When ordering octopus in a restaurant you will often be served the tentacles, which are tasty, but quite chewy. Preparing and eating octopus at home gives you the advantage of selecting the freshest meat and allows you to try other parts of the octopus so that you might prepare to your meet your particular tastes.
Instructions
1. Purchase the freshest octopus that you can find. Most good seafood markets will display the entire octopus, cutting off the parts you select. While tentacles make common appetizers, the head parts, such as the mantle and siphon, are the most tender and easiest to prepare. Don't shy away from the eyes, many people believe fried octopus eyes to be the best part of the meat.
2. Boil octopus in salty water for 35 minutes, or until the color of the meat becomes a vibrant deep purple. The amount of salt will depend on both your taste and the amount of octopus that you are preparing. Precooking the octopus meat will help to eliminate any chewiness.
3. Deep-fry pre-cooked octopus for a mouth watering appetizer, dipping thin strips first into egg white and then into flour or fish fry batter. How you prepare the flour or fish fry is up to you, you may add salt, pepper, cumin, garlic or any other spices that you enjoy. Deep-fry the battered octopus pieces in a wok or deep fryer until they are a crispy golden brown. Serve deep-fried octopus with lemon or a classic marinara or tarter sauce.
4. Saute pre-cooked octopus for another tasty option. Add approximately two pounds of octopus slices to a pan with eight tablespoons of olive oil, 150 ml of red wine, six tablespoons of red wine vinegar, one large chopped tomato, four bay leaves and two teaspoons of dried oregano. Saute the octopus for 1 hour, adding wine and water if the sauce begins to dry. Eat with rice, salad and garlic bread.
5. Pickle pre-cooked octopus for a spicy treat, packing strips loosely into a glass jar with a tight fitting lid. Add equal amounts of red wine vinegar and olive oil to fill the jar, and add four or five crushed garlic cloves, a pinch of salt and pepper and one teaspoon of dried thyme. Allow the octopus to pickle in the tightly sealed jar for 5 days before eating with lemon wedges and dry bread.
