Twice cooked bbq octopus-greek style

[kingie chaser]

Hi raiders, I was asked for a octopus recipe so here it is.

 

I find being similar to squid in the fact its quite neutral in flavour occy takes on pretty much any spice or marinade very well.

 

Tenderising 

I find the smaller the occy the least amount of time to cook & the larger the longer.

You can use a chefs trick where you use mashed up kiwi fruit or paw paw as a tenderising agent, these contain an enzyme which start to break down the protein chains in the flesh, if I do this I would use this on its own & wash it of before using a favouring marinade as I don't want it to be part of the flavour profile.

Of course like any protein, cooking for long periods can tenderise as well, I have some recipes where really large occy take 2 hours to cook to tenderise in a water bath in a vacuum seal bag with the marinade or in a braising liquid like a court bullion(cooking liquor)

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/court-bouillon-for-poaching-fish-recipe-2118059

Of course you could throw the occy onto a cement mixer if you have one(I've heard of people doing this in large quantities!) or spend half an hour bashing it against a rock but I just the 2 above methods until it tenderises. 

 

In this recipe here is a fairly large occy I caught in Botany Bay a while ago.

 

I slow cooked it in the court bullion for 2 hours on simmer, the idea is it still holds together so keep an eye on it, it is going to be cooked further anyway.

After the cooking of the occy(or fish) the court bullion can be re boiled, strained & frozen to be used again at a later date.

This is a bit like having a master stock/stock for whenever you need it, I keep several master stocks in the freezer for this reason.  

 

Once done I take it out of the liquid & set it aside to cool a little so I can cut the tentacles at the base of the head.

I then marinade the occy, in this recipe I use fresh oregano & basil leaves, garlic, olive oil, lemon zest(reserve juice), balsamic vinegar, red chilli.

 

I reserve half of the marinade to also use as the dressing.

 

For the BBQ you can use a charcoal grill like a Weber or hibachi or simply a gas version but I like open ridged plates to get a nice char on the occy.

 

As soon as the occy comes of the bbq, toss it into the rest of the marinade/dressing so it can take on more of that flavour, at this stage add the lemon juice.

 

Note: you can get to the marinade stage & fridge this to cook the next day if you are planning a family feast!

 

In this recipe I just used what I had in the fridge, unfortunately I didn’t have any Greek fetta, it would have been a good addition, as well as some cherry tomatoes.

But I used Kalamata olives, capers, red onion, thin sliced carrot, inner celery tops.

 

Of course you can plate this individually like I did for myself or put it into a nice bowl into the muddle of the table for everyone to jump in & help themselves.

 

 

Other suggested marinades/dressings

You can prep this dish using the same & then change the flavourings easily.

As an example to turn this into Thai style change the marinade to fresh chilli, lemongrass, thin sliced lime leaves, coriander, fish sauce, lime zest & juice, peanut oil.

 

Chinese style you could use sesame oil, ginger, garlic, Sichuan pepper, soy etc

 

There are also plenty of commercial dry spice rubs like jerk/Cajun/perri perri seasonings & also pre made bottles versions that can be incorporated into marinades as well & are handy & time saving, but I do like to start from scratch when I can.

 

It is really open to your likes & the amount of time you want to put into the dish.

 

Enjoy

 

Edited May 21, 2020 by kingie chaser

[frankS]

Kingie. Would a Aluminium dead blow tenderiser be of any benefit to your chef work ? Or would it be too heavy and would the floating lead be more a hassle than a benefit.

Just thinking of making a couple and thought you would be a good candidate to receive one ?.

Frank

[zmk1962]

Awesome KC. Thanks so much. Will give this a go with the three I caught recently. 
cheers Zoran 

[kingie chaser]

2 minutes ago, frankS said:

Kingie. Would a Aluminium dead blow tenderiser be of any benefit to your chef work ? Or would it be too heavy and would the floating lead be more a hassle than a benefit.

Just thinking of making a couple and thought you would be a good candidate to receive one ?.

Frank

Hi Frank, yes absolutely.

I use a meat mallet all the time at work & at home.

Mainly for things like bashing/flattening out chicken breast or pork fillet etc for schnitzel.

 

It tenderises as well but of course can break up flesh if you use it to much

 

[frankS]

OK. I have a few projects going at the moment, restoring an old wood lathe and have a couple of wardrobes to assemble but when they are finished I will set about designing and making one for you.

Normal alloy tenderisers are very cheap and easy to buy but I think you will be the first to have a dead blow one. Maybe they do make them but I have never seen one.

I will keep in touch.

Frank

[kingie chaser]

7 minutes ago, frankS said:

OK. I have a few projects going at the moment, restoring an old wood lathe and have a couple of wardrobes to assemble but when they are finished I will set about designing and making one for you.

Normal alloy tenderisers are very cheap and easy to buy but I think you will be the first to have a dead blow one. Maybe they do make them but I have never seen one.

