Octopus Stew Recipes

OCTOPUS STEW - STUFFAT TAL-QARNIT

Steps:

• In a heavy based dish fry the onions on low heat for ten minutes.
• Add the tomato paste and fry for 1 minute.
• Add the garlic and fry for 1 minute.
• Fry the octopus for ten minutes and stir continuously.
• Add the tomatoes and cook for ten minutes.
• Add the olives, capers, wine, lemon zest and a squeeze of lemon juice, and the herbs.
• Simmer for 45 minutes with the lid on.
• If adding potatoes add half an hour after stew is simmering.
• Once the stew has been simmering for 45 minutes add in the peas.
• Simmer for a further 15 minutes without the lid on.
• Serve with roast potatoes, or crusty bread, or pasta.
• Garnish with some chopped herbs and lemon zest.

SPANISH OCTOPUS

Steps:

• Place chopped onion, garlic cloves, bay leaf, paprika, salt, and 1 tablespoon olive oil into saucepan. Cook and stir over medium-high heat until onions start to soften, about 5 minutes. Add white wine to create the braising liquid. Bring to a simmer.
• Transfer octopus into braising liquid, turning to coat with the liquid. Cover; reduce heat to low. Simmer 20 minutes and turn octopus over. Continue cooking until octopus is tender, another 40 to 45 minutes.
• Remove from heat; transfer octopus to a large bowl. Pour braising liquid over octopus. Place bowl above a bowl of ice water to cool to room temperature.
• Cover bowl with plastic wrap when octopus and liquid are cool. Refrigerate until thoroughly chilled, at least 2 hours or overnight.
• Transfer octopus to a work surface and mop off braising juices with paper towels; remove as much of the purple skin as you want. Cut octopus into 3 or 4 serving-size pieces. Brush with olive oil.
• Transfer braising liquid to saucepan. Bring to a boil; remove from heat. Strain out solids; transfer liquid to a mixing bowl; let cool about 10 minutes. Stir in lemon juice, extra-virgin olive oil, parsley, salt, and cayenne pepper to make the serving sauce.
• Heat a grill pan or outdoor grill to high heat. Transfer octopus pieces to grill. Cook until flesh is seared, almost charred, 3 or 4 minutes. Turn and cook other side until dark brown, caramelized, and heated through, another 3 or 4 minutes. Transfer to a platter.
• Slice octopus into fairly thick diagonal slices. Place on a serving dish. Spoon braising liquid mixture over the top. Dust with a bit of cayenne pepper, if desired.

ITALIAN STEWED OCTOPUS (POLPI IN UMIDO)

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salty water to a boil. Toss the octopus into the boiling water , return to a boil and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, then remove. Discard the water.
• Cut the octopus into large pieces and sauté in olive oil over medium-high heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the chopped garlic and sauté for another minute or two.
• Add the wine and bring to a boil over high heat. Stir well and let it cook down for 3 to 4 minutes. Add the tomatoes and chili flakes and bring to a simmer.
• Add about a teaspoon of salt and the honey or sugar. Mix well, cover the pot and simmer for 30 minutes.
• At 30 minutes, add the optional capers, half the dill, and half the parsley. Check the octopus-sometimes small ones will be tender in just 30 minutes.
• If it is still super-chewy, cover the pot again and simmer for up to another 45 minutes.
• When you think you are about 10 minutes away from the octopus being done, uncover the pot and turn the heat up a little to cook down the sauce.
• To serve, add the remaining dill and parsley and black pepper to taste.
• Accompany with bread or pasta either hot or at room temperature. A crisp white wine like Spanish Albarino, Italian Orvieto or pinot grigio makes a good pairing for this interesting seafood meal.

OCTOPUS STEW (POLVO GUISADO) THE RIGHT ONE RECIPE - (4/5)

Steps:

• "Purple stew" is what someone called this when they inquired about an octopus recipe popular with the Portuguese. The color purple comes in to play when cooks use red wine in the dish instead of white. It is a matter of preference. Day 1 Cut octopus into large pieces, about 2-inches long, and place in a bowl. Season with the salt and pepper. Add the remaining ingredients. Turn to coat evenly, cover and chill overnight. (You will notice that I am not instructing you to beat the octopus with a stick to tenderize it. Some Portuguese cooks still do this and you can if you wish.) Day 2 Reserving the marinade, transfer octopus to another separate bowl Pour just enough olive oil to cover the bottom of a large skillet. Fry the onions until golden. There should be a brown caramelized coating on the bottom of the skillet (called a fond by professionals). Add the garlic and parsley. When the garlic is aromatic,toss in the octopus. When it starts to take on some color, recover. Reduce the heat to medium-low and let it sweat for 30 minutes. It will release a lot of water. Add the potatoes and continue to cook on medium-low for another 30 min. Test the fattest piece. If it is still chewy or tough, let it cook some more (around but not usually over 30 min.) Anytime the liquid looks like it is evaporating, add the reserved marinade in small amounts. Thicken the liquid with a cornstarch slurry. If you overcook it, it will shrink to almost nothing but if you don't cook it enough it will be tough.

OCTOPUS STEW

Steps:

• In large pot boil the macaroni, in salted water.
• Slice each hot dog half way up, into 8 slices (depending on the size of your hot dog sometimes I only cut it 4 times), you are making the tentacles.
• Poke top uncut part with the tip of the knife, to make eyes and mouth.
• I add the hot dogs to the macaroni while it's cooking.
• Boil 7 minutes until done.
• Remove hot dogs.
• Drain macaroni, add butter, cheese and milk.
• Stir until cheese is melted and creamy.
• Salt and pepper to taste.
• Serve octopus over macaroni.