Quick and Easy Takoyaki Recipe

Enjoy this Quick and Easy Takoyaki Recipe you can cook in minutes with just one chopstick. Made with a takoyaki pan and topped with homemade takoyaki sauce, kewpie mayonnaise, aonori and katsuobushi.

Why We Love This Takoyaki Recipe

Crispy golden takoyaki taste amazing when prepared with traditional ingredients and toppings. But they’re also super easy to tweak to your preferences. If you don’t like octopus, you can substitute with your favourite proteins, or experiment with sweet ingredients for something completely different!

It’s also a fun way it’s a great way to get creative in the kitchen and try your hand at mastering the takoyaki cooking technique.

What is Takoyaki?

Takoyaki is one of the most popular street snacks in Japan, aside from yakisoba noodles and onigiri rice balls. Little roadside stalls can be found everywhere, ready to serve up a batch of takoyaki when you need it most. But for the freshest, tastiest takoyaki, the best thing to do is to make it yourself.

Where We Learned This Recipe

We learnt this Quick and Easy Takoyaki recipe while staying in a cool surfie-style guesthouse in Hyuga, Japan. (It’s also where we first discovered Chicken Nanban too!)  Our wonderful host Masa-san and his lovely wife were keen to share their recipe. Even better, they showed us their handy technique to make takoyaki using just one chopstick.

What are the main Takoyaki Ingredients?

• Batter: It’s is a surprisingly simple mix of plain flour with a hint of dashi stock. But according to Masa-san, the secret to that golden crispy crunch is to add cornstarch to the mixture.
• Fillings: Traditional takoyaki ingredients include octopus (the ‘tako’ in takoyaki), spring onion, red pickled ginger (beni shoga) and tenkasu (crispy fried tempura batter)..

How to Make Takoyaki

• Slice the octopus (or chicken, if substituting) into bite-size pieces then pop aside.
• Combine the plain flour and cornflour in a bowl, then in a separate bowl whisk the egg. Add the egg to the dry mixture, then slowly pour in the dashi stock or water and whisk it all together. You’re aiming for a thin, runny consistency here, so if it’s too thick just add more water or dashi.
• Now, heat the takoyaki pan over a medium high heat and brush oil over the entire surface. Pour the batter into the centre of the pan and keep pouring until all the wells are full and the batter covers the entire plate.

• Place one piece of octopus or chicken into each well, then scatter the spring onion, ginger and tempura crumbs across the lot. When the bottom of the batter starts turning crispy, use a chopstick to cut out a square shape around each takoyaki well.
• Next comes Masa’s fancy technique. Move your chopstick in an ‘L’ shape around the each well, then immediately push down into the well to flip the batter, forming a rough ball shape as you go. It might take a few tries, but keep going and you’ll quickly get the hang of it.
• Continue flipping each ball occasionally as the batter becomes crispy and golden brown on all sides. The easiest way to do this is to pierce the takoyaki ball with the chopstick and pull upwards to flip. A few more rotations and your batch of takoyaki will be glorious, crispy and golden.
• Pop your cooked takoyaki onto serving platters and top with your favourite topping combinations (see topping inpso in the next section). Feel free to experiment and let us know how you go!

Takoyaki Recipe Topping Combinations

• Traditional: Japanese BBQ sauce, or takoyaki sauce + Kewpie mayonnaise + aonori seaweed flakes + bonito flakes
• Intriguing: Japanese curry powder + Kewpie mayonnaise + parmesan cheese
• Hyuga Style: Kewpie mayonnaise + aonori seaweed flakes + salt
• Wandercooks Style: Japanese Matcha Green Tea Salt
• Cheesy Goodness: Yep – cheese! Sprinkle on top and broil for a couple of minutes until melty and delicious.

Which takoyaki ingredients do you love? What’s your favourite combo?

Wandercooks’ Tips

• For a crunchier texture and deep golden colour, add extra oil while flipping the takoyaki.
• Japanese ingredients such as dashi stock, aonori flakes, bonito flakes, tenkasu and takoyaki sauce can be found at your local Asian grocery store or online via Amazon.
• You can easily make tenkasu (crispy tempura crumbs) at home, simply splatter some tempura batter in hot oil and cook until crispy. Remove from the oil and allow to drain on paper towel.

FAQs

Variations & Substitutions

• If you don’t like octopus, feel free to substitute your own favourite fillings. How about crispy fried bacon pieces, prawns, chicken, tofu or cheese?
• If you don’t have takoyaki pan, why not make this into a giant takoyaki pancake with a regular frying pan.
• For something completely different, ditch the savoury ingredients and go for a sweet version! Why not try adding chocolate for ‘chokoyaki’! Jams or other sweet ingredients would also work well. You might like to replace the dashi in the batter with water. Our favourite dessert is making poffertjes in the takoyaki pan afterwards!

Have you made these popular Japanese recipes?

★ Did you make this recipe? Please leave a comment and star rating below!

Quick & Easy Takoyaki Recipe

A quick and easy Takoyaki recipe you can cook in minutes with just one chopstick. Make at home using five secret topping combinations. Crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, and packed full of flavour. 

