What can you make an octopus from. Octopuses in creamy sauce. The process of cooking a delicacy in a pressure cooker

Even the Romans and the ancient Greeks were very fond of octopuses and constantly hunted them. Love has passed through the centuries and now the inhabitants of the Mediterranean, despite all the wealth of choice, are happy to eat octopuses in any form.

Salted, dried, fresh and boiled clams are useful, especially with olive oil. Octopus has a lot of protein, and besides that, they strengthen the cardiovascular system well.

How to choose an octopus?

Small to medium sized octopuses are usually sold whole and are easier to select. As strange as it may sound, the octopus is chosen by its eyes. They are, so to speak, a mirror of his quality. A good and edible mollusk should have transparent eyes.

A large individual is butchered and on the shelves you can see only tentacles, which, of course, have no eyes. Here it is worth focusing on skin color. It should be a shiny, beautiful brown color. You can take this product without hesitation. But the octopus, which has black spots at the ends of the tentacles and those whose skin is torn, is better not to buy. They are either not fresh or not properly stored.

How to cook an octopus correctly?

The value of the octopus is the tentacles. The main thing is that they are not rubber. To do this, they can be beaten off with a meat mallet. But there is another, peaceful way. It is necessary to clearly monitor the cooking time of the products and not bring the mollusk to suffocation in boiling water. However, if time is lost, then you need to be patient and cook the octopus until it is edible.

During cooking, the mollusk goes through several stages. It is necessary to seize the moment and catch the octopus at the moment when it has not yet become stiff, or wait out this moment. There is a little trick to make the dishes excellent: during cooking, throw wine corks into the pan.

How to cook octopus?

Octopus is put in almost all soups that contain several types of seafood. The product goes well with squid. And now many cooks make cutlets from these mollusks. By the way, kids love to eat this dish. Here it is important to remove the beaks from the squid and octopus, gut and pass through a meat grinder. Add garlic, herbs and onions to the minced meat, then roll in breadcrumbs and fry.

It is enough to keep the cutlets in the pan for two to three minutes. By the way, such dishes are very useful for artists. Octopuses and squids are pure protein, and it is useful for ligaments and allows you to keep your voice for a long time. No wonder the best singers are Italians, who eat seafood almost every day.

Any legumes are suitable for an octopus dish, for example, beans, vegetables, herbs and, of course, soy sauce, olive oil or wine vinegar.

Octopus likes to cook in Asia and Europe. In Asian cuisine, shellfish are often simply boiled. Boiled tentacles are the basis of most salads and appetizers.

Before cooking, the tentacles are washed in water, preferably running water, then poured with cold water, and only after boiling the water is boiled for 5 to 10 minutes. The time depends on the size of the octopus. It is very important that the clam cools in the same water in which it was boiled. The cooled octopus is taken out of the container, the skin is peeled and cooked according to the recipe you like.

The Japanese serve octopus with rice, seaweed and wasabi. The Chinese are wise and mask the mollusk with sauces. The Portuguese prefer battered octopus, while the Italians prefer to put it in soup for broth.

How to cook octopus? Recipe from Azbuka Vkusa

In Mediterranean cuisine, the ink sac is first removed from the octopus. However, it is not thrown away. Ink can also be used in many recipes. They even remove the beak and eyes. And after that, the carcass is washed in water, even beaten with an ordinary meat hammer, cut into small pieces. More often in this cuisine, octopuses are simply fried in olive oil, and then stewed with vegetables and wine.

You can also eat octopus alive. At least that's how Koreans like to do it. But in Russia it is advised to make salads with octopuses. They are light and nutritious at the same time. You can safely put lettuce leaves in a salad, add olive oil or wine vinegar, lemon. But the main thing is not to overdo it. For salad and sashimi, appearance is always important. Therefore, you need to try to cut the tentacles beautifully. Make sure that each belt or circle has a suction cup.

Popular Octopus Recipes

Octopus Feijoada (Portuguese Cuisine)

For this dish you will need 1.5 kg of octopus, 1 cup of beans, 5 cloves of garlic, 5 tbsp. olive oil, 2 tbsp. melted lard, 4 onions, salt, parsley and black pepper, 3 medium carrots and half a glass of dry white wine.

