Tentacles, Chorizo, Tongs and Watch

Alright people. It's been several days since my last post due to my hectic schedule of hustling in any which way (not the street corner kind of way, but you know, odd jobs here and there). But I am coming back with a bang. I attempted OCTOPUS last night for the first time.

I was nervous because while I've always loved ordering octopus at restaurants, I had no idea that it's actually a pretty testy protein to cook. It could turn out chewy if you don't handle it right.

I know, I know, it looks disgusting. It was definitely different than the proteins I usually handle, I won't lie -- but if you want to eat delicious octopus, you have to get in there and just do it!

You're probably wondering what prompted me to cook this here octopus. I was taking a walk yesterday and stopped at this amazing local fish market in my neighborhood. They have so many deals on wild fish -- I was in HEAVEN. I saw the octopus and I was like, "YES a challenge, YES!!!" Then I putzed over to my local butcher, Esposito's, and picked up some chorizo. Everyone knows octopus and chorizo go well together, right? Well, they do.

I love local shops. The food is less expensive and the quality is so much better and much more fresh than your typical Gristedes down the street. Support our local businesses! This city is becoming too much without them. Rant over.

Despite all of your doubts, yeah I can actually feel you doubting me through the screen, the finished product was incredible.

If you feel daring enough to try something new, check out the recipe below.

Octopus with Chorizo and White Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients

2 lbs octopus tentacles 

7 oz cured Spanish chorizo, cut into 1/2 inch dice

3/4 lb white sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch dice

1 onion, coarsely chopped

3 bay leaves

2 tsp fresh thyme

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus some more for drizzling

Kosher salt

Ground black pepper

Chopped cilantro

Preparation 

1. Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil with the onion and bay leaves. 
2. Clean octopus (refer to this video to see how). 
3. Using tongs, dip the octopus into the boiling water 3 times (tentacles will curl), and then leave in the water. 
4. Cook the octopus over moderately low heat until tender for about 1 hour. Remove from the heat and let the octopus stand in the water for 10 minutes. Drain the octopus into a strainer. 
5. Cut octopus into 1/2 inch pieces.
6. For the potatoes, in a medium saucepan or pot, cover the potatoes with salted water. Bring to a boil and simmer over moderate heat until tender. Should take about 10 minutes.
7. Drain the potatoes and transfer to a bowl. 
8. Toss the potatoes with the olive oil and thyme. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
9. In a pan, preferably a grill pan, cook the chorizo over moderately high heat until warmed through, should take about 2-4 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
10. Add potatoes and octopus to the pan that you were cooking the chorizo in with a little olive oil, and cook until hot and the potatoes have turned golden. This should take about 5 minutes. 
11. Add the chorizo, season with salt and pepper, and toss all together.
12. When plating, drizzle with olive oil, and garnish with fresh cilantro.

Enjoy!