Cooking the octopus
Ingredients:
1 2-or-3-pound octopus, cleaned, separate the head and tentacles
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 yellow onion, small dice
4 garlic cloves, smashed
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
1 teaspoon red crushed chilies
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 bottle dry white wine
2-3 cups chicken stock
Recommended Videos
Directions:
Heat the oil in a cast iron or heavy bottom pan. Sear the tentacles all over, remove from the pan. Add the onion, garlic, chilies, fennel and stir for a couple minutes. Add the wine, bring to a boil, then add the chicken stock and bring to a second boil. Add the octopus back into the pan and cover. Place in a 350-degree oven or keep on the stove over low heat and allow to cook until tender, about 1-2 hours. Remove the octopus from the pan and allow to cool.
Finishing the octopus
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil
Cooked octopus tentacles
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
4 piquillo peppers, sliced thin
¼ cup crispy garlic (recipe follows)
PX vinegar
1 teaspoon chili oil
Directions:
In a sauté pan or griddle over medium high heat, cook the octopus tentacles in the oil, season well with salt and pepper. When golden on all sides, remove and place in a small bowl; toss with the piquillo peppers and crispy garlic, drizzle a tiny bit of the chili oil and vinegar in as well. To serve, spoon a little Romesco over a plate and top with the octopus. Serve immediately.
Crispy Garlic
Ingredients:
½ cup garlic cloves, sliced almost paper thin with a Japanese mandolin or really sharp knife
Directions:
Place the sliced garlic in a small pot with one cup of canola oil on medium. Do not heat oil before adding garlic. Cook, shaking the pan constantly, and allow the garlic to just start turning golden brown. Strain immediately and reserve the oil in a small bowl. Once the oil and the garlic have both cooled to room temperature, place the garlic back in the oil and store at room temperature for up to one week.
Romesco
Ingredients:
1 roasted and peeled tomato (grilled then peeled)
1 roasted, peeled and seeded jalapeno (grilled then peeled)
3 piquillo peppers (or 1 large roast red pepper, peeled and seeded)
¼ cup olive oil
2 garlic cloves
1 large shallot, cut in half
1 cup smoked almonds
1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
¼ cup Italian parsley
1 piece of firm white bread, about ¾ inch thick
Directions:
Use a little water to run the blender. Kosher salt to taste. Add the garlic and shallot to the oil in a very small saucepan on low heat; cook until very soft and tender. Drain, and reserve the oil for other use. Add the tomato, jalapeno, piquillos, garlic and shallot to the blender, puree until smooth. Add all other ingredients into a blender, pulse until smooth but a little bit chunky, adding a tablespoon of water at a time if needed to run the blender. Season with salt.