What to cook from octopus. Octopus in creamy sauce

Octopus is, of course, a delicacy. Its exotic taste cannot be compared with anything. Small octopuses are not babies, but adults of a species of octopus such as Aegina. They are no different from regular octopuses, but their small size can be used in special recipes. So let's find out how to cook baby octopuses.

Marinated octopus kebabs recipe

In order to cook small octopuses, we will need:

peeled octopus (500 g);
olive oil (1/4 cup);
lemon (1 pc.);
salt (2 teaspoons);
black pepper (1 teaspoon);
freshly chopped oregano (2 teaspoons);
ground cloves (1/2 teaspoon);
garlic (3 cloves);
kebab sticks.

If the small octopuses are frozen, then to cook, you need to defrost them at room temperature.
Then we prepare the marinade for the small octopuses. Pour olive oil into a bowl and squeeze the juice from the lemon. Add garlic in the form of puree and spices. Place the octopuses in the resulting marinade and mix well.
Cover the bowl with a lid or cling film and place in the refrigerator. The marinating time for octopuses is from 12 to 24 hours.
After this time, we take out the small octopuses and string them onto kebab sticks. The grill must be preheated. You need to cook small octopuses on it, periodically turning the chopsticks. This will take approximately 3 minutes for each side.

Our small octopus kebab is ready. But there is another option for how to cook small octopuses.

Pasta with small octopuses recipe

To prepare baby octopuses, take the following:

octopuses (1 kg);
tomato sauce (2 cups);
spaghetti (1 package);
fresh mint leaves (12 pcs.);
red wine vinegar (3 tablespoons);
garlic (4 cloves);
red chili flakes (a pinch);
olive oil;
salt and pepper.

How to cook baby octopuses?

To prepare this baby octopus recipe, boil the spaghetti in salted water (about 8 minutes). Then drain them and put them back in the pan. Cover with a lid and set aside.
Place the small octopuses in another pan and add red wine vinegar. Pour enough water to cover the octopuses. Place the pan with the octopuses over high heat and cook until they change color. As soon as this happens, remove them from the heat and drain the water.
To prepare the octopus, cut the garlic into long thin strips. Take a large deep frying pan and fry the garlic in it in hot olive oil. We put chili flakes in there and pour tomato sauce over it. Heat it for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Next, add small octopuses, spaghetti, mint leaves and mix everything. Cook over high heat for 1 minute and finally season with salt and pepper.

Hi all! In this article, as you already understand, we will talk about arthropod mollusks. I will tell, how to cook octopus. Perhaps in our northern latitudes this is a rare visitor, but the counters of shops and markets give us an abundance of products, almost like a self-assembled tablecloth. If only there was money. I would like to reveal a little information about this “beast”. For example, he has three hearts, one of which “drives” ink throughout the body. By the way, ink is highly prized by painters and artists for its persistent and rich color (sepia). The carcass contains a large amount of vitamins and minerals - selenium (important for men), phosphorus, potassium and group “B”. It is considered a common product in Japanese cuisine and is often eaten raw. Watch the video about this at the end! Octopuses and their cooking recipe are incredibly simple, we’ll see that now! Let's lay out our provisions for a beautiful photo.

The main task and first step will be to thoroughly wash the octopus to get rid of mucus, dirt and remaining “paint”. If you bought the frozen type, you need it to thaw completely.

Pour water into the saucepan and boil for about 10 minutes. You can’t overcook it, as it still has a little more to simmer. We take it out from the depths of the pan.

And cut into small pieces.

Grate the onion. Fill it with vegetable oil. Since the recipe is Greek, it should be 100% directly pressed olive oil. Well, were you able to get the octopus? And another small digression, if you want to have the most luxurious hairstyle, then this is a simple and affordable way.

At high temperature, fry the onion until golden brown. Approximately 5 minutes.