Beans must be soaked for a day or two, dried and boiled over low heat. Cut boiled (with onion and olive oil) octopus. Saute chopped garlic in olive oil and lard in a saucepan. Next, add chopped onion, and sliced ​​​​carrots. Season all this with salt, pepper and continue to simmer. Add white wine and bring the dish to a boil.

And then put the chopped octopus and beans. Add water, add salt and pepper. Cook over low heat. After it is worth taking out a few tablespoons of the beans, crush it with a fork and put it back. Stir and simmer until thickened. Sprinkle with chopped parsley before serving.

Fried octopus (Maltese cuisine)

For the dish you will need 0.5 kg of octopus, 2 tbsp. vegetable oil, 4 pcs. onions, 2 tbsp. tomato paste, 8 pcs. olives, 1 tbsp. capers, 1 tbsp. chopped mint, 1 tsp spice mix and 1 glass of red wine.

First of all, you need to remove the eyes and the ink bag from the octopus. Rinse the carcass under running water. Break off and cut into pieces. Brown the onion in oil, add the octopus to it and fry for a few minutes.

Then add all other ingredients and simmer for two hours. Stir occasionally. It is necessary to ensure that the meat does not dry out and add hot water. This octopus can be served with potatoes or spaghetti. Garnish should be added at the end of cooking.

Little octopus recipe

Octopus salad (Cypriot cuisine)

Take 300 gr. octopus, 1.5 liters of water, 1 tsp. salt, 1-2 onions, 2-3 tomatoes, 2 tbsp. chopped parsley, 2 green onion leaves, 90 g. Green olives, 2 tbsp. capers, 4 tbsp. lemon juice, half tbsp. sugar and 2 tbsp olive oil.

Cut the octopus, remove its beak and boil for 40-50 minutes in salted water. After this, dry the clam. At this time, peel the tomatoes from the skin and cut. At the same time, chop the onion, and add green onion and parsley. Mix well. In a separate container, mix oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Dress the salad with the resulting mixture. It can be served with bread with butter.

The editors of the site wish you bon appetit and successful experiments with octopuses.
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If until recently we saw exotic inhabitants of the deep sea only on TV screens, today they can be found on store shelves. And some of them make very tasty dishes! And how to cook an octopus so that it is tasty and healthy?

How to make the right choice?

First of all, you should choose an octopus.

• Frozen or fresh? If you want to get the maximum benefit and enjoy a delicate taste, then it is advisable to choose fresh. But you will probably have to cut it, although you can ask the seller about it (he will probably have to pay). And if you want to save time and effort, you can also buy frozen octopus, in this form the carcasses are usually sold already completely cut and cooked even faster, and this is very convenient.
• Pay attention to the size. Small octopuses have more tender flesh, medium ones are more nutritious, but a large adult octopus weighing about two to three kilograms can be “rubber”.
• Rate the look. But such a criterion will be relevant only if you buy a fresh octopus. The surface of the carcass should be shiny, the color should be burgundy-brownish and uniform. No damage is allowed.
• Study the smell. It is specific, but quite pleasant. He definitely shouldn't give away "rotten stuff".

Proper cooking preparation

Preparation consists of several stages:

First, the carcass must be thawed if it is frozen. But this should be done only at room temperature, that is, in a natural way, and not in a microwave oven.

Next, rinse the octopus thoroughly under running cold water to remove all the mucus.

It is not worth cleaning the carcasses before cooking, the skin is removed very, very difficult, so it is better to get rid of it after heat treatment (then it will peel off quickly). But if the octopus is adult and large, then its shell will be quite dense, so that it can be scraped off with a knife already at this stage.

Now you need to cut the carcass (the frozen one will probably already be cut). To do this, it is more convenient to first cut off the tentacles, but this is not necessary. Next, cut off the lower part of the head, that is, the support on which the tentacles are held. In it you will find a mouth opening that looks like a tooth or a beak. It needs to be removed. To do this, first, as it were, squeeze it out, and then cut it out with a knife. Also cut out the eyes.

Now wash the inside of the head well to remove all offal, as well as ink, if any. Then you can turn it out and rinse again.

If the octopus is large, then it is advisable to beat it off before cooking.

How to cook?

If you decide to cook octopus for the first time, then the easiest way for you will be boiling. But how long to cook it to make it tasty? Processing should be short, otherwise the meat will become stringy and tough, like rubber (this is a very common problem).

