Braised Octopus
- 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 6 Garlic Cloves
- 12 small onions
- 2 cleaned octopus, about 1 1/2 pounds each
- 1 cup Taggascia olives
- Peperonciono
- 2 Bay Leaves
- Salt to taste
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley
- A heavy saucepan, 4-quart capacity, with a cover
- A heavy-bottomed skillet or saute pan, 12-inch diameter or larger
- Set the saucepan over low heat.
- Pour in 6 tablespoons of the olive oil.
- Scatter the onion in the bottom of the pan and add the garlic.
- Nestle the octopus on top of the onions.
- Scatter the olives over the octopus.
- Cover and let the octopus stew in its own juices for 1 hour.
- Uncover the octopus, there should be a lot of liquid from the octopus in the pan.
- Cover and continue to stew over low heat until the octopus is very tender, about 45 minutes to 1 hour and 15 minutes more, depending on the size of the octopus.
- To test for doneness, stick a fork in the thickest part of the octopus, it is done if the fork slides out easily.
- Remove the octopus from the pot and let cool slightly.
- Cut the octopus into 3/4-inch chunks, skin and all.
- Put the octopus chunks in the skillet and pour in the contents of the saucepan as well.
- Taste the sauce for salt (the octopus can be very salty) and add the salt, if needed.
- Get the sauce simmering rapidly over medium