Pour red wine, add octopus and spices. Cook at low temperature for about 40 minutes until our liquid turns into a thick sauce. Can be cooked using water.

The dish is ready! Can be served as a mixture with rice. So to speak, pilaf from a young octopus.

Ingredients.

1 large octopus (about 1.5 kg)
? tea cup olive oil
2 onions
2 cups sweet red wine
3 bay leaves
1 tsp. salt
5 black pepper grains
3 grains of fragrant

If you are going to eat live octopus in Japan or Korea, do not ask how to cook it, since there is only one recipe - you need to chew it thoroughly. Because suction cups can play a cruel joke! There are also deaths. And here is the video itself.

Octopus is a popular delicacy with a great, unique taste. This formidable predator has made its way onto our tables from the very depths of the ocean. True, only small octopuses are usually eaten, as they have very tender meat and an unusual sweetish-sour taste.

Traditionally, octopus is cooked in Asia and Europe. Typically in Asian cuisine they are boiled and then used in salads and snacks. Before cooking, the tentacles need to be washed, covered with cold water and cooked for 5-10 minutes after boiling.

After this, the octopus should cool in the water that was boiled. In Japanese cuisine, octopuses are usually made into sushi and even eaten alive. For us, Mediterranean cuisine will be more familiar, where it is customary to fry octopus in olive oil and stew with vegetables and wine.

Octopus recipe

Cooking octopus is not at all difficult, even if you are doing it for the first time. The meat turns out very tender and tasty. In addition, it is very healthy, as it is rich in B vitamins, Omega-3 fatty acids, selenium and phosphorus. We offer you an easy recipe for cooking octopus in the Mediterranean style.

700 g frozen octopus
150 ml dry red wine
1 large onion
1 tbsp. tomato paste
Olive oil
Bay leaf
Allspice
Salt pepper

How to cook octopus

Thaw the octopus and cut it into pieces. Just trim off the tentacles and cut the center in half. Heat a large amount of olive oil in a saucepan and lightly fry the finely chopped onion.
Then add the octopus and fry it for a couple of minutes until it begins to release its water. Pour in the wine and simmer for a few minutes until the alcohol evaporates.
Now add water with tomato paste so that it almost completely covers the octopus. Salt, pepper and add bay leaf. Simmer covered over low heat for about an hour.
Check the water periodically and add boiling water as needed. But there shouldn’t be a lot of liquid, it should be thick and rich, not like broth. Later the liquid is used as gravy.
20 minutes before the octopus is ready, add diced potatoes to the pan. However, you can use any other side dish to your taste, for example, buckwheat or spaghetti. When the octopus is cooked, the meat will be soft and tender.

The process of cooking octopus in a regular pan step by step:

if octopus carcasses were bought uncut, then before cooking it is necessary to thoroughly rinse the workpiece, remove as much as possible the contents of the head and cut off the area of the eyes and the so-called “beak”;
the octopus can be sold with an ink sac, which must also be removed (it is located on the inside of the head);
It is enough to simply rinse the cut octopus carcasses thoroughly with water;
if the octopus is large, then before cooking it is recommended to lightly beat it (this must be done carefully so as not to damage the meat);
You can only put octopus in boiling water (when you put it in cold water, there is a risk that the seafood will acquire a hard meat consistency);
You need to take a minimum amount of liquid for cooking octopus (this way the seafood will be more juicy and aromatic, and it will cook almost in its own juice);
The octopus should be cooked only with the lid closed (this nuance helps to better cook the meat, eliminate its toughness and give it a richer aroma);
You can cool the octopus meat in the water in which it was boiled (it is difficult to digest octopus, so if it is in hot water it will not spoil its taste and will not become rubbery);
You can cook the octopus with practically no water (you need to pour about 2 cm of liquid into the pan, bring it to a boil and put the octopus in; you will have to add water during the cooking process);
It is advisable to salt the octopuses at the very end of cooking, a few minutes before they are ready.

