Takoyaki (γγηΌγ) is a very casual fast food in Japan. It might not be easily found at Japanese restaurants in the US or other parts of world even though it is a very popular dish. Takoyaki tastes a little bit like round shaped Okonomiyaki, but it has a much different flavor from the Tako (octopus) cooked inside them. In most parts of Japan, people don’t treat Takoyaki as a meal. Many people typically think of Takoyaki as something you get from street vendors at festivals and events.
In western Japan, in the Kansai area where we are from on the other hand, Takoyaki is very popular not only as a snack but also as a meal. Many households in Kansai have Takoyaki pans at home so they can cook for dinner. Takoyaki is actually very filling since flour is used as a main ingredient just like pancakes and bread. With savory Takoyaki Sauce 
It is very easy to make Takoyaki batter, and it’s even simple to cook, however, you must have a Takoyaki pan. If you don’t have it, it’s not possible to make Takoyaki. Luckily, today we can easily buy Takoyaki Grill Pan (#ad) online. Some Takoyaki pans are cast iron or non-stick aluminum to use on a stove top. These work best on a gas stove. They also sell Electric Takoyaki Pan
Takoyaki is literally baked or fried octopus, so if you don’t use octopus, is it not really Takoyaki anymore? ….that’s not true! Put whatever you want inside Takoyaki. We use cheese or sausage for kids, shrimp pieces when octopus is not available, vegetables like chopped cabbage, anything you want, really. They are best eaten hot right out of a pan, so get a Takoyaki pan and enjoy fresh home made Takoyaki!
Takoyaki Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups Dashi
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp soy sauce
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 cup plus 2 Tbsp all purpose flour
- 2-3 green onions (finely chopped)
- 2 Tbsp Benishoga (pickled red ginger, chopped)
- Boiled octopus* (cut into 1/2" (1 cm) cubes)
- oil
- Takoyaki sauce (or Okonomiyaki sauce)
- mayonnaise
- Aonori (green dried seaweed)
- Katsuobushi (dried bonito flakes)
- *Substitute octopus with sausage (cheese, ham, and etc.)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix well Dashi, eggs, soy sauce, salt, and flour with a whisk.
- Heat a Takoyaki pan with oil to very hot, just until the oil begins to smoke. Use enough oil to coat the pan using a paper towel so that the batter won’t stick. Then pour batter to fill the holes of the pan.
- Drop octopus pieces in the batter in each hole, and sprinkle chopped green onions and ginger all over the pan.
- Cook at medium heat for 1-2 minutes and turn over using a Takoyaki turner (you can use a chopstick too). It can be a little tricky at first, so watch the video to see the technique. Cook another 3-4 minutes, turning constantly.
- Place the cooked Takoyaki on a plate and pour Takoyaki sauce and mayo over them (to taste). Finish the dish by sprinkling the Takoyaki with Aonori (green dried seaweed) and Katsuobushi (dried bonito flakes).
Video
59 Comments
The recipe is very good and simple. Thank you for sharing it to us.
Im dying to try this as soon as my electric takoyaki maker gets here.
Hugo,
electric takoyaki maker! good for you!
I can’t wait to try this with my cake pop maker.
How did it turn out? I have a baby cakes too and I wanna try.
I will definitely try this recipe. I just got an aebleskiver pan, and am very curious to see whether I can use it for Takoyaki as well. Thank you so much for sharing the recipe; I will be sure to check this website often π
Pang,
that will make you a huge Takoyaki! Let us know if you tried!
Wow I hope to try making these soon! I only tried them recently and they were yum! Love your whole website, I will definitely be trying my hand at many of the recipes! I love how easy to follow and delicious they all look, thank you! π I have subscribed to your youtube channel!
Meghan,
thanks for subscribing our Youtube channel! Come to our website too to see the whole recipes!
My Takoyaki Maker just arrived and I’m so glad you had a video to guide me. I loved watching you and your comments made me smile. Since I first watched your videos, I’ve been inspired to make home made dashi and with that miso soup every day, and my husband loves them, so I thank you very much! I am going to keep watching your videos and learning more new things to try!
Jeree,
Congrats! You’ll love Takoyaki Maker!
Hello Ma’am! I’d like to ask. Is it really okay to use Tonkatsu sauce instead of Takoyaki sauce? I can’t find takoyaki sauce available in our stores so I only have Tonkatsu as an option. Does the taste similar? I’m just worried that they’re not the same and my takoyaki won’t taste the same because of different sauce.
Elle,
if you cannot find Takoyaki or Okonomiyaki sauce, Tonkatsu sause is your best bet. You could add some Mirin to Tonkatsu sauce and let it boil for a few seconds, and it’s good to go.
I recently bought a cast iron takoyaki pan. I bought all my ingredients to make takoyaki but I have one question. I bought takoyaki flour from my semi-local Japanese grocery store. I’m assuming that probably has dashi in it already. How would I work with that?
Elizabeth,
never used Takoyaki flour, so I don’t know. I guess you’re right that dashi is already in the flour. It’s better to follow the instruction on the package.
I would like to know how best to prepare freshly caught octopus for the Takoyaki recipe?