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Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes minutes

Course: Snack

Cuisine: Japanese

Servings: 30 takoyaki balls

Calories: 30kcal

Author: Wandercooks

Cost: $10

Equipment

• ▢
  Cast Iron Takoyaki Pan
• ▢
  Electric Takoyaki Pan
• ▢
  Takoyaki Pick

Ingredients

For the batter

• ▢ 450 ml dashi stock
• ▢ 140 g plain flour / all purpose flour
• ▢ 10 g cornstarch / cornflour or cornstarch
• ▢ 1 egg
• ▢ 100-140 g octopus pieces chopped into 2cm pieces (or substitute with chicken, ham, bacon or cheese)
• ▢ 1/2 cup spring onion / green onion chopped
• ▢ 1-2 tbsp pickled ginger chopped
• ▢ 1/2 cup tenkasu crispy tempura crumbs

For the toppings

• ▢ Takoyaki Sauce or okonomiyaki sauce
• ▢ kewpie mayonnaise we recommend kewpie mayo for the most traditional flavour
• ▢ seaweed flakes / aonori dried green seaweed powder
• ▢ bonito flakes / katsuobushi dried bonito flakes
• ▢ Salt
• ▢ Parmesan
• ▢ Curry powder
• ▢ Cheese

Metric – US Customary

Instructions

• Slice the octopus (or other protein, if substituting) into bite-size pieces then pop aside.
  100-140 g octopus pieces
• Combine the plain flour and cornstarch in a bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg. Add the egg to the dry mixture, then slowly pour in the dashi stock or water and whisk it all together. You're aiming for a thin, runny consistency here, so if it's too thick just add more water or dashi.
  140 g plain flour / all purpose flour, 10 g cornstarch / cornflour, 1 egg, 450 ml dashi stock
• Now, heat the takoyaki pan over a medium high heat and brush oil over the entire surface. Pour the batter into the centre of the pan and keep pouring until all the wells are full and the batter covers the entire plate.
• Place one piece of octopus or chicken into each well, then scatter the spring onion, ginger and tempura crumbs across the lot. When the bottom of the batter starts turning crispy, use a chopstick to cut out a square shape around each takoyaki well.
  100-140 g octopus pieces, 1/2 cup spring onion / green onion, 1-2 tbsp pickled ginger, 1/2 cup tenkasu
• Next comes Masa’s fancy technique. Move your chopstick in an ‘L’ shape around the each well, then immediately push down into the well to flip the batter, forming a rough ball shape as you go. It might take a few tries, but keep going and you’ll quickly get the hang of it.
• Continue flipping each ball occasionally as the batter becomes crispy and golden brown on all sides. The easiest way to do this is to pierce the takoyaki ball with the chopstick and pull upwards to flip.

For The Toppings:

• Pop your cooked takoyaki onto serving platters and top with your favourite topping combinations. Feel free to experiment and let us know how you go.
• Classic: Top with bbq sauce (or takoyaki sauce or okonomiyaki sauce) and Kewpie mayonnaise in a zigzag pattern. Dust with aonori powder and katsuobushi (bonito flakes).
  Takoyaki Sauce, kewpie mayonnaise, seaweed flakes / aonori, bonito flakes / katsuobushi
• Hyuga Style: Top with Kewpie mayo, aonori and a sprinkling of salt.
  kewpie mayonnaise, seaweed flakes / aonori, Salt
• Masa-san's Recommendation: Top with parmesan, salt and a light dusting of curry powder.
  Salt, Parmesan, Curry powder
• Wandercooks style: Sprinkle with your very own homemade matcha green tea salt.
• Cheesy Goodness: Sprinkle cheese on top and grill (broil) for a couple of minutes until melty and delicious.
  Cheese

Video

Recipe Notes

• For a crunchier texture and deep golden colour, add extra oil while flipping the takoyaki.
• Japanese ingredients such as dashi stock, aonori flakes, bonito flakes, tenkasu and takoyaki sauce can be found at your local Asian grocery store or online via Amazon.
• You can easily make tenkasu (crispy tempura crumbs) at home, simply splatter some tempura batter in hot oil and cook until crispy. Remove from the oil and allow to drain on paper towel.
• What do you need to make this takoyaki recipe? To make takoyaki at home you’ll need a proper takoyaki plate. They come in all shapes and sizes, like this cast iron takoyaki plate and this electric takoyaki pan, but the well shape is essential when cooking. You’ll also need a takoyaki pick or chopstick to flick the takoyaki into shape while grilling.
• Why is my Takoyaki moving? If you top your takoyaki with katsuobushi (aka bonito flakes – thinly shaved dried fish) – you’ll find that it reacts with the heat from the fresh takoyaki which makes the bonito ‘dance’ on top of your takoyaki as it begins to absorb moisture. Cool huh!
• If you don’t like octopus, feel free to substitute your own favourite fillings. Why not try it out with prawns, chicken, tofu or cheese?
• For something completely different, ditch the savoury ingredients and go for a sweet version! Why not try adding chocolate for ‘chokoyaki’! Jams or other sweet ingredients would also work well.

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts

Quick & Easy Takoyaki Recipe

Serving Size

 

4 g

Amount per Serving

Calories

30

% Daily Value*

Fat

 

1

g

2

%

Saturated Fat

 

1

g

6

%

Cholesterol

 

7

mg

2

%

Sodium

 

65

mg

3

%

Potassium

 

38

mg

1

%

Carbohydrates

 

5

g

2

%

Fiber

 

1

g

4

%

Sugar

 

1

g

1

%

Protein

 

2

g

4

%

Vitamin A

 

30

IU

1

%

Vitamin C

 

1

mg

1

%

Calcium

 

11

mg

1

%

Iron

 

1

mg

6

%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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