Takoyaki – fish-filled dough balls

Ingredients for 1 servings:

• 100 g flour
• 1 egg(s)
• 2 pinches of baking powder
• 300 ml dashi
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 80 g squid(s) or other filling
• some butter for the mold
• some sauce (okonomiyaki sauce), bought or homemade
• some mayonnaise (sushi mayonnaise / Japanese mayonnaise)
• some bonito flakes (katsuoboshi)
• 1 spring onion(s)

Instructions

Working time approx. 20 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 15 minutes; Total time approx. 35 minutes

You will also need a takoyaki pan and cooking chopsticks (or toothpicks). Mix the flour, egg, baking powder, dashi, and soy sauce until you have a smooth, liquid mixture. Fry the squid thoroughly and cut into small pieces, about 1.5 cm in size. Finely chop the spring onion and set aside. Heat the takoyaki pan, e.g., on level 3 out of 6, grease it with butter, and fill the wells with the liquid takoyaki batter. The batter can overflow a little. After a few minutes, when the batter is still mostly liquid, add the squid to the batter. Use cooking chopsticks or toothpicks to separate the overflowing batter from the pan and place it into the batter hemispheres. Then turn the hemispheres 90° and fill the empty space in the well with takoyaki batter again. Next, rotate the balls repeatedly, trying to fill any remaining holes with batter. Fry and rotate until the balls are golden brown all over. Place the finished takoyaki on a plate. Brush the okonomiyaki sauce on them, then spread a few strips of mayonnaise over them. Finally, add bonito flakes, spring onions, or other toppings as desired. Caution: The takoyaki will be very hot inside! Instead of squid, you can also use other fillings, such as corn, ham, zucchini, cheese, sausage, etc.