Galician Octopus Recipes

GALICIAN-STYLE OCTOPUS

Steps:

• Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. Dunk the octopus in 8 times, fully submerging it. Then simmer the octopus until tender when pierced with a skewer, 35 to 40 minutes.
• Meanwhile, boil the potatoes in a separate pot until tender.
• Cut the octopus into tentacles with scissors (discard the rest), then sprinkle with the sea salt, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with the sweet and hot paprika. Serve with the potatoes.

OCTOPUS, GALICIAN STYLE

Steps:

• Thaw octopus if necessary, either for 24 hours in refrigerator, or for a few hours in a couple of changes of cold water. With a scissors, remove skinny tips of tentacles and, cutting through webbing that connects them, separate the 8 tentacles and discard head. (Alternatively, you can cook the octopus whole and cut it up after cooking.)
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it well. Put octopus in water and, when it returns to boil, cover and adjust heat so water simmers gently. Cook an hour or so, until octopus is tender. Meanwhile peel potatoes and cut into 2-inch slices. Lower them into water and cook until tender, about a half hour. Remove if they're done before octopus, and keep warm.
• When octopus is tender, remove it and drain. Put potatoes on a platter and cut octopus into pieces (again, a scissors is easiest); top potatoes with it. Drizzle all liberally with pimentón, olive oil and coarse salt, and serve hot or warm.

GALICIAN OCTOPUS

Steps:

• In a large stockpot, combine the water and 5 tablespoons of the salt and bring to a boil. While the water is heating, rinse the octopus under running cold water. Using sharp kitchen scissors, cut out the mouth and the eyes. With a long fork, pierce the octopus to get a good grip and dip it into the boiling water. Lift out immediately and, when the water returns to a boil, dip it briefly again. Repeat this dipping procedure 3 or 4 times, or until the tentacles have curled. (Dipping the octopus into boiling water helps to tenderize it.) Submerge the octopus in the water and let it boil over medium heat for about 2 hours, or until it is tender when pierced with a knife. Turn off the heat and let the octopus rest in the hot water for 10 minutes. Lift the octopus from the water and cut it into pieces with the scissors: the tentacles into 1/2-inch-thick rings and the body into small chunks. Divide the octopus pieces evenly among 6 plates. Cut the potatoes crosswise in 1/2-inch-thick slices and surround the octopus pieces with the potato slices. Drizzle the octopus and potatoes with the olive oil and sprinkle with hot paprika and the remaining tablespoon of salt. Serve the dish while the octopus and potatoes are still warm.