Sous Vide Octopus Spanish Tapas Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How long does it take to sous vide octopus? ›

Place octopus pieces in zipper-lock or vacuum bags and seal using the vacuum sealer or the displacement method. Submerge in water and cook for 5 hours. Remove bags, chill rapidly in an ice-water bath, then refrigerate until ready to use.

Put the octopus in the water, submerge it completely and cover it. Put salt, pepper, and paprika (optional) in the water with the octopus. If it weighs 2kg, cook it for 45 minutes, if it is smaller, 25 minutes is enough. You'll know it's ready when it's tender (you can poke it with a fork or knife).

Salting is essential to tenderness, or fatal; brief dips in boiling water tenderize, or long slow cooling, or a rubbing with grated daikon, or the addition of a wine cork to the cooking liquid. Last week I stumbled on a Greek food scientist's report that small amounts of vinegar tenderize octopus.

Pulpo gallego, or Galician-style octopus, is a popular tapa (appetizer) served all over Spain today. It originated in the northwestern Spanish region of Galicia where octopus (pulpo in Spanish) is a specialty and a common catch for local fishermen.

WHY SOUS VIDE? Octopus tentacles are rich in collagen, which can make them tough and rubbery when cooked using traditional methods. But the low-and-slow process of cooking octopus sous vide transforms the collagen into gelatin, creating a tender, silky finished texture.

Octopus is a very common food in Spanish culture. In the Spanish region of Galicia, polbo á feira (market fair-style octopus) is a local delicacy. Restaurants which specialize or serve this dish are known as pulperías.

This Spanish octopus recipe is delicious and simple. Thinly-sliced octopus rests on a bed of soft, boiled potatoes, generously sprinkled with sea salt and paprika. It's a great tapa to share since you can pick up bits with a toothpick and pop it right in your mouth.

There are a lot of aspects about grilled Spanish octopus that make it a one-of-a-kind dish, like the way it's made. Because the meat is naturally briny throughout the tentacles, it allows our chefs to focus on the ingredients we need to make it.

For large octopus (around 5 pounds), boil for a good 8 to 10 minutes. Add a tablespoon of vinegar into the simmering liquid as the acetic acid can help break down the connective tissue in the tentacles. Marinate the octopus overnight in whole milk to help tenderize the meat.

Octopus is much like squid: If you keep the cooking time minimal, under five minutes or so, you get a chewy but not unpleasant texture; this is a good technique for octopus salad or sushi. But for most preparations, long, slow cooking, which yields a tender texture, is best.

Why did my octopus come out chewy? ›

Octopus contains a lot of moisture, some of which can be removed by brining or sun-drying to make the flesh more tender before grilling, barbecuing or pan-frying. Without removing some of the moisture from the flesh, the octopus will take on a chewy and rubbery texture.

Eating octopus is part of many food traditions, from Spain and Portugal to Greece, Mexico, Japan, South Korea and China. "Global octopus consumption amounts to 350,000 tons per year and the market is expected to grow by 21.5% in 2028 compared to 2022," according to Nueva Pescanova.

Common octopus has been regularly fished at least since the XV century in Galicia. Trap is the main fishing method for catching octopuses in Galicia from mid 1970s. A decreasing trend in fishing effort occurred since early 2000s. Official artisanal catches have fluctuated between 2000 and 4000 t y⁻¹ in recent decades.

Cook until octopus is tender enough that you can pierce the thick part of a tentacle with a paring knife with little resistance, about 1 hour; keep in mind that this time is a rough estimate, and the octopus may be done sooner or it may take longer, but it will get there. Let octopus cool in the cooking water.

Set the octopus in a large pot with enough water to cover it, then bring the water to just a simmer. Simmer very gently at 190 to 200 F. Timing varies depending on the weight of the octopus and how many you are cooking. For a 2- to 3-pound octopus, it will usually be between 1 to 2 hours.

Fill a saucepan with salted water and bring to the boil. Add the octopus, reduce the heat immediately and simmer gently for 45–60 minutes. It's important that the water is turned down to a gentle simmer once the octopus is in the pan. Cooking it too quickly will result in a rubbery texture.

This collagen makes octopus flesh rubbery, at least initially. With enough heat and time that collagen breaks down into silky and tender gelatin, and the octopus grows tender with it.