Takoyaki
たこ焼き
Osaka octopus balls: a thin dashi batter cooked and turned in a takoyaki pan until crisp outside and soft inside, finished with sauce, mayonnaise and bonito flakes.
Recipe by I Want Some Food · Reviewed by the editorial kitchen. Native name preserved: たこ焼き.
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 25 min
- Rest
- 30 min
- Total
- 1 hr 15 min
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Spice
- No chilli
- Cost
- Weeknight budget$8–16 USD · indicative, not a store price
About
Takoyaki are balls of thin, dashi-heavy batter cooked in a cast-iron plate of half-sphere moulds, each with a piece of boiled octopus in the middle. The batter is far wetter than pancake batter; it should pour like milk. You flood the whole plate, drop in the octopus and spring onion, then use a skewer to turn each half-set ball so the raw batter runs down and forms the other half. Done right, the outside is crisp and the inside is still soft and almost runny. You need a takoyaki pan. It is not on our equipment list, but there is no other way to make them round.
What you'll need
14 ingredients. Tap each one once it's out on the bench.
- Batter
- Filling
- To serve
Ingredients
Batter
- Wheat flour, plain120 g
- Egg2 large
- Dashi, cold600 ml
- Soy sauce4.9 ml
- Salt2½ ml
Filling
- Octopus, boiled, cut in 1.5 cm pieces200 g
- Spring onion, finely sliced4
- Neutral oil, for the pan44 ml
To serve
- Worcestershire sauce44 ml
- Tomato ketchup15 ml
- Sugar4.9 ml
- Mayonnaise, Japanese if you can find it44 ml
- Katsuobushi5 g
- Nori, crumbled to dust, standing in for aonori (optional)1 sheet
Scaling multiplies the written quantities. Baking still prefers a scale.
Steps
Step 1
Whisk the flour, eggs, cold dashi, soy sauce and salt to a smooth, very thin batter, about the texture of milk. Pour it into a jug and chill for 30 minutes. Stir the Worcestershire, ketchup and sugar together for the sauce.
5 min
Step 2
Heat the takoyaki pan over a medium-high flame for 3 to 4 minutes. Brush oil generously into every hole and over the flat surface between them.
5 min
Tip: The pan must be properly hot. If the batter does not sizzle on contact, wait.
Step 3
Stir the batter and pour it in so every hole is full and the whole plate is flooded. Drop a piece of octopus into each hole and scatter the spring onion over everything.
2 min
Step 4
After 2 to 3 minutes, when the edges have set, run a skewer along the lines between the holes to cut the batter into a grid. Turn each ball 90 degrees, tucking the loose batter from around it into the hole; the raw middle runs down and forms the other side.
3 min
Tip: A bamboo skewer or a metal pick both work. Turn in quarter turns, not full flips.
Step 5
Keep turning every minute or so, adding a drop of oil if they stick, until the balls are round, evenly brown and crisp, 6 to 8 minutes more. Repeat with the rest of the batter.
8 min
Step 6
Tip the takoyaki onto a plate, brush with the sauce, zigzag mayonnaise across, then add the bonito flakes and seaweed. Serve straight away.
2 min
Watch: The middle stays molten and holds heat for minutes. Bite one in half and wait.
Nutrition
Per serving · estimate
- Calories
- 419 kcal
- Protein
- 23.4 g
- Carbs
- 31.5 g
- Fat
- 21.6 g
- Saturated fat
- 3.4 g
- Fibre
- 1.2 g
- Sugar
- 4 g
- Sodium
- 1140 mg
Calculated from canonical ingredient data (USDA FoodData Central averages and equivalent published tables). Estimates only.
Allergens
Informational only. Not a medical guarantee. Cross-contamination happens in real kitchens.
- Wheat
- Eggs
- Fish
- Shellfish
- Soy
- Pescatarian
- Dairy-free
- Nut-free
Adapt this recipe
The original recipe stays as it is. Personal versions are labelled. Serving changes are simple maths.
Adaptations · 0 / 15 used. Resets 12 November.
Substitutions
Octopus → Cooked prawns or squid
Squid is the closest chew. Prawns are softer and sweeter.
Dashi → Water with 1 tsp instant dashi granules
Granules are what most home cooks use. Homemade dashi tastes cleaner.
Tips
- Add a handful of tenkasu and some chopped red pickled ginger with the spring onion for the shop flavour.
- Cheese, sausage or prawn work in place of octopus at a takoyaki party. Purists will say something.
History & culture
Osaka is the takoyaki city. Stalls on Dotonbori and in train stations sell them in paper boats of six or eight, far too hot to eat, and plenty of Kansai households own an electric takoyaki plate for takopa, a takoyaki party, where everyone turns their own. Sauce, mayonnaise, bonito flakes and green seaweed go on top.
Takoyaki is usually traced to Aizuya, an Osaka stall whose owner, Tomekichi Endo, started putting octopus into his batter balls in 1935. He was building on radioyaki, a ball with beef tendon or konnyaku inside, and on akashiyaki from nearby Akashi, an eggier octopus ball dipped in broth instead of sauced.
Traditional — This needs a takoyaki pan, which is not in our equipment list: a cast-iron stovetop plate or an electric one with 16 to 24 half-sphere holes, about 4 cm across. A Danish aebleskiver pan is the nearest stand-in, with bigger holes and a longer cook. Shops use a bottled takoyaki sauce; the Worcestershire-and-ketchup mix here is the usual home version. Tenkasu (tempura scraps) and red pickled ginger in the filling are common and worth adding if you can buy them.
Provenance: Editorial adaptation.
Questions about this recipe
Answers taken from this dish's times, amounts, swaps and tips.
How long does Takoyaki take?
1 hr 15 min all in — 20 min prep, 25 min cook, 30 min rest. Cook and rest follow the method. Leftover storage and optional extra waits are not included.
How many does it serve?
The recipe is written for 4 plates. Scale the ingredient list on the page if you are cooking for a different number.
How hard is it?
Medium.
How spicy is it?
No chilli.
What allergens should I watch?
This recipe is labelled for Wheat, Eggs, Fish, Shellfish, Soy. Labels are informational — check the packets in your kitchen. This is not medical advice.
Does it fit a diet?
The published recipe is labelled Pescatarian, Dairy-free, Nut-free.
9 more questionsFewer questions
What does it cost to cook?
Weeknight budget — about $8–16 USD, as a grocery budget for this recipe, not a restaurant price.
What equipment do I need?
Mixing bowl, Chef's knife, Cutting board.
How much salt do I put in?
The recipe lists Salt at ½ tsp.
How much soy sauce?
1 tsp of Soy sauce.
How much sugar?
1 tsp of Sugar.
What can I use instead?
Octopus → Cooked prawns or squid. Squid is the closest chew. Prawns are softer and sweeter. Dashi → Water with 1 tsp instant dashi granules. Granules are what most home cooks use. Homemade dashi tastes cleaner.
What should I watch for?
The middle stays molten and holds heat for minutes. Bite one in half and wait.
Any tips from this recipe?
Add a handful of tenkasu and some chopped red pickled ginger with the spring onion for the shop flavour. Cheese, sausage or prawn work in place of octopus at a takoyaki party. Purists will say something.
Can I use an air fryer?
This method is not written for an air fryer. The core technique on the page still applies.
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