CYY Octopus Salad
Author: Elizabeth Peyton-Jones
Recipe type: Salad
People think octopus is difficult to get right, but doing it this way is easy: you simply let it simmer and wait. It’s worth it for the taste and it’s a cheap deal, too, as an octopus feeds many people. This salad is high in vitamins, minerals and omegas and low in saturated fat and calories. A good dinner party starter, or eat it as your protein over a week. Scale up the amount of salad to serve more people.
Ingredients
MAKES ABOUT 10 SERVINGS
TO COOK THE OCTOPUS
- 2kg octopus
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 3 celery stalks, chopped
- 1 lemon, halved
- 10 thin slices of root ginger
- 10g sprigs of rosemary
- 10g sprigs of thyme
- 10g sprigs of basil
- 1 lemon grass stalk, bruised
- 100ml white wine vinegar
TO MARINATE THE OCTOPUS
- 50ml olive oil
- juice of 1 lemon
FOR THE SALAD
SERVES 2
- ¼ green pepper
- ¼ red pepper
- ¼ celery stalk
- 2 spring onions
Instructions
- The octopus tentacles and body can be eaten, but first remove all the dirt from the suckers.
- This takes a bit of time, but it is important that it is clean.
- Also clean the head.
- Put all the ingredients to cook the octopus into a large pot of filtered water filled to the top, add the octopus and simmer for three hours.
- The amount of flavourings is really down to personal taste.
- I rather like having a strong taste, so I would put in rather a large amount of each.
- You will find the skin of the octopus comes off easily.
- Cut the tentacles off and then take off the suckers and skin.
- Slice into pieces and marinate the octopus in the olive oil and lemon for several hours.
- When ready to serve the octopus, slice the peppers and celery into strips and then chop at an angle to create 2.5cm slices with angled tops and bottoms.
- Chop the spring onions.
- Place the salad vegetables on a plate, spoon over the octopus and its marinade and serve.
Cook Yourself Young
Photo Credit ©YukiSugiura