Your task is simply to exterminate all pathogenic organisms. Small octopuses only need to be cooked for about five to seven minutes, larger ones - about 20. But a large octopus can cook for about an hour.

You can check readiness with a toothpick. Pierce it with the largest part of the carcass, that is, the head. If the toothpick comes in easily and quickly, then the octopus is ready. If not, cook it some more. And after cooking, you can remove the skin.

How to cook?

How to cook octopus if you want to make a more interesting dish? Below are some interesting options.

Option number 1

You can bake octopus with potatoes. Here's what you'll need:

• 1 kg of octopuses (or a whole carcass);
• 1 kg of potatoes;
• parsley;
• five cloves of garlic;
• three tablespoons of lemon juice;
• olive oil;
• salt to taste.

Cooking:

Potatoes need to be peeled, cut into slices and boiled.

Boil the octopus and cut it (small octopuses can not be chopped).

Grease the bottom of a baking dish with olive oil.

Put the potatoes mixed with the octopus in a dish, sprinkle everything with lemon juice and olive oil, and sprinkle with minced garlic and chopped parsley. Don't forget to salt the dish.

Option number 2

Try stewing octopus at home using sour cream and milk. Prepare:

• 500 grams of octopus;
• 2 glasses of milk;
• half a glass of sour cream;
• five tablespoons of flour;
• three tablespoons of white wine;
• a tablespoon of lemon juice;
• three cloves of garlic;
• two tablespoons of olive oil;
• salt and pepper to taste.

How to cook?

Octopuses need to be boiled for about 10 minutes, adding lemon juice and wine to the water.

Now clean the carcasses and cut into portions if they are large.

Heat the olive oil in a frying pan, fry the garlic.

Add milk, and when it is hot, dissolve the flour in it.

Boil the sauce until boiling, then add sour cream.

Now lay out the octopuses.

Put pepper and salt in the pan, simmer the dish for five minutes and remove from heat.

Option number 3

You can make a delicious salad. Here's what you need for this:

• 500 grams of octopus;
• 4 potatoes;
• head of red onion;
• 10 cherry tomatoes;
• lettuce leaves;
• 60 grams of pitted olives;
• 5 tablespoons of olive oil;
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice;
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar;
• a teaspoon of liquid honey.

Cooking:

Boil the octopus, peel and cut.

Potatoes need to be boiled in their skins, peeled and cut into cubes.

Cherry cut into halves.

Onion cut into half rings.

Just tear lettuce leaves.

To make the sauce, combine vinegar, oil, lemon juice and honey.

Mix the ingredients, salt and season with sauce.

Salad ready!

You need to lower the octopus only in boiling water. Moreover, real experts advise doing this gradually: first, immerse the tentacles, and when they slightly change color and begin to curl, you can lower the whole carcass.

During cooking, in no case do not add salt, it will harden the pulp. For taste, you can use some fragrant seasoning.

If you do not want to beat the octopus, then you can freeze it, this technique will also allow you to soften the meat.

It is desirable to reduce the fire to a minimum, the carcasses should literally languish in barely boiling water, and not boil in a bubbling broth (then the taste will go bad).

To make the pulp more tender, you can add a cork from a bottle of wine (of course, not plastic) during cooking.

Octopuses go well with a variety of sauces, especially cream and soy sauces.

You can serve dishes with any side dishes, for example, with vegetables, spaghetti, rice.

To quickly remove the skin, after heat treatment, you can pour cold water over the octopus.

Choose the best recipe and be sure to surprise your family and guests with an unusual and delicious dish!

Housewives often think about how to cook an octopus deliciously. Until recently, the sea delicacy was an overseas exotic for us, and today it is very easy to buy it in a supermarket within walking distance. From it you can cook a lot of tasty and healthy dishes that will appeal to all family members. It is the basis of Asian and Mediterranean cuisine.

Octopus dishes

From seafood, culinary specialists prepare such dishes as: stew, pate, soups, meatballs and salads. Octopus can be used to make sushi and sashimi. It makes excellent snacks, it is grilled and stewed in a cauldron. All these dishes are hearty and healthy, as the octopus contains a large amount of protein. Small octopuses are more tender, medium-sized octopuses are nutritious. It is difficult to prepare a dish from a large carcass, since with inept processing you can get a “rubber” product.