Thank You
Des,
you have to boil raw octopus before using in the recipe.
My daughter is crazy about it. So i want to learn how to make it.and i can make for her whenever she wants.
luz
hope you like it!
Ma’am
I just want to ask.. What is dashi? Can i found it in other country’s market? Whats the english term of it?
Thanks.
luz,
we have a recipe for dashi. Please check our web site!
where can i find all this ingredient in malaysia??
alyn,
I don’t know! Do you have Japanese markets?
I knw takoyaki isn’t relly takkyaki without the octopus but would I be able to get away with using chicken or pork? Mom won’t eat it otherwise.
Cloudia,
of course! But cook long enough to cook the meat.
My wife and I visited the takoyaki “museum” in Osaka. One shop had lemon rind and pepper toppings! They had a theme song for the place that, two years later, we still try to sing. We’ll be singing it tonight while we try this recipe.
wellhof,
how cute!
My niece is from Okinawa and I can’t wait to make this dish for our Thanksgiving dinner! Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe.
Michael,
hope you and your niece like our Takoyaki recipe. It is fun to make with family and friends!
Can I add some minced cabbage into the batter?
Chloe,
yes, you can. I sometimes do that to add more nutrition!
can you buy dashi instead of having to prepare it
Brian,
you could buy instant dashi (powder) and mix in boiling water. However, if you are boiling water, your job of making dashi is half way done.
The okonomiyaki is already a family favorite. I want to cook takoyaki but I have had trouble finding a pan. The problem is that we have an induction stove top and I understand most of the pans are cast iron and won’t work.
What do you recommend, a small butane stove to use a cast iron pan or just an electric takoyaki pan? Thanks!
Which ever is fine. I have a cast iron pan and a butane stove, and that works very well. Good thing about this combination is you can use the butane stove for something else (hot pot, camping, etc.). My friend has electric one and she really likes it.
Cast iron works on induction.
Can you use a takoyaki pan with any type of cook top or will it only work well with a gas cook top?
Ian,
we actually made takoyaki on flat electric stove top. It took longer to get the pan hot enough, but it worked.
Just made my first batch of takoyaki in a cake pop maker, it worked awesome!
Hannah,
wow, a cake pop maker! Who knew?!
Is there anything that can replace the dashi?
Chloe,
you may use just water, but it wouldn’t be the same.
Can we use flat cooking pan instead?
SonjaeEun,
probably not…
Just had takoyaki for dinner tonight. The sauce and the Japanese mayo are a must along with the bonito flakes and powdered nori. Yummy, yummy!
I made half the recipe with octopus and the other half with kimchee…..I have to say, the kimchee was incredibly delicious !!! Not traditional but if anyone out there is going to make it, I hope that they will try it with the kimchee π
Cheryl,
thanks for trying our Takoyaki recipes! Glad you liked them!
Noriko γγ… thank you for such a wonderful blog and youtube channel. I love japanese food so much and I am so excited to learn how to cook it from you!
Vera,
you’re welcome! We have a new recipe every week, so come back soon!
Hello. I just tried making the batter. It’s sooo easy thanks to the instruction. Sadly, I still didn’t have two of the ingredients, the katsuboshi (rare and kinda expensive here..) and aonori (also rare..)
Now, into the question. How long will the batter usually can be used until it is spoiled? Im planning to make an extra batter so I could cook them easily next time.
Thank you π
Puucho,
You can store it for a couple of days, but it won’t be the same (like pancake batter). It’s easy to make so I’d say make more when you want another batch. (And just in case somebody is thinking about it, I wouldn’t recommend freezing it.)
I bought the smaller pan (12 count) and will be making takoyaki for my culinary class. Would you clean the pan before using it for a second batch or can you still use it?
Jared,
you don’t have to clean, but need to oil it.
Hi! Im from Brunei and i love looking for japanese recipe from ur website. I like ur simple and easy to find ingredients. I love takoyaki so much! I’ve already tried making takoyaki with instant takoyaki flour and later im going to make takoyaki using ur recipe
Bella,
thanks for coming to Japanese Cooking 101. We add a new recipe every week, so come back soon!
Thank you so much for posting this recipe. It’s simple, with relatively easy ingredients to get. Plus you saved us because we couldn’t find any takoyaki batter after going through two Asian markets. My boyfriend and I just recently bought a takoyaki pan. With this recipe plus the easy to follow video, we successfully made our first takoyaki! And we couldn’t have been happier :]
Success! Thanks for the easy to follow recipe! I’ve been wanting to make takoyaki for a long time and so glad I stumbled upon your recipe. The ingredients were easy to find (went to a Japanese market) and I was able to make 2 dozens takoyaki from the recipe.
I eant to make takoyaki. In your recipe it says 2 cups dashi. Do you mean dashi water? Do i have to dissolve the entire pack of dashi or half only to make 2 cups?
I have made this recipe many times since it was published. I don’t have a takoyaki pan with holes but I have used a tamagoyaki Japanese omelette pan (5.25 x 7.5 x 1.25 in). It is small and easy to flip the takoyahi’s. I love it.!!