Pulpo a la Gallega

INGREDIENTS

• Serves 4
• 1 octopus
• 4-5 potatoes
• Sea salt
• Sweet or hot paprika
• 1 large onion
• Extra virgin olive oil

METHOD

The first thing is to clean the octopus by removing the viscera. To do this turn the head and remove everything inside, and with the scissors cut the mouth or beak.

Then rinse the legs, one by one, under the tap of water. Once clean, freeze it between 48 and 72 hours. With this trick you will ensure that the octopus is not hard.

Put a large pot with water to boil. Take the octopus by the head and insert the legs for a few seconds, remove and repeat the operation three or four times. This step helps to avoid the skin coming off during cooking.

Fill up a pot with water, bring it to boil, and cook the octopus for about 50 min on medium heat. Peel the onion and add it to the broth. When the octopus is ready, put it on a plate and let it cool down.

Peel the potatoes and cut them into thick slices (about 1-2 inches). Put them in the same boiling water for about 15 min.

If you bought tentacles only, cut them with scissors or a sharp knife in slices, not too thin to keep the tenderness. If you have a whole octopus, cut the head into small pieces.

Place the potato slices on a wooden plate. Set one octopus slice on top of each slice of potato. Sprinkle with paprika, coarse salt and a good splash of extra virgin olive oil.

Source: The Mediterranean Lifestyle magazine