Grilled

On the grill you get a very tasty and dietary dish.

30 minutes. Video recipe Print

Defrost the octopus (if necessary), chop into large pieces.

Grind the garlic, grind the octopus with it and salt well.

Squeeze lemon juice and add oil, stir well.

Heat up the grill, fry the product for 3-4 minutes on each side until crusty.

Quickly simmer the grilled tomatoes and serve until cool.

Advice! Remove thin sections of tentacles, as they can burn. It is important to shake off the garlic before frying. To straighten the tentacles, they can be strengthened with special skewers. Do not fry the meat for too long - the octopus will become rubbery.

Stewed with vegetables

For this dish, you need to choose medium-sized octopuses - small and not small.

To prepare 4 servings you will need:

• fresh octopus - 600 grams;
• broccoli, cauliflower, red cabbage - 150 grams each;
• medium carrot - 1 pc.;
• onion - 1 pc.;
• sweet pepper - 2 pcs.;
• tomato paste - 2 tablespoons;
• spices to taste;
• garlic - 2 cloves.

Cooking steps:

1. Chop the seafood into pieces, rinse and chop the vegetables.
2. Grind the garlic, scald the cauliflower and broccoli in boiling water for a couple of minutes.
3. Put cabbage and pepper in a deep frying pan, fry, add all the ingredients.
4. Stew vegetables, stirring for 5 minutes and add the seafood delicacy.
5. Simmer for a few minutes at the end, add tomato paste and spices. Switch off.

Recipe from Yulia Vysotskaya

A simple octopus recipe from a famous TV presenter will be a wonderful surprise for your family.

For 4 servings you will need:

• frozen carcass - 750 grams:
• large red onion;
• 200 ml dry red wine;
• 2 leaves of lavrushka;
• 4 peas of allspice;
• salt and spices to taste;
• 2 tbsp. spoons of tomato paste;
• 3 art. tablespoons of olive oil.

Cooking steps:

1. Prepare the octopus, cut.
2. Chop the onion, fry in oil for a couple of minutes and put the meat.
3. Fry for two minutes and add red wine.
4. After three minutes, pour in some water and add tomato paste.
5. Add salt and spices, simmer under a tightly closed lid for 70-80 minutes.
6. Add water as needed, but not too much.

Serve the finished dish according to the recipe of Yulia Vysotskaya hot.

Attention! Proper cutting of a large, unpeeled octopus is key. First, the eyes and ink bag are carefully removed. Then he is thoroughly washed and disassembled into tentacles. Culinary experts recommend beating the meat before cooking to break up the tissue and then drying it by hanging.

The Greeks are great admirers of wine and sea delicacy, by combining these two ingredients you can get a truly magnificent dish for evening home gatherings.

What you need for 4 servings:

• fresh octopuses - 700-800 grams;
• dry red wine - 1 glass;
• onion - 1 pc.;
• medium-sized tomatoes - 3 pcs.;
• garlic - 4 cloves;
• refined oil, preferably olive;
• a sprig of fresh green parsley, cilantro and oregano if available, you can take dry spices;
• bay leaf, ground pepper, salt - to taste.

Steps for cooking at home:

1. Chop the onion and garlic and fry in a deep saucepan.
2. Cut the carcass into bars 2 cm thick, put in a dry frying pan without oil and sweat under the lid for 30 minutes.
3. Scald the tomatoes, remove the skin and chop into cubes.
4. Add tomatoes, wine, spices to the meat and cook for another 30 minutes.
5. Test for readiness with a fork and sprinkle with fresh herbs.

Serve hot.

Hearty and light salad with seafood will be a great delicacy for any table.

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• fresh octopus - 700 grams;
• balsamic vinegar - 2 tbsp. a spoon;
• olive oil - 3-4 tbsp. spoons;
• garlic - 2 cloves;
• sweet seasonal onions, preferably red - 2 pcs.;
• potatoes - 2 pcs.;
• medium tomatoes - 3 pcs.;
• salt, pepper to taste.

