Fish and SeafoodLeslie Fangmanmain dish, seafoodComment

Cooking Octopus

Fish and SeafoodLeslie Fangmanmain dish, seafoodComment
Cooking Octopus

If you ask my niece what is her favorite food she would say “octopus”. When you gave her a odd look she would return the look and wonder what is wrong with you that you don’t like it. A girl after my own heart, we are meat eaters! So I had to start learning how to cook this wonderful protein so when she comes to visit we can eat her favorite food. The nice thing about the octopus you can cook the whole thing as outline below and then use it in many different dishes from sushi and poke to my Spanish paella recipe. I do hope you will give it a try and while I have never caught one in the wild maybe someday I will and we can roast it over an open fire on the beach!

Octopus

  • 3-4 lb octopus

  • 1/2 onion, sliced

  • 3 cloves of garlic, smashed

  • 3 bay leaves

  • 2 tablespoons of sweet paprika

  • 1 teaspoon of salt

  • 1 teaspoon of pepper

  • 2 Tablespoons of olive oil

  • 1/2 lemon, juiced

Make sure your octopus is cleaned properly. If you have bought frozen it is already cleaned for you and just let in defrost in a bowl of water. If you are buying from a meat or fishmonger they will clean it for you if you ask. Place all of the ingredients in to a stock pot large enough to cover the octopus with water. bring to a boil and then cover and turn down to a low simmer. A 3 to 4 pound octopus will take about 1 hour to become tender and done. Once done immediately place it in an ice bath to cool. You can serve immediately or refrigerate overnight and use in another recipe. You can also strain the liquid and use as a fish stock for soup, Spanish Paella or thicken below and use as a sauce for the octopus.

Sauce for the Octopus

  • 2 cups of the cooking liquid from the octopus

  • 1/2 lemon, juiced

  • 1/4 cup of fresh parsley, minced

  • 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper

  • 1 teaspoon of sweet paprika

  • 1 teaspoon of garlic powder

  • Salt and pepper to taste

Stain the cooking liquid from the octopus and place in a small sauce pan. Whisk in all the other ingredients and bring to a boil continuing to whisk. turn down to low heat until reduced stirring occasionally. Serve on the side or chop up the octopus serve over white rice and top with sauce.