I was in Siam Paragorn Mall Foodcourt in Bangkok looking for a quick snack while waiting for a friend of mine coming from a dental appointment.  I saw these interesting looking balls called Tako Yaki or what you call Octopus Balls in our universal language, Arabic.  No silly, in English.   Hmmm, I wonder how you say that in Arabic.  Anyway, back to the topic.

Takoyaki according to wikipedia is a popular Japanese dumpling made of batter, diced or whole baby octopus, tempura scraps (tenkasu), pickled ginger, and green onion, topped with okonomiyaki sauce, ponzu, mayonnaise, green laver (aonori), and katsuobushi (fish shavings), first popularized in Taisho-era Osaka, where a street vendor named Endo Tomekichi is credited with its invention in 1935.

Yaki is derived from “yaku” which simply means “to bake or grill” in Japanese, and can be found in the names of other Japanese cuisine items such as teriyaki or sukiyaki. Hmm, I learned something about Japanese food again.

Here are some of the photos:

It cost 100 THB ($US 3+) for eight balls.

A takoyaki pan is typically made of cast iron with half-spherical molds.  The heavy iron evenly heats the takoyaki.  Commercial gas-fueled takoyaki cookers are used at Japanese festivals or by street vendors. 

The cooks.

My verdict?  You can probably see on my photo above.  It’s 1 Star out of 5.  The reason is, it’s tasteless and it will not pass with my critical toungue.