The method of boiling octopus without water is complex. If you lack certain skills, you can only partially boil seafood. While cooking octopus, the pan should be covered with a lid, and the heat should be kept to a minimum. Water will have to be added quite often. Despite the complexity of the method, thanks to such tricks the seafood turns out to be the most juicy and tender.

Octopus is cooked in a pressure cooker in a different way:

Pour a small amount of water into the pressure cooker (no more than half the container), add salt and bring the liquid to a boil;
The octopus must be immersed in boiling water three times, and each time it is immersed in the water it must remain in the water for no more than 3 seconds;
when immersing an octopus in boiling water, it is better to use any tongs;
after the original “bathing”, the octopus is sent entirely into boiling water and the pressure cooker is closed with a lid;
before closing the lid, you can add chopped onion to the broth;
Triple immersion of the octopus in boiling water eliminates the rubbery consistency and makes the seafood softer.

A unique secret to cooking octopus is the use of a wooden wine cork. This element just needs to be put into the pan while preparing the seafood. The bark tree from which corks are most often made can change the taste of the octopus and make its meat more tender.

How long to cook octopus

Cooking time depends on its size. The cooking process can take a minimum of 5 minutes and a maximum of 1 hour. Small and frozen ones do not need to be defrosted before cooking. It is better to defrost large carcasses first.

Cooking time for octopus in a regular pan:

large octopus should be cooked for 1 hour;
medium-sized octopuses are ready within 20-25 minutes;
It is enough to cook small octopus carcasses for 5-10 minutes (frozen seafood is cooked for a similar time);
Octopus tentacles should be cooked for a maximum of 7-10 minutes (these parts of the octopus’ body cook the fastest).

In a pressure cooker, octopus is cooked for an average of 30 minutes. If the carcasses are small, then after 20 minutes of cooking you need to check their readiness and, if necessary, continue the cooking process. It is better not to cook octopus in a double boiler or microwave. Such methods often do not live up to expectations, and It is very easy to spoil seafood if a number of rules are not followed.

Octopus has long been no longer just a restaurant dish. It can be purchased at any store and prepared at home. Octopuses are the most intellectually developed mollusks. They have no bones and their brain is shaped like a donut. The blood of the mollusk is blue due to the large amount of copper in its composition. And yet, many gourmets prefer to cook octopus at home, loving it for its interesting and unusual taste.

Preparing Ingredients

To prepare a delicious dish, it is important to choose the right ingredients. When choosing seafood, you need to take into account some nuances.

If you have a great desire to enjoy the delicate taste of shellfish, then you should choose a live product. In this case, most likely, you will need to spend money on cutting up the octopus.

Frozen carcasses are most often sold already cut and cook much faster than fresh ones.
It is worth paying special attention to the size of the mollusk. Small individuals have more tender and tasty meat. Medium-sized individuals have more nutritious meat. Large specimens weighing more than 2 kilograms can taste like rubber.
You need to carefully examine the appearance of the product. This is especially important when purchasing fresh shellfish. The carcass should be shiny and burgundy-brown in color, without bald spots.
It is worth learning to understand the smell of the product. Octopus smells quite peculiar, but it is not a repulsive smell. But if there is an unpleasant smell of rotten fish, it is best to refuse the purchase.
Small-sized individuals are mostly sold whole. Many experts recommend determining the freshness of shellfish by looking at the eyes. Transparent eyes indicate the freshness of the product. It is best not to buy a carcass that has black spots and torn skin. These characteristics indicate that the product is stale or that storage conditions are not met.

After the choice is made, it is necessary to properly prepare the product.

