Takoyaki

Octopus balls (or, as I like to call them, Octopus Yorkies) are usually served at street stands, but they can also be made at home. It will help if you have a small muffin tin, around 3-4 cm cups

Ingredients:

The filling mix:

200g cooked and chopped octopus
Cooking oil
Pickled ginger (benishoga)
Chopped spring onion

The batter:

450ml water
10cm square piece kelp (Konbu)
15g powered bonito flakes (Katsuo bushi)
200g flour
2 eggs

Method for the batter:

1. Clean the konbu by wiping it lightly with a cloth. 
2. Cut the konbu into 2-centimeter-wide partial strips against the grain, but don’t cut all the way to the edge 
3. Add the water and konbu to a pot, and cook uncovered over a low heat
4. Just before the water starts to boil, remove the konbu from the pot. The liquid should be a light yellowish or greenish colour 
5. Add shaved katsuo bushi to the water as it starts to boil
6. After the liquid has been boiling a minute or two, turn off the heat 
7. Quickly remove the shaved katsuo bushi from the liquid with a filter or strainer or cloth. Try to remove the katsuo bushi while it’s still floating on the surface, before it has a chance to sink 
8. Allow the liquid to cool, then add the liquid, flour and eggs to a bowl and mix

To build the takoyaki:

1. Make a small test batch of 4 or 5 takoyaki at first, to check the consistency of the batter. Add more flour or water as needed 
2. Oil the muffin tray 
3. Add pieces of chopped octopus to each cup. 
4. Pour in the batter. 
5. Add ginger and onion 
6. Cook the takoyaki pieces until they achieve the desired degree of firmness, turning them over frequently. 
7. Remove from the pan and serve with drizzled mayonnaise and worcestershire sauce (really)