How To Cook Octopus Japanese Style

Stuck at home and wanting some family entertainment? Let's take a takoyaki party—a tako-pa ! Hither, I become overboard in the octopus department with three simple Japanese octopus recipes. I'll teach you lot how to cook octopus in three ways: tako karaage , takosu and takoyaki . "Tako" means octopus, and these are the most popular Japanese octopus dishes.

There are actually several kinds of octopus in Nippon, and you lot may run across a ginormous arm of the behemothic Pacific octopus from Hokkaido ( Enteroctopus dofleini ) or its more moderately-sized relative, also from Hokkaido, the chestnut octopus ( O. conispadiceus ) at your local fishmonger'due south. But the octopus nosotros will exist dealing with hither is the domestic madako ( O. sinensis ) and its well-nigh indistinguishable cousin the "mutual octopus" ( O. vulgaris ), mainly imported from the West African countries of Kingdom of morocco, Mauritania and Senegal. The deviation between the 2 is only the length of the arms and the arrangement of the suckers on the males' "special arm."

"What is special nigh the arm?" I hear you asking… It is used equally a sex activity organ. But don't let it weird you out—it doesn't seem to bear upon the taste.

Well, allow'southward dig right into it—how to cook octopus. I cooked all three of these recipes myself today, so they're fresh in my mind.

Permit's Tako-pa! iii Easy Japanese Octopus Recipes to Endeavor at Habitation

Hither are the three classic Japanese octopus dishes we'll cover.

1. Tako Karaage (Deep-fried Octopus)
2. Takosu (Octopus Salad)
3. Takoyaki ("Octopus Assurance")

i. Tako Karaage Recipe

Tako Karaage Ingredients:

• Octopus tentacles - boiled
• Salt & pepper
• Tater starch
• Vegetable oil
• Egg white - beaten
• Sudachi or lemon juice

Training

The first Japanese tako recipe I tried was a tako karaage recipe that was featured on the NHK website, merely I changed it a little. This is supposed to serve two.

Cutting ii boiled octopus tentacles with diagonal cuts to brand bite-sized chunks. The idea is to brand the appearance slightly random, which is aesthetically pleasing.

Add table salt and pepper. I used pink rock salt from the Himalayas, and if y'all desire to be an aristocracy gourmet I suggest yous do the same.

Glaze the octopus with spud starch ( katakuriko in Japanese). This was the hard role. It doesn't really stick to the octopus, so I didn't go a very good covering. An comeback is to dip the octopus in some beaten egg white and then transfer it to a bag of the starch and shake information technology. This will make the katakuriko stick better.

Motility the pieces into a pot of hot vegetable oil. I used actress virgin olive oil, because that'due south what I happened to have. Yet, non wanting to waste material a lot of expensive oil, I tipped the pot onto a corner to get some depth without adding more oil. Garnish with sudachi citrus. I used bottled lemon juice, considering—what else—that's what I happened to have.

2. Takosu Recipe

Takosu Ingredients

• Cooked octopus
• Sushi vinegar - ii tbsp
• Mirin - ane tbsp
• Soy sauce - dash
• Brownish sugar - i tsp
• 2 Japanese cucumbers
• Wakame seaweed
• Sesame seeds to garnish

Preparation

The following Japanese octopus recipe for takosu can exist used equally well with firefly squid, which is usually in season from May. But every bit today is all about how to cook octopus, I used madako .

First make the pickling liquid in a large mixing bowl. I used two tablespoons of sushi vinegar (vinegar is "su" in Japanese—thus the proper noun of the dish), one tablespoon of mirin (sweet rice wine), a squirt of soy sauce, and a teaspoon of brown sugar. The sugar can be white—I just similar a little brown saccharide now and then. Mix information technology up.

At present for the cucumber, I used two long skinny Japanese kyuri . I cut off the ends and peeled a few strips lengthwise, leaving some of the green skin for color. And so slice them every bit thinly as possible at an angle to make the pieces a trivial larger. Dump into the bowl of liquid.

For the octopus, slice it with diagonal cuts in alternating directions, every bit for the tako karaage, but a little smaller this time. Dump this in as well.

For wakame seaweed, if you can find it fresh, every bit I did, that would be good. You lot'll have to cut it upwards. If not you lot can go the dried stuff and rehydrate it in a bowl of water. Add together as much equally suits you.

