たこ焼き (Takoyaki)!

I completed one of my summer goals~!  Takoyaki!!

Takoyaki or たこ焼き is the ultimate street food in Japan, it's a ball-shaped savory pancake with octopus, green onion and pickled ginger filling.  I have not had it fresh since my visit to Vancouver in 2008, so this was the ultimate treat to make! <3

Phase one... chopping the ingredients.

Toasting the baby shrimp.

Slicing the boiled octopus.

All ready to go!

First step is to ladle the batter about an eighth full into each socket of the pan.

I thought the batter was too wet at first~ but then I learned this is normal.

After this, drop a piece of sliced octopus into each socket and then sprinkle a generous amount of pickled ginger and chopped green onion.

I did not fill the pan enough on the first batch. ^^;

Kenny and I kept poking at it, we weren't sure when to begin turning the takoyaki over...

I learned that the best way to do this is to not be afraid of overflowing the pan.  And don't hesitate to top it off with more batter!  This is actually a good thing, you will produce rounder and fuller takoyaki.  Our first batch turned into half-spheres because I didn't overflow the molds enough.

Our first turnover was a bit of a mess!

But the first batch was still gorgeous.

Tasted very good with some beer!

Now our second batch... we were much more experienced.
It was much easier to make with two people turning them over.

...Overflowing is key!!  And swift hands.

So light and fluffy!  I wonder if you can make donut holes with this pan?  

Success.

Oooh.

Perfect and a beautiful color!

Takoyaki is extremely hot fresh off the griddle. I let it sit for a few minutes so that my mouth doesn't burn from the hot batter, it's very juicy inside due to the thinness of the batter.