied natural gas cylinders.
You can also get smaller electric versions that are a bit like an electric range for home use, and you even have some small cast iron makers for your range.
Since takoyaki is a fairly simple recipe to prepare and a fairly popular street food in Japan, many families in Japan own a takoyaki pan.
This is also the reason why the production and sale of this particular kitchen item is widespread in Japanese stores and supermarkets. However, they may not be as popular outside of Japan.
Online stores like Amazon sell takoyaki pans, but if Amazon doesn't ship to your country or you can't find them in your local store, you can use a Dutch pancake pan as a substitute.
The two pans are very similar to each other, except that the Dutch pancake pan has smaller rounded concave indentations than the Japanese takoyaki pan, but they still get the job done.
Taiyaki
Baked sea bream? Yes, if you translate it literally and go deeper into history. Well, in short, these are traditional Japanese fish-shaped cookies with a sweet filling. The main charm and peculiarity of taiyaki is how they are baked. And they are baked in a special pan, which already has indentations in the shape of fish.
The dough will taste like fluffy pancakes. Taiyaki will always be sold fresh because they are made right in front of you. The most common filling will be sweet adzuki bean paste. Beans? Exactly! It sounds strange, but it tastes incredible. There are also fillings with custard and chocolate. In the fall you can find a seasonal chestnut filling, and in the summer they are sold with ice cream.
What else is in Takoyaki besides octopus?
Takoyaki batter is specially made from a mixture of flour, eggs and dashi broth, which is delicious on its own.
In addition, it is also mixed with cooked and diced octopus (or other meats and seafood such as beef steak, shrimp, salmon, etc., depending on the creativity of the chef, which he will use to highlight taste of meat). takoyaki taste).
Diced scallions or green onions, pieces of tenkasu tempura, and some pickled ginger are often also added for flavor.
Okay, at this point you're probably wondering what tenkasu is, but you don't need to Google it since it's just crispy bits of deep-fried batter bits from making tempura. Think of it as tempura batter crumbs.
How amazing is that?! Using leftovers from another product as a flavoring/additive in another recipe. You can only find it in Japan!
Adding tenkasu enhances the taste of takoyaki as it imparts a savory taste or smell.
Add a pop of color to your takoyaki by adding some red pickled ginger. It gives the octopus balls a refreshing yet savory flavor when you bite into them.
Popular alternative Takoyaki fillings include:
- bacon
- sausage
- mentaiko
- cheese
- shrimp
- squid
- mochi
- avocado
- green pea
- Edamame
- kimchi
- corn
- crab sticks
- fish pie
- chicken
You should check out this post I wrote about the exact flavor of takoyaki and all the alternative filling ideas to EXACTLY learn how to make delicious variations of this Japanese favorite!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Other Tools and Skills Required for Making Takoyaki
Do you know how to make takoyaki? If not, check out this takoyaki recipe on YouTube:
You don't necessarily need the skills of a world-class chef to make takoyaki; however, you will need basic skills and a lot of practice!
When making takoyaki, you need to remember how to properly turn the dough.
This is because if done incorrectly, the dough may take a different shape than a sphere and you will ruin the takoyaki all together.
This is not an easy task as the dough may split and the uncooked part may end up in the pan rather than in the pan, so it takes a chef's dexterity to turn the dough over and put it back in place.
A bamboo or small metal skewer will work for this, although you may have to use your hands to successfully flip the takoyaki.
Takoyaki sauce and filling
A takoyaki meal wouldn't be complete without a dipping sauce, also called takoyaki sauce.
It's similar to okonomiyaki soy sauce, which takes the already flavorful takoyaki to the next level.
To make basic Takoyaki sauce, combine Worcestershire sauce (usutah so-su), mentsuyu (noodle soup base), ketchup and sugar. The sauce imparts a sweet, fruity flavor, although it is not as strong as okonomiyaki sauce.
You can season the takoyaki sauce with Japanese mayonnaise and drizzle it with seaweed and mackerel flakes.
All are readily available in Japan and in most Asian or Japanese grocery stores.
Takoyaki is already a delicious dish in itself; however, you wouldn't be able to enjoy its flavor without the sauce and toppings.
Easy takoyaki sauce recipe from scratch
All you need to make this recipe is 5 ingredients.
- Worcestershire sauce
- Mentsuyu (Japanese soup base)
- Ketchup
- Sugar
- Oyster sauce
Add a few teaspoons of each and a little sugar. In a small bowl, combine all ingredients and stir until sauce is smooth.
