Real octopus salad
We called this recipe ‘real octopus salad’ to emphasise to all our friends who love cooking and gastronomy that there is a fundamental difference between the ‘true’ octopus and an animal called ‘moscardino’ in Italian, ‘eledone’ in English, which is undoubtedly also very good. Remember that the real octopus has eight tentacles equipped with two rows of suckers on each, while the tentacles of the eledone has only one row of suckers. Even so, if you love seafood and want to try this recipe, don’t be afraid because it's really easy! You just need to follow our instructions in order to keep the octopus as tender as possible, but if you follow our tips you can’t go wrong. Enjoy the famous ‘real octopus salad’.
Ingredients
* approximate values per serving
Preparation
Get a real octopus: make sure there are eight tentacles, each with a double row of suckers, which confirm its identity. Beat him slightly. Boil a pot with water, a splash of vinegar, some celery, carrots and a bay leaf. When the water is boiling, submerge and remove the octopus from the water quickly three times, then immerse it completely and simmer for 20 minutes for each half kg of weight. Once cooked, let it cool in the water, then remove and cut into pieces. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, fresh lemon juice, parsley and salt.
Step by step
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Cook in unsalted boiling water
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Drain the octopus only when it’s cooking water has become tepid
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Cut the octopus into pieces and dress with oil, lemon, parsley and salt
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Additional information
Octopus Salad with Potatoes
Octopus salad with potatoes is a classic dish in every family. The recipe we have proposed on this page does not include the use of potatoes. However, if you add potatoes, you will achieve a more complete dish, capable of feeding and satisfying more people at once. You can cook both the octopus and the potatoes together, but be careful to always follow the appropriate cooking time for the octopus, which will always be 20 minutes for every 500 grams of octopus weight.
That said, either cut the potatoes small enough so that they are cooked within the total preparation time of 20 minutes, or you will need to pre-cook the potatoes. For example, you could put a bit of oil with onion and tomatoes in a nice earthenware dish, add the potatoes, and start cooking and flavoring everything before adding your octopus.
When the potatoes are partially cooked, you will then add the octopus for 20 minutes. At that point, everything will be properly flavored and ready. And you will have your octopus salad with potatoes. If, on the other hand, you want to make a dish that is a bit less stewed and a bit more like a salad, you will cook the octopus in water as usual, and also the potatoes in water. At that point, when everything is cooked, you will just need to assemble your dish.
You will then serve the octopus and potatoes together, drizzling with a nice stream of extra virgin olive oil, a few capers, some pieces of celery, salt, and pepper.
Super Tender Octopus Salad
Now let's say a few words about super tender octopus salad. Octopus, just like squid or cuttlefish, can be a bit tricky. It can become tough and rubbery like never before! Well, managing the time and temperature correctly is essential. Fresh octopus can be cooked without adding water because it releases water during cooking! After 20/30 minutes (but even 40, depending on the weight), it will be very tender! If you want to cook thawed octopus, you will need to boil it in water for 20 minutes for every 500 grams of octopus weight. And then let it cool directly in the water. This is how to achieve super tender octopus salad.