I will keep in touch.

Frank

Hi Frank, maybe I am miss understanding what your referring to by dead blow??

I have several of these kinds of mallets

 

[frankS]

A dead blow hammer is hollow inside and loaded with lead shot so that when you strike an object the hammer does not bounce, just sort of drops on the meat etc. Look up dead blow hammer on google.

Frank

[Scratchie]

Great work KC and thanks for taking the time to post it! 👍

cheers scratchie!!! 
 

[Berleyguts]

Thanks KC! Stock on the boil. Occy just gone in. Might let the mother-in-law put some in her mee rebus. 😉🤷‍♂️

[Berleyguts]

I tried this tonight, Thai style. The marinade/sauce was amazing! I had a bit of trouble getting the BBQ hot enough in the wind and I didn’t manage to get the octopus legs tender enough. 🤷‍♂️ The head was OK though. Still, the flavour was fantastic! 😋 I will definitely try this again, maybe with a kiwi fruit tenderiser. Thanks KC! 🙏 

[kingie chaser]

1 hour ago, Berleyguts said:

I tried this tonight, Thai style. The marinade/sauce was amazing! I had a bit of trouble getting the BBQ hot enough in the wind and I didn’t manage to get the octopus legs tender enough. 🤷‍♂️ The head was OK though. Still, the flavour was fantastic! 😋 I will definitely try this again, maybe with a kiwi fruit tenderiser. Thanks KC! 🙏 

Now problem Baz.

So is this the same one you poached yesterday??

If it was then you know you just need to braise it for a bit longer next time.

The way I test it is to do a pinch test on the thickish end of the tentacles & if there's no give then drop it back in & continue

 

Shame you couldn't get some charring on it, I love it when the ends of the tentacles are nice & crispy.

At least you got the flavour you intended & at least your willing trying something different 

 

By all means give the kiwi a try, then you can do a comparison, I'd try say 8 hours first then again if its not tenderised enough give it longer, even maybe overnight??

 

You do have to be careful though, I marinated sliced chicken breast once for 2 days & when I cooked it, it broke down to almost like a paste, yep screwed that one up big time, luckily it was at home & not at work 😅 

 

 

Edited May 23, 2020 by kingie chaser

[61 crusher]

Good to know how to prepare occy for a feed , thanks for posting @kingie chaser I won’t be tossing the next one back or using for bait, years ago I tried some at a Japanese restaurant from memory it was cold & done in a cumber vinigarete & tasted awesome, do you happen to know if there’s much involved in preparing it Adrian 

[kingie chaser]

11 hours ago, 61 crusher said:

Good to know how to prepare occy for a feed , thanks for posting @kingie chaser I won’t be tossing the next one back or using for bait, years ago I tried some at a Japanese restaurant from memory it was cold & done in a cumber vinigarete & tasted awesome, do you happen to know if there’s much involved in preparing it Adrian 

No problem Dieter, I guess part of what Im trying to do is just open up peoples minds a bit from the norm.

I haven't seen you around for a while so I hope your well.

I would imagine the dish your referring to is called Tako Sunomono, here is a link to that if your interested.

https://uncutrecipes.com/EN-Recipes-Japanese/Tako-Sunomono-Octopus-Salad.html

In this recipe it just states 'boil' octopus & doesn't really go into any detail.'

 

I would be inclined to try & infuse some flavour into the occy like I have done above, maybe cooking it in a dashi stock

I guess my dish is a warm salad but there would be nothing wrong with just cooking the occy, chilling it & then just simply slicing it thinly & making a dressing of your liking like say a Ponzu & garnishing it with whatever you like, maybe sliced cucumber & wakame salad which I just love. 

 

That's what I love about food, its just up to your imagination on what you use & how you put it together.

 

I also like the idea of turning what a lot of Aussie fisho's would class as bait into a delicacy!

 

Hope you enjoy the ideas @61 crusher 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 23, 2020 by kingie chaser

[Berleyguts]

13 hours ago, kingie chaser said:

Now problem Baz.

So is this the same one you poached yesterday??

If it was then you know you just need to braise it for a bit longer next time.

The way I test it is to do a pinch test on the thickish end of the tentacles & if there's no give then drop it back in & continue

 

Shame you couldn't get some charring on it, I love it when the ends of the tentacles are nice & crispy.

At least you got the flavour you intended & at least your willing trying something different 

 

By all means give the kiwi a try, then you can do a comparison, I'd try say 8 hours first then again if its not tenderised enough give it longer, even maybe overnight??

