What is Octopus Sausage?
When you need just one more item to fill your bento box (lunch box), Octopus Sausage or Tako Sausage can be a great dish. Not only are these easy to make, but the children also love the shape of cute octopuses in their bento boxes!
Here’s an example of how I pack these cute octopuses in the lunch box. Enjoy surprising your children at their lunchtime with Octopus Sausage!
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How to Make “Octopus“ Sausage
When you need just one more side dish to fill a bento lunch box, an adorable “Octopus“ Sausage can be a great dish to make with Japanese pork sausage. These octopus-shaped bites are quick and easy to make, and children love finding a cute tako (octopus) in their bento!
Servings: 2
Ingredients
- 3 Japanese sausages (typically 3 inches, 7.6 cm; I use Berkshire pork sausages)
- 6 toasted black sesame seeds
Japanese Ingredient Substitution: If you want substitutes for Japanese condiments and ingredients, click here.
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients.
- Japanese sausages are typically 3 inches (7.6 cm). If your sausages are longer, cut them into 3-inch (7.6-cm) pieces. To cut the octopus "legs," lay the sausage sideways on the cutting board. On the bottom half of the sausage, insert the knife in the middle and slice all way through. Then, rotate the sausage 90 degrees and slice again. Now the sausage has four “legs.“
- Cut again between the slits to make eight legs. Hold the legs together so that the slits don’t open up when you slice through. Repeat with the other sausages.
- In a small frying pan, heat a little bit of oil and cook the sausages on medium heat. As the sausages cook, the legs will start to open up and flare out. When the sausages are cooked through, remove from the heat and serve or pack in your lunch box.
- Add sesame seeds for octopus eyes. Enjoy!
Nutrition
Calories: 42 kcal · Carbohydrates: 1 g · Protein: 2 g · Fat: 4 g · Saturated Fat: 1 g · Polyunsaturated Fat: 1 g · Monounsaturated Fat: 2 g · Cholesterol: 9 mg · Sodium: 138 mg · Potassium: 25 mg · Fiber: 1 g · Sugar: 1 g · Vitamin A: 1 IU · Calcium: 4 mg · Iron: 1 mg
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I am a young chef. Who injoys Japanese foods. I also watch anime and wanted to try this. Thank you for the recipe
Hi Marshall! We are glad to hear you enjoy Japanese foods and Anime! 🙂
Thank you very much for trying Nami’s recipes!
Привет из России🖐
Спасибо, за восхитительные рецепты Нами-сан! Жаль, что многие ингредиенты у нас сложно найти… Но можно) Очень нравятся ваши рецепты, особенно мужу, для него бенто- является чем-то необычным:)
С нетерпением жду новых рецептов🤩😊
Большое спасибо за ваши добрые слова. Я рад слышать, что вам нравится мой блог! Я понимаю, что найти японские ингредиенты нелегко. Надеюсь, их будет легко найти в вашей стране! Еще раз спасибо! (I used Google translate… I hope this is correct). 🙂
I made these yesterday as a snack, I and the Thai family loved them, their first time enjoying Japanese sausage. Thanks for the great recipe, Nami 🙂
Hi Lee! Thank you for trying this recipe! I’m glad to hear your family enjoyed the recipe. 🙂
My sausage won’t curl up, do u know why?
Hi Min! Are they flexible enough that would curl up? If you don’t cut a slit long enough, it may not curl up too. Hope this helps… is the sausage flexible?
I see. Yeah I think was flexible. Thanks for the info:)
Try cutting longer slits next time. 🙂
Oh! So this is what Yukko drops in Nichijou. I was wondering why a sausage would have little stubby tentacles.
Hi Andrew! Yes, this is Octopus sausage. 😀
I LOVE NICHIJOU!!
hey i was wondering if we could use hot dogs instead? me and my family are trying to buy a house and we dont really go out anymore
Hi Stephanie! I haven’t tried with hot dog, but it might work. 🙂
Hi there! I just thought I’d mention that I have made these little tako sausages years ago for bento (I used to work at a restaurant in Mitsuwa here in Illinois) and I always boiled mine in water with sesame oil added. I used Hebrew National hot-dogs so, yes, you can definitely make this with any hot-dogs/frankfurters!!
I’m happy I found this blog; I’m going to pan-fry mine from now on!
ありがとう、ナミさん！めっちゃかわいい！
Hi Karl! I guess small hot dogs work for these, maybe not big ones as they will be a huge octopus. LOL. Thanks for letting us know Karl!
So happy you found my blog too! ありがとう！！
I usually cook the sausages octopus in a pot of water with few drops of oil, for healthier purpose. For the eyes, I use cheese (with the help of a straw). Will try the deep fry method though for the crispy texture. Thank you.
Hi Iris! Thank you for sharing your tip! 😀
What makes the sesame seeds stay on the sausage?
Hi Rin! The oily surface on the sausage. 🙂
i wanted to make these for my lunch box and i was just wandering if you could possibly do these the day before and than refrigerate them for school the next morning?
Hi Laura! If you can keep your lunch box cold/cool at all times till lunch time, I think it should be safe. However, it depends on the climate you live in too. If you live in a hot and humid place, food goes bad quickly, so I highly recommend to reheat the food or cook in the morning (and then cool down before closing bento box). I wrote a little bit more about food safety here.
https://www.justonecookbook.com/bento-how-to/food-safety-tips-for-bento/
Hope this helps. 🙂
These are adorable. I think I might try this for my son for his lunch tomorrow.
Hi Ashley! I hope your son will enjoy it. 🙂
Hi Nami-san, your recipes inspired me. Thanks for writing this blog because you make me realise that cooking for your love one is not too hard after all. Keep up the good worK.
Hi Maggie! Thank you for your kind message. I too felt happy when I started to cook for my family. Your message made my day. 🙂
I often make these for my boyfriend’s bento boxes. He’s 21 but still a little boy at heart and he loves them! He is not Japanese (I am half), so when he was a child he never got packed lunches like the ones I make him. He loves all the little things I make so it feels worth while getting up early in the morning to prepare these for him.
Hi Elisa! Awww you are very sweet and he’s a lucky guy! 🙂 Thanks for writing!
It looks great and fun. BTW, how do you make the eyes?
Jessica – thank you for noticing! I forgot to add that step on this How To page. Recipe updated. I used sesame seeds. 🙂
Thanks a lot. Will definitely try this.
What makes the sesame seed stay on the sausage?
Hi Nyx! The oil from the sausage help the sesame seeds stick to it. 🙂
I made these with lil smokies, they only had 4 legs(?) because they’re so small but my kids loved them. They curled perfectly and were super cute. We called them weenie squids. I love all your recipes, you basically taught me how to cook. Thanks, lol.
Hi Monty! Thanks for trying this recipe! So happy your children enjoyed it. I can almost see their happy face! Thanks for your kind and sweet compliment. I’m so happy you enjoy cooking Japanese food at home! xo
I am looking forward to making these for my daughter’s lunch tomorrow!!
Thank you Nami!!
You are welcome! Thank you for your comment Mary. I hope your daughter will have a good surprise at lunch! 🙂
I like to deep fry mine, the legs really curl. My children love these sausages. We have arabiki sausage here at Costco. It’s a little pricey, so we don’t make it too often.
Hi Shawna! Yeah deep fry makes the outer skin so crispy and I like it too! Arabiki sausage is yum… and you can get it in Costco?!?! 😀