Takoyaki Recipe
Battered Japanese snack filled with diced octopus, tempura scraps, pickled ginger and green onion.
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Ingredients
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Batter
Fillings & Mix-ins
For cooking & finishing
Method
Batter
- 1
Make batter
In a medium bowl, whisk together 1 cup all-purpose flour and 1/4 teaspoon salt to combine. In a separate bowl or large measuring cup, lightly beat 1 egg with 1.25 cups dashi stock and 1 teaspoon soy sauce. Pour the liquid into the flour and whisk until smooth. Batter should be fairly thin (slightly more liquid than pancake batter). Let rest 10 minutes while you prepare fillings and heat the pan.
Fillings & Mix-ins
- 2
Prepare fillings
Dice cooked octopus into roughly 1/2-inch pieces. Thinly slice scallions and finely chop pickled red ginger. Have tenkasu measured and ready. These ingredients will be added as you cook each takoyaki ball.
For cooking & finishing
- 3
Heat takoyaki pan
Place a takoyaki pan (cast iron or nonstick) on medium heat. Brush each cavity generously with neutral oil (use about half of the 2 tablespoons to start), ensuring oil coats sides and bottom of each well so batter releases easily. Heat until oil sizzles slightly when a drop of batter is added.
- 4
Fill and add fillings
Pour batter to fill each cavity almost to the top. The batter should overflow slightly. Immediately add one piece of diced octopus to each cavity, then sprinkle tenkasu (about 1/2 teaspoon) into each, a small pinch of chopped ginger, and a few pieces of sliced scallion per cavity. If cavities shrink after adding fillings, top up with a little more batter so each well is generously filled.
- 5
Cook and turn
Cook for about 1.5–2 minutes until the edges set but center still soft. Using two skewers or small metal picks (or wooden skewers), push the set edge of each piece toward the center and rotate 90 degrees. As you turn, add a little more oil to the wells if needed. Continue rotating the balls in 90-degree increments as they brown, working slowly so they form a mostly spherical shape. Total cook time per ball is about 6–8 minutes, until evenly golden brown and crisp on the outside and fully set inside.
- 6
Finish and plate
Transfer cooked takoyaki to a serving plate. Drizzle takoyaki sauce in a zigzag over the balls (about 3 tablespoons total), then drizzle Japanese mayonnaise on top (about 2 tablespoons). Sprinkle aonori evenly and finish with katsuobushi flakes so they flutter from the heat. Serve immediately while hot.
- 7
Notes on variations
Substitute small cooked shrimp or diced squid if octopus is unavailable. For a lighter texture, replace up to 1/4 cup of dashi with cold seltzer. Keep extra batter thin; if it thickens as it sits, whisk in a splash of dashi or water.