At the very beginning, you need to defrost the shellfish if it was not purchased fresh or chilled. This must be done in natural conditions.
The carcass is thoroughly cleaned of mucus under cold water.
It is not necessary to clean the shellfish for cooking. The skin of a mollusk is very difficult to remove and it is better to remove it after thermal exposure. This will significantly speed up the peeling process.
It is important to properly cut the shellfish carcass. This is necessary when purchasing a fresh product. First, the tentacles are cut off, and then the bottom of the head is cut off. In the head you can see a mouth hole that needs to be cut out. It is also better to remove the eyes.
It is important to rinse your head well from the inside and remove offal and ink from it. After this, you can turn your head out and repeat the procedure again.
If the clam is large, then it is best to beat it off before starting cooking.

Cooking octopus is not difficult. The main thing is that it doesn’t turn out “rubbery”. To do this, it is important to use a special hammer. There is another option for preparing the dish. During the cooking process, it is important not to overcook the shellfish. Otherwise, this will lead to very tough meat.

During cooking, the octopus goes through several stages. You need to catch the moment when the mollusk has not become very hard. Some experts recommend throwing wine corks into the container during the cooking process.

Shellfish can be added to any first course that contains seafood. Many chefs like to fry cutlets from it. Shellfish complements legumes, vegetables and herbs perfectly. The required ingredients are soy sauce, olive oil and wine vinegar. In the east, shellfish are mostly boiled. It serves as an excellent base for cold appetizers.

Before you start cooking, the tentacles must be washed thoroughly. Then they are filled with cold water for several minutes. After the water boils, cook the seafood for no more than 5 minutes. Cooking time depends proportionally on the size of the octopus. Only after it has completely cooled can it be taken out and cooked according to the intended recipe.

In Japan, octopus is served with rice and spicy sauce, in China it is flavored with a huge number of different spices. In Portugal they cook octopus in batter, and in Italy it is added to first courses. Koreans eat octopus alive. In our country, it is most often added to cold snacks.

Shellfish, like other seafood, contains a large amount of protein and is low in calories.

When preparing seafood, it is important to follow several rules.

The seafood should be lowered into boiling water gradually. This will make the meat softer and retain all its beneficial properties.
There is no need to add salt to the pan with octopus, this will make the meat tough. It is better to use a set of your favorite spices, but not to overuse them.
When preparing a large specimen, you need to beat it a little. Defrosting it naturally at room temperature will help make the meat softer.
In order to quickly and easily remove the skin, you need to rinse the clam with cold water after boiling.
If for some reason the time frame was not met and the meat became tough, then you should continue to cook the meat for about 60 minutes. This technique will make the meat soft again, but the octopus will lose all its beneficial properties.

Recipes

Octopus is a versatile product that can be used to prepare a wide variety of dishes. It is easy to prepare at home, the main thing is to follow all the cooking technology and the amount of ingredients. Octopuses can be marinated, fried, smoked. They can be cooked in oil, in batter, or fried into cutlets. There are interesting recipes for cooking octopus in Galician and Greek. Some people use canned shellfish in their recipes. If you cook at home, it is better to use young octopuses. Their meat has a softer and fresher taste.

In order for the seafood to turn out delicious, you need to follow the entire cooking process. Young housewives are better off using a step-by-step recipe for preparing dishes from this product. You can cook octopus in any convenient way.

In a frying pan

All lovers of Mediterranean cuisine will love the taste of clams with lemon and garlic.

Boiled tentacles of a young octopus are laid out in a frying pan heated with oil. They need to be fried until golden brown on each side.
Next, lemon zest, salt and garlic are added to the clam. All ingredients are mixed and fried in a frying pan for a minute. Then the octopus can be placed on a dish, pour lemon juice over it and sprinkle with herbs.

True gourmets will appreciate the wonderful combination of aromas and flavors of fried octopus with vegetables and herbs.

Prepared and boiled octopus should cool in water.
In the meantime, you can start preparing the salad. Tomato, garlic and green onion are finely chopped.
The cooled octopus is cut into small pieces and fried in a frying pan until golden brown.
Once the clam is fried, you can mix it with chopped vegetables. The dish is seasoned with wine vinegar, spices and olive oil.