Sprinkle some sesame seeds on top. And so get in there with your easily and mix information technology upwardly, separating the cucumbers—which tend to stick together—and getting everything into the liquid.

At present, cover the bowl with some plastic wrap and set up it in your refrigerator for three hours to marinate. This dish usually tastes better on the second mean solar day.

3. Takoyaki Recipe

Takoyaki Ingredients

Homemade Takoyaki Batter (or sub takoyaki mix + 1 egg)

• AP flour - 100g (1 Japanese cup - approximately ⅔ U.S. cup)
• one egg
• Water - 300 ml (ane ½ Japanese cups - approximately i.2 U.S. cups)
• Baking powder - ½ tsp
• Powdered dashi - ½ tsp

Takoyaki Filling

• Octopus tentacles
• Sliced greenish onions
• Tempura bits ( tenkasu )
• Beni-shoga

Takoyaki Toppings

• Takoyaki/okonomiyaki sauce
• Mayonnaise
• Katsuobushi
• Aosa/aonori (stale seaweed flakes)

Preparation

I'thousand going to requite you a pretty standard takoyaki octopus ball recipe, but you tin can put other things into it too. After I ran out of octopus for takoyaki, I fabricated "sausage, broccoli and shredded cheese-yaki."

For the ingredients, you accept some options. Y'all tin combine 100 grams (1 Japanese cup) of all-purpose flour, an egg, 300ml (ane ½ Japanese cups) water, a half teaspoon of baking powder and about the aforementioned of powdered konbu (kelp) and katsuobushi (fermented bonito tuna flakes) dashi stock. Or if yous are in Japan, you tin can buy pre-mixed takoyaki flour and just add the egg—which is what I did.

It is convenient to move the batter into a container with a spout then that you can cascade it hands. I used a Pyrex measuring cup.

To become inside the tako-balls, you will desire ane tentacle cutting up even smaller than for the other two Japanese octopus recipes, sliced green onions, tempura bits ( tenkasu ) and beni-shoga (the pinkish one shaped like matchsticks) cut upwards small. Take all of these things ready to drop in before you starting time dropping concoction.

You will also want the traditional toppings: beginning sauce—which is virtually the aforementioned for tonkatsu (pork cutlet), okonomiyaki and takoyaki. The ane for yakisoba is a little stronger and less sugariness. Then mayonnaise, katsuobushi (fermented bonito tuna flakes) and aosa/aonori (dried green seaweed).

I should acknowledge here that when I planned out my recipes I did not own a takoyaki pan, which has many hemispheric depressions to hold the individual balls. And existence the cheapskate that I am, I planned to improvise with a waffle maker. (This was after my original idea of improvising with a mini-muffin pan.) Nonetheless, my Japanese wife institute a uncomplicated takoyaki cooker at the Konan home comeback store for the low, low price of 980 yen—and she bought it for me. So, I fabricated them the normal way.

To melt the balls, starting time turn on the heat and grease the holes with oil. Then cascade batter until it fills the holes. There are two strategies for making nicely formed balls. The original way is to overflow the holes, then drop in all of the fillings, and then use a skewer to cutting up the overflow and shepherd it into each hole, and so flip it. That looked hard.

I cheated and filled the holes only to the acme, so dropped the octopus and tenkasu . And so I used two skewers to turn the half-balls on their sides and filled the greenish onion and beni-shoga into the hole. Subsequently that, I filled the remaining infinite with batter and then flipped it over completely. The start method makes a rounder brawl, the second is less messy.

I recommend to coat the tops with oil again and motility the ball effectually to melt any rare spots. When information technology looks gold brown, y'all tin can remove information technology and superlative information technology with the sauce, mayo, katsuobushi and aosa . Finally, eat.

I am and then happy the Osakans created such a nice dish for the residual of the world to relish. And that the Chinese are making takoyaki griddles that sell for 980 yen. Thank you, Osaka! Cheers, China!

Want to sharpen your cooking chops? Check out these online food experiences and cooking classes!

Nosotros strive to be equally authentic equally possible and go on upwards with the irresolute landscape of Japan's food and travel industries. If you spot whatsoever inaccuracies, please ship a report.

Source: https://www.byfood.com/blog/culture/tako-japanese-octopus-recipes

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