Pulpo a la Gallega / Galician Octopus

by RGA SHOP
September 01, 2022
2 min read

GALICIAN OCTOPUS

A recipe by Frank Camorra

Pulpo a la Gallega

INGREDIENTS

3 tentacles of a large octopus (about 1 kg/2 lb 4 oz), frozen, thawed and drained
10 waxy potatoes (about 1 kg/ 2 lb 4 oz), such as kipfler (fingerling), unpeeled
Sea salt flakes, to sprinkle
Extra virgin olive oil, to drizzle
Spanish sweet paprika, to sprinkle
2 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf (Italian) parsley

METHOD

To cook the octopus, bring a large saucepan of unsalted water to the boil. Meanwhile, wash the octopus under cold running water. When the water is rapidly boiling, plunge the octopus in the water for 15 seconds then remove. Allow the water to boil again then repeat four times, allowing the water to reach boiling point between each immersion.

On the last immersion, leave the octopus in the pan and reduce the heat to barely a simmer. Cook for 30-40 minutes, or until tender. The outside pink layer should still be intact. Remove the octopus from the pan and set aside to cool.

Increase the heat to high and bring the cooking water to the boil. Add the potatoes and cook for 30 minutes, or until tender. Remove from the pan and leave until cool enough to handle then peel.

Using a sharp knife slice the octopus tentacles into 1 cm (1/2 inch) discs. Slice the potatoes into similar sized pieces. Arrange the potato on four to six small serving plates. Cover the potato with the octopus. Sprinkle with sea salt flakes, drizzle with a little extra virgin olive oil, then sprinkle with the paprika and parsley. Serve immediately.