Taiyaki and Imagawayaki

Pancakes and waffles – Japanese style?

These are the popular desserts or snacks. We usually buy them at the stores near the train stations, or at the supermarkets, malls, or during Japanese festivals.

Tai is the Sea Bream- the fish…ok?
Yaki – if you remember, means- to grill or bake…
therefore, taiyaki literally is “baked sea bream” .
Taiyaki is a Japanese fish-shaped cake. The most common filling is red bean paste that is made from sweetened azuki beans. Other common fillings may be custard, chocolate, or cheese.

The new ones are more like hot sandwiches with ham, cheese, sausages, potato, and more.

Traditional Azuki- red beans Taiyaki

Taiyaki is made using regular pancake or waffle batter. The batter is poured into a fish-shaped mold for each side. The filling is then put on one side and the mold is closed. It is then cooked on both sides until golden brown.

According to Wikipedia, Taiyaki was first baked by a sweet shop Naniwaya in Azabu, Tokyo in 1909, and now can be found all over Japan, especially at food courts of supermarkets and Japanese festivals.

New flavors like caramel almond fillings...at the mall

They are similar to Imagawayaki which are thick round cakes also filled with sweet azuki bean paste, white beans, or custard.

It is a Japanese dessert often found at festivals. It is made of batter in a special pan (similar to a waffle iron but without the honeycomb pattern), and filled with sweet azuki bean paste, although it is becoming increasingly popular to use a wider variety of fillings.