 

You do have to be careful though, I marinated sliced chicken breast once for 2 days & when I cooked it, it broke down to almost like a paste, yep screwed that one up big time, luckily it was at home & not at work 😅 

 

 

Thanks KC. Yes, the same one I poached on Friday. Having read a few recipes, I poached it for around 30 mins. Obviously not long enough, although the slivers I cut off the top end of a couple of tentacles seemed tender enough. I managed it OK, the wife struggled with some and the dog loved what she left! I’ll try your “pinch test” next time and definitely poach for longer. I was happy with the stock I produced - I even drank a cup of it! Hopefully next time the wind won’t be blowing so hard and I can fire up the charcoal grill for a good charring. 🙏 

Edited May 24, 2020 by Berleyguts

[61 crusher]

1 hour ago, kingie chaser said:

No problem Dieter, I guess part of what Im trying to do is just open up peoples minds a bit from the norm.

I haven't seen you around for a while so I hope your well.

I would imagine the dish your referring to is called Tako Sunomono, here is a link to that if your interested.

https://uncutrecipes.com/EN-Recipes-Japanese/Tako-Sunomono-Octopus-Salad.html

In this recipe it just states 'boil' octopus & doesn't really go into any detail.'

 

I would be inclined to try & infuse some flavour into the occy like I have done above, maybe cooking it in a dashi stock

I guess my dish is a warm salad but there would be nothing wrong with just cooking the occy, chilling it & then just simply slicing it thinly & making a dressing of your liking like say a Ponzu & garnishing it with whatever you like, maybe sliced cucumber & wakame salad which I just love. 

 

That's what I love about food, its just up to your imagination on what you use & how you put it together.

 

I also like the idea of turning what a lot of Aussie fisho's would class as bait into a delicacy!

 

Hope you enjoy the ideas @61 crusher 

Thanks for that Adrian seems easy enough with minimal ingredients but then again I’m not much of a cook I’ll definitely be giving it a go 👍

I’ve been quite busy with work, family & stuff around the house 

 

[zmk1962]

Ok so Maria and I gave this a go .... to tenderise our 460g of occy, we incorporated what @joshGTV said about freezing them first and then what @kingie chaser said about using sliced kiwi fruit as a tenderiser (about 1hr) before separating out the kiwi and  replacing it with mediterranean marinade of olive oil, garlic, chopped parsley , ground pepper and chilli (another hour).

Happy to report the end result was fantastic - there was still plenty of texture but none of that hard chewiness. 

Please ignore the "plating"... we have a lot to learn from KC but this was a mid week lunch so nothing fancy ....

The sides were air fried sweet potato fries and slices of fennel garnished with olive oil salt and pepper. 

Beats a lunchtime sanger eh???

Cheers Zoran

 

[joshGTV]

13 hours ago, zmk1962 said:

Ok so Maria and I gave this a go .... to tenderise our 460g of occy, we incorporated what @joshGTV said about freezing them first and then what @kingie chaser said about using sliced kiwi fruit as a tenderiser (about 1hr) before separating out the kiwi and  replacing it with mediterranean marinade of olive oil, garlic, chopped parsley , ground pepper and chilli (another hour).

Happy to report the end result was fantastic - there was still plenty of texture but none of that hard chewiness. 

Please ignore the "plating"... we have a lot to learn from KC but this was a mid week lunch so nothing fancy ....

The sides were air fried sweet potato fries and slices of fennel garnished with olive oil salt and pepper. 

Beats a lunchtime sanger eh???

Cheers Zoran

 

Looks terrific Zoran, glad I didn't lead you astray!

[kingie chaser]

Nice effort Zoran, so with the results do you think you would now try leaving it in the kiwi longer to see if it tenderises more of your happy with the end result?

[zmk1962]

Very happy how it turned out. I like some firmness and texture. The tough chewy gristle like texture was definitely removed Which is what I hoped for. 
 

cheers and thanks Zoran 

[Remote River Man]

Grilled octopus is quite a staple all over the Mediterranean - I've had it in Portugal, Sardinia, Croatia and Crete, and it was awesome each time. When it's prepared right, it's a beautiful dish, too often ignored by Aussies. Thanks for the recipe, KC.

I discovered that Woolies-bought Tuscan seasoning goes extremely well on octopus, too... and just about any fish dish, for that matter. I prefer Moroccan seasoning on grilled Spanish mackerel, though.

[kingie chaser]

1 hour ago, Remote River Man said:

Grilled octopus is quite a staple all over the Mediterranean - I've had it in Portugal, Sardinia, Croatia and Crete, and it was awesome each time. When it's prepared right, it's a beautiful dish, too often ignored by Aussies. Thanks for the recipe, KC.

I discovered that Woolies-bought Tuscan seasoning goes extremely well on octopus, too... and just about any fish dish, for that matter. I prefer Moroccan seasoning on grilled Spanish mackerel, though.

No probs RRM, your right in saying its often ignored by Aussies, like lits of different fish/seafood

I guess the more utilized Cephalopods here would be squid.

Agree there are some good easily obtainable spice mixes & sauces around now which makes it quick to add flavour to dishes if you choose to.

Generally speaking in a lot of cases I think less is more when it comes to seafood but as they say, variety is the spice of life!