How to prepare salad:

1. Peel the octopus, wash and put in cold water. Boil until done for about half an hour. Leave the water for the sauce.
2. Cut the finished carcass into cubes and salt.
3. Boil potatoes and peel.
4. Add chopped onions, potatoes and tomatoes to the dish, season with oil.
5. Make dressing sauce. Boil a small amount of water from seafood, add garlic and spices, then add balsamic vinegar and cool.

Drizzle the salad generously with the dressing and serve.

Attention! To choose the right octopus carcass, you do not need to pay attention to its color. You need to focus on freshness, because a product spoiled by improper storage can cause severe poisoning. You need to pay attention to the purity and transparency of the eyes - if they are without blackouts, then it is fresh. Fresh product should not have dark spots on the body and tentacles of seafood. If the skin is torn, it means that it has been frozen and thawed more than once. Remember, the smaller the carcass, the juicier it will be after heat treatment.

Delicious warm appetizer goes well with white and red sauces, can be served with a salad of fresh vegetables.

Products for 4 servings:

• frozen carcasses - 800-900 grams;
• any milk - 400 ml;
• flour - 400 grams;
• salt - 1 teaspoon;
• chicken egg - 4 pcs.;
• salt - 1 teaspoon;
• refined oil - 900 ml.

Step by step recipe:

1. Prepare seafood, pour over boiling water and remove the film from the carcass, cut into strips.
2. From milk, flour, eggs and salt, knead the dough of the consistency of sour cream.
3. Heat oil in a deep frying pan.
4. Dip each piece in batter and spread in oil, fry for 1-2 minutes on both sides. Place finished snacks on a paper towel to drain excess oil.

Lovers of smoked fish are in for great news - a seafood delicacy can and should also be prepared in this simple way.

What you need for 4 servings:

• fresh small octopuses - about 1 kg;
• spices and salt to taste;
• wood chips for smoking.

How to cook:

1. Put large pieces of peeled mollusk on the smokehouse grate.
2. Start the smoking process for about two hours.
3. Put the finished seafood in a dish and serve with beer with vegetables and croutons.

Remember that you need to control the flowing liquid from the octopus - there will be a lot of it.

Octopus and garlic go so well together and it takes no more than 20 minutes to prepare this dish.

What you need to cook 4 servings:

• fresh mini carcasses weighing ½ kg;
• cream - 5 tablespoons;
• garlic - 3 cloves;
• flour - 100 grams;
• butter - 50 grams;
• vegetable oil - 3 tbsp. spoons;
• curry seasoning - 1 tbsp. a spoon;
• salt and pepper to taste.

Cooking steps:

1. Prepare seafood meat, rinse and cut into cubes.
2. Roll in flour and fry in vegetable oil for a couple of minutes.
3. Add salt and spices, garlic with butter, simmer for a couple more minutes.
4. Pour in the cream and a little water, cover the pan with a lid and simmer the dish for about five minutes. Turn off and serve hot.

If the hostess has a slow cooker, it’s a sin not to try to make an octopus dish in it.

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• octopus meat 700 grams;
• sour cream - 200 grams;
• tomato paste - 4 tablespoons;
• onions - 2 pieces;
• carrots - 1 piece;
• salt and spices to taste.

Cooking steps:

1. Grate the carrots, chop the onion.
2. Peel the octopuses, rinse and cut into portions.
3. Put all the products in the multicooker bowl and add water (multi-cup).
4. Turn on the device in the "Extinguishing" mode for 40 minutes.
5. When ready, open the multicooker and serve the finished dish immediately to the table.

Advice! When buying frozen seafood, pay attention to the amount of ice and snow in the package. If there are too many of them, this indicates a low quality product. Usually, a dense ice crust on freezing appears after repeated freezing. Also pay attention to the presence of a second sticker with an expiration date - such a product should not be eaten!

Seafood makes a delicious nutritious soup. On the eve of cooking, you need to soak it in cold water for 12 hours.

For 4 servings you will need:

• young octopuses - 400 grams;
• sweet shallots - 3-4 pieces;
• stalk of celery - 1 piece;
• carrots - 1 piece;
• chickpeas - 450 grams;
• canned tomato in its own juice - 400 grams;
• turmeric and coriander 2 pinches each;
• vegetable oil - 2 tbsp. spoons;
• salt and pepper.

