Hello, this is Mog.
It's been hot lately—how are you doing? In Japan, it's summer festival season.
At Japanese summer festivals, you'll almost always find takoyaki being sold at food stalls. As the name suggests, takoyaki is a dish made mainly with "tako" (octopus), and it's a soul food born in Osaka. Small balls of wheat-flour-based batter are filled with diced octopus, green onion, and tenkasu (crispy tempura scraps), then cooked round on a special iron griddle. The process of making it is so much fun that it's also a great party menu. Today, I'd like to talk about takoyaki.
Basic Homemade Recipe
If you have a takoyaki maker, it's surprisingly easy to make at home. Here, I'll share the basic quantities for two people. First, let me walk you through the standard recipe as it's made in Japan. Don't worry if you can't find certain ingredients—there's plenty of room to arrange it to your taste.
This time, I'm also sharing a video, so please use it as a reference for the steps.
▼Reference video: Kurashiru "Takoyaki Made with All-Purpose Flour"
https://www.kurashiru.com/recipes/ecb92447-c68b-456c-bd53-8ec47958e87b
【Ingredients (Serves 2)】
◆Batter
- All-purpose flour: 200g
- Eggs (medium): 3
- Water: 550ml
- Milk: 50ml
- Granular Japanese dashi stock: 2 tsp
◆Fillings
- Boiled octopus: 200g (cut into chunks)
- Green onion: 10g (thinly sliced)
- Tenkasu (tempura scraps): 30g
- Red pickled ginger: 20g
◆Toppings
- Okonomiyaki sauce: 3 tbsp
- Aonori (green laver) and bonito flakes: to taste
◆For greasing the mold
- Vegetable oil: 1 tbsp
【Steps】
- Thinly slice the green onion and cut the octopus into chunks.
- In a bowl, combine the flour, eggs, water, milk, and dashi stock, and whisk until smooth with no lumps to make the batter.
- Heat the takoyaki maker and use a paper towel soaked in vegetable oil to grease the entire mold.
- Pour in the batter, then add the octopus, green onion, tenkasu, and red pickled ginger, and cook for about 1 minute 30 seconds.
- Gather in any batter that overflows, flip each ball with a bamboo skewer, and keep rotating them until golden brown all over.
- Plate them up, brush on the okonomiyaki sauce, and top with aonori and bonito flakes to finish 🎉
If your takoyaki maker has temperature control, medium heat (around 180°C) works best. Flipping too many times with the skewer can leave holes in the batter and cause uneven cooking, so be careful. Flipping the balls might feel tricky at first, but that's part of what makes it fun 😉
Introducing the Ingredients
Batter:
Along with flour, eggs, and water, adding dashi stock and milk makes the batter richer in flavor and gives it a nice, chewy texture. As long as you have the batter, you can arrange the fillings however you like! Here are the standard ingredients used in Japan.
Octopus:
The star of takoyaki. The octopus you find at supermarkets is usually pre-steamed. Recently, Moroccan octopus has also become common in Japan.
〈If this ingredient is hard to find〉
At many fish shops and supermarkets, pre-boiled octopus is sold, so you can use it right away without extra prep.
Tenkasu (Tempura Scraps):
These are the small crispy bits of batter left over from frying tempura. You can buy them at supermarkets.
They're added to give a crunchy texture and extra flavor.
〈If this ingredient is hard to find〉
If you can't find tenkasu, lightly crushed corn flakes or lightly fried panko breadcrumbs make a good substitute with a similar texture.
Green Onion:
Finely chopped green onion adds a refreshing aroma and a pop of color.
Red Pickled Ginger:
Thin strips of ginger pickled and dyed red. It's known for its tangy flavor and a bit of sharp spiciness.
〈If this ingredient is hard to find〉
Note that this is different from "gari," the ginger served with sushi. If you can't find it, pickling ginger in sweet vinegar and adding a bit of beet juice for color can recreate a similar flavor and look.
Introducing the Toppings
Once the takoyaki are cooked, it's time to add the toppings.
Special Sauce:
A rich, thick sauce developed specifically for takoyaki. It's dark brown, has a thick consistency, and is known for its balance of sweetness and tanginess. If you don't have the dedicated sauce, okonomiyaki sauce works as a substitute.
〈If this ingredient is hard to find〉
If okonomiyaki sauce isn't available either, mixing Worcestershire sauce with a small amount of ketchup and oyster sauce can recreate a similar sweet-and-savory flavor.
Aonori (Green Laver):
A type of dried seaweed ground into a fine powder, with a vivid green color.
It has a distinctive ocean aroma and is rich in minerals and vitamins. Watch out—it tends to get stuck in your teeth after eating takoyaki 😱 Check the mirror! 😂🤣
〈If this ingredient is hard to find〉
If powdered aonori isn't available, finely crushed Korean seaweed (gim) can work as a substitute, though the flavor will be a bit different.
Bonito Flakes:
A traditional Japanese ingredient made from specially processed bonito (skipjack tuna). It looks like thin wood shavings and is very lightweight. When placed on hot takoyaki, it flutters in the steam—I remember finding that fascinating to watch as a kid.
〈If this ingredient is hard to find〉
If you can't find it at a nearby supermarket, it's also available through online Asian grocery stores.
Mayonnaise:
A creamy sauce made mainly from egg yolk, oil, and vinegar. Japanese mayonnaise is said to be sweeter and less tangy compared to mayonnaise found overseas.
It's used to add richness to takoyaki. Whether or not to add it comes down to personal preference. I personally like it with mayonnaise on top 👍
About the Takoyaki Maker
In our house, we use an electric takoyaki maker that can be used right at the dining table.
Making it at the table means everyone can pitch in together 😉 The highlight of making takoyaki is, without a doubt, the flipping process. There are special tools made just for flipping, but a bamboo skewer works perfectly fine too.
When Do People Eat Takoyaki?
Whether takoyaki counts as a meal or a snack probably depends on the person. In our house, we buy it as a snack when we're out and feeling a bit hungry. At home, we eat it as a proper meal.
Buying Takoyaki at a Shop
If you come to Japan and spot a takoyaki stand where they're cooking it right in front of you, be sure to give it a try. Watching the staff skillfully flip each ball never gets old 👍
Takoyaki Parties
We sometimes throw takoyaki parties with family or friends. Flipping the balls can be tricky at first, but it's so fun that kids especially want to give it a try! At parties, it's also fun to bring different ingredients that might go well instead of octopus and compare the results 🤗
We've tried all kinds of things—cheese, seafood, sausages, pickles, and more.
We've also made it with pancake batter and filled it with banana or chocolate, which was delicious too.
There are quite a few dishes in Japan like this, where everyone cooks and eats together at the table. I've written before about enjoying sukiyaki under the cherry blossoms—check it out if you're interested 😉
Well then, have a great day 🤗💕