For lovers of Asian dishes, an excellent solution would be to cook octopus with spicy sauce.

Boiled octopus should be cut into rings and strips no more than 5 mm thick.
Place finely chopped garlic on a heated frying pan. It is fried until a garlic aroma appears. Add red onion cut into rings. The onion should be fried until it becomes soft.
Then thinly sliced ginger and chili pepper are poured into the frying pan and rice vinegar is poured in. Afterwards, soy sauce is added to the dish and all ingredients continue to be fried in a frying pan for about 2 minutes.
Boiled octopus is added to the onions and spices. You need to fry for about 10 minutes, stirring thoroughly. The dish can be eaten hot or cold.

Among gourmets, a dish of fried octopus and artichoke in tomato-mint sauce is popular.

The artichoke is thoroughly cleaned, and all sections are covered with lemon juice. Then it is placed in a container with cold water. Carrots and peeled tomatoes should be finely chopped. At the last moment, the artichoke is also finely chopped.
The artichoke is fried in a small frying pan in olive oil. A few drops of lemon juice are added to it. After 5 minutes, carrots, tomatoes, thyme, garlic and octopus tentacles are added to the pan.
Blend the tomato and mint in a blender until smooth. Place 2 spoons of vegetable mixture and octopus tentacles on a serving plate. Top the dish with a small amount of sauce and garnish with a mint leaf.

In the oven

Portuguese-style octopus with potatoes is very tasty.

Cooked and cooled octopus is placed in a baking dish on a layer of onion and garlic. It is best to use medium-sized seafood.
Jacket potatoes are boiled and then thoroughly dried with a paper towel.
The finished potatoes should be put under a small press so that they are slightly flattened and cracked.
Potatoes are placed in the mold for the octopus. The dish needs to be salted, peppered, added olive oil and sprinkled with a little herbs.
The baking dish goes into the preheated oven. The dish needs to be cooked for at least 40 minutes. It’s good if the oven has a grill or fan mode. This will create a beautiful crust on potatoes and seafood.
The hot dish is served on portioned plates and sprinkled with fresh parsley on top.

Another interesting way of preparing seafood came to our country from Spain. The boiled clam is baked in the oven for about 30 minutes. It is then fried for 5 minutes. This technique creates a crispy crust on the shellfish. It is laid out on lemon slices and sweet and sour sauce is poured on top. You can prepare it yourself or buy it ready-made. This sauce can be prepared at home from ground ginger, sugar, ketchup, water, garlic and apple cider vinegar.

On the grill

Octopus cooked in the fresh air is an excellent appetizer and a real decoration for the summer table. It is important to defrost the shellfish and rinse it. After the clam is cooked, it must be cooled. Then it should be generously seasoned with salt, olive oil, a mixture of peppers, oregano, garlic and fresh parsley. Octopus cooks very quickly on the grill. Just a few minutes are enough to fry it on all sides. The finished seafood can be served separately or together with grilled vegetables and your favorite herbs.
An original treat in nature will be octopus kebab. To prepare it, you need to divide the boiled clam into tentacles. The shellfish is rubbed with classic spices and marinated in this composition for about 30 minutes. It is important to use medium sized tentacles. Small ones will quickly burn out on the grill, but large ones will not cook through.
There is no need to cover the octopus with lemon, as this may make it bitter. Just a few drops are enough. After 30 minutes, the clam is cleared of garlic and threaded onto skewers. Each side should be fried for about 4 minutes. The readiness of the dish is checked by cutting the thickest part of the tentacle. At first, it is best to lay out the octopus with the tentacles facing up, this will allow it to fry better.
Then you need to prepare the sauce. To do this, mix oil, mustard, soy sauce and finely chopped parsley. Arugula is laid out on a large dish, and octopus kebab is placed on it. The sauce is served in portioned bowls.

How to properly cook octopus at home in a pan, see the following video.