Cooking steps:

1. Soak chickpeas in cold water for several hours and boil for 50 minutes. Do not pour out the cooking water.
2. Grate the carrots, chop the onion, garlic and celery with a knife.
3. Fry vegetables with spices in oil.
4. Add canned tomatoes and simmer for 10 minutes.
5. Pour the chickpeas and simmer for 4 minutes, add the water from the chickpeas and grind the mass with a blender.
6. Bring soup to a boil and remove.
7. Boil the octopus for five minutes.
8. Fry with garlic over high heat with oil for 3 minutes.
9. Arrange the finished soup on plates and decorate using small boiled carcasses.

To prepare the dish, an average carcass weighing up to a kilogram is correct.

What you need to make 4 servings:

• octopuses - 800 grams;
• onions - 1-2 pieces;
• sprig of fresh cilantro;
• balsamic vinegar - 2 tablespoons;
• vegetable oil - 50 grams;
• tomato - 3 pieces;
• salt and spices to taste.

Cooking steps:

1. Boil the octopuses in fresh water for 50 minutes, they should be soft.
2. Cool the carcass and cut into cubes.
3. Fry seafood over high heat until crispy.
4. Preparing a salad of tomato, onion and herbs.
5. Put the octopus salad on a dish and season with spices, oil and vinegar.

A Japanese rice dish with seafood, cooked under certain conditions, is sure to please everyone.

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• boiled white rice - ½ kg;
• package of frozen assorted seafood - 500 grams;
• mini carrots - 5 pcs.;
• onion - 1 pc.;
• chicken egg - 1 pc.;
• sweet pepper - 1 pc.;
• soy sauce - 5 tablespoons;
• olive oil - 3 tablespoons;
• ground black pepper.

How the dish is prepared:

1. Boil rice and sea platter separately. Leave the seafood in the broth for 20 minutes.
2. Heat up a frying pan with oil. Fry the onions and carrots, add sweet pepper and fry for another 2 minutes.
3. Pour in the sea cocktail and cook for another seven minutes.
4. Beat the egg in a saucer, pour it into the pan in one motion, mix.
5. Add rice and stir again.
6. Season the dish with soy sauce and spices. You can eat after 15 minutes.

Advice! Properly cooked octopus cutlets and pâté are tender. The best ingredient for such dishes can be considered small boiled carcasses with the addition of white fish. For minced meat, beaten eggs and crackers are taken.

The recipe for octopus in copper dishes is the national pride of the Spaniards.

What you need for 5 servings:

• large carcass - up to 2 kg;
• sweet paprika - 1 tablespoon;
• onions - 1 pc.;
• bay leaf - 2 leaves;
• ground hot pepper - ½ tsp;
• olive oil - 3 tablespoons;
• salt - ½ tsp.

Step by step preparation:

1. Prepare the octopus by dropping it into boiling water for a second 3-5 times.
2. Place the carcass in water and cook for 40 minutes with parsley and onions.
3. Remove and after 10 minutes remove from the water and cut into pieces 1 cm thick.
4. Add salt, spices and oil. Serve with boiled new potatoes and fresh vegetable salad.

Conclusion

Octopus is a very healthy dietary product rich in vitamins and proteins. Housewives who decide to cook octopus dishes will definitely like recipes from different countries. Under the right conditions of storage and cooking at home, the octopus is soft and juicy. The main rule is freshness. Maximum benefit in a product that has not been frozen.

The octopus is a mollusk with a small body and 8 long tentacles with suction cups. He is a predator who prefers to live alone. On average, the size of an individual can be up to 50 cm, and the weight at the same time reaches up to 3 kg. The octopus is included in the list of primitive animals that have existed on earth for a large amount of time. The mollusk lives mainly in tropical and subtropical oceans.

Octopus meat is tender and soft, and it tastes slightly sweet. Get from one individual to 75% of the meat, of the total mass. In general, there are 4 categories of octopus, which differ in weight:

1. Individuals weighing no more than 2 kg.
2. Individuals weighing from 2 to 5 kg.
3. Individuals with a mass of 5 to 10 kg.
4. Individuals weighing more than 10 kg.

The best are considered octopuses, which are included in categories 3 and 4.

How to choose and store?

