Takoyaki (たこ焼き) are small balls of batter with a piece of octopus inside. They are cooked in a special iron pan with round hollows. Sold hot from street stalls, they are the signature snack of Osaka. The outside is crisp, and the inside stays soft and almost runny.
A street-food classic
Tako means "octopus," and yaki means "grilled." The batter is made with flour, egg and dashi stock. The cook pours it into the hollows and drops in boiled octopus, chopped green onion and pickled ginger. As the bottom sets, the cook turns each ball with a metal pick. The trick is to keep turning until every ball is perfectly round. Takoyaki come in a paper boat, six or eight at a time. On top go a thick brown sauce, mayonnaise, green seaweed powder and bonito flakes that wave in the heat. Bite carefully. The inside is extremely hot.
Osaka's soul food
A stall owner in Osaka, Endō Tomekichi, is usually credited with inventing takoyaki in 1935. He started from rajioyaki, small grilled balls filled with beef. Osaka loves flour-based dishes like takoyaki and okonomiyaki. Locals call them konamon. Many families own a takoyaki pan and hold takoyaki parties, or takopa, at home. In Dōtonbori, queues form at famous stands late into the night. Nearby Akashi has its own version, akashiyaki. It is softer and richer in egg, and people dip it in light dashi instead of sauce.
Words & idioms to take away
Idioms & proverbs to carry away
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粉物 (konamon): Osaka dialect for flour-based dishes such as takoyaki and okonomiyaki. Elsewhere people say konamono.
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鰹節 (katsuobushi): dried, smoked bonito, shaved into thin flakes. On hot takoyaki, the flakes seem to dance.