Takoyaki–Japanese Octopus Balls (Photo of the Day)

I had the pleasure of trying Takoyaki (“octopus balls”), a popular Japanese street food, yesterday at the Mitsuwa Summer Festival in Edgewater, New Jersey. The festival, an Asian food lover’s delight, featured many foods I enjoy and some I had never heard of, including this truly delicious one. Crispy on the outside and soft and gooey on the inside, it sort of melted in my mouth. The combination of flavors was just perfect.

Takoyaki: What Is It?

Takoyaki means fried octopus or octopus balls (though one can fill it with shrimp or other meat). It’s mostly batter combined with scallions, ginger, tempura scraps, pickled red ginger, etc. and is topped with Takoyaki sauce, Japanese mayonnaise, green seaweed and katsuobushi (aka, bonito flakes).

Mitsuwa Marketplace–Worth a Visit

Mitsuwa’s Summer Festival was held on Saturday, August 15th, at the Edgewater Store. There was dancing, drumming and tons of great food. Mitsuwa, one of the largest Japanese marketplaces in the US, is known as New Jersey’s “Japan-Town.”

Here’s the address:

Mitsuwa Marketplace
595 River Rd, Edgewater, NJ ‎
Waterside Plaza
(201) 941-9113
www.mitsuwa.com

Here’s a link to recipes on the site.