The taste and quality of the dish is directly related to which octopus you choose. There are a few tips to help you accomplish this task:

Beneficial features

The benefit of the octopus lies in the presence of easily digestible protein, which is necessary for the functioning of internal organs. In large quantities, it contains polyunsaturated fatty acids, which reduce the risk of diseases of the cardiovascular system. There is also a large amount of zinc in the composition of the mollusk, which resists the aging process of the skin and improves immunity. With regular use, the body is saturated with vitamin B12, which is a natural antioxidant that is important for saturating cells with oxygen.

Use in cooking

Octopus is a fairly popular food product, which in many countries is used to prepare original dishes, although it still remains exotic for our country. The mollusk is especially popular in Asian countries, where it is even eaten alive. In Italy, the octopus is used to prepare first courses, as well as sandwiches, snacks and salads. Many people prefer baked octopus in dough. Shellfish can be cooked whole or in parts. In general, any of the existing methods can be used to prepare it: fry, boil, stew, pickle, dry, etc.

In some restaurants, shellfish are served stuffed with various products, for example, vegetables, mushrooms, dried fruits or cereals. To diversify the taste of the octopus, for example, in a boiled form, you can use olive oil, herbs and spices, wine and soy sauce.

How to cook an octopus with your own hands?

If you managed to get an octopus, then to cook it, you should follow these recommendations:

Harm of the octopus and contraindications

An octopus can bring harm if an individual intolerance to the product is detected. It is important to consider that if the mollusk lived in a polluted environment, then its meat may contain substances that are toxic to the body. Incorrectly cooked octopus meat can lead to serious poisoning.

In Asian countries, octopuses, as a rule, are only boiled, since boiled octopus tentacles are an indispensable component of many salads and snacks, and in Europe they are often fried with vegetables and wine.

Before boiling, the octopus tentacles must be washed, poured with cold water and boiled after boiling for 5-10 minutes, depending on their size. It is very important to let the octopus cool naturally and in the same water in which it was boiled. After cooling, the skin should be peeled off the octopus. Then it can be cooked according to the selected recipe.

In Mediterranean and European countries, the ink bag is first removed from the octopus, the beak and eyes are removed, then the carcass is washed in running water, beaten with a wooden mallet, cut into small pieces and then cooked. In this case, the ink bag is saved, since octopus ink is used in many dishes.

Young octopuses with white wine

Very tasty are young octopuses cooked according to the Maltese recipe.

Necessary:

500 g of young octopuses,

2 tbsp. tablespoons of olive oil

100 ml white wine

3 garlic cloves,

fresh parsley,

juice of half a lemon

salt and pepper - to taste.

How to cook:

Rinse young octopuses thoroughly in cold running water.

Washed octopuses should be put in a bag and beaten off with a meat mallet.


If desired, carcasses can be cut into large pieces, but you can cook them whole.

Heat the olive oil in a heavy bottomed saucepan and place the octopuses in it.


Fry them over high heat for no more than two minutes.


After that, you need to pour white wine into them, reduce the heat to moderate and simmer the dish until cooked.


The average cooking time is about 40 minutes.

During this time, finely chop the garlic and parsley, season them with olive oil and lemon juice and stir.


At the very end of cooking the octopuses, you need to add greens and garlic to them, hold on the fire for a minute, and then serve the dish hot on the table.

Recipe for feijoada from young octopuses

This hot dish belongs to Portuguese cuisine and is octopus with a side dish of beans.

Necessary:

1.5 kg of young octopuses,

1 cup beans

5 cloves of young garlic

5 st. spoons of olive oil,

2 tbsp. spoons of melted pork fat,

4 small onions,

3 carrots

100 ml dry white wine

finely chopped parsley,

salt and black ground pepper - to taste.

How to cook:

Beans must first be soaked for a day, and then, pouring cold water, cook over moderate heat until half cooked.

Young octopuses should be washed, beaten a little, boiled with onions, and then cut into small pieces.

In a heavy-bottomed pan, heat olive oil and lard, simmer chopped garlic in this mixture.


Salt and pepper the vegetable mixture and simmer for another 15 minutes.


Then white wine should be poured into it, bring it to a boil and add octopus and beans.

Feijoada should be simmered over low heat until fully cooked, periodically adding water.

It is customary to serve feijoada on the table, sprinkled with fresh parsley.

And another warm octopus salad from an Italian chef from the capital Carlos Romani.

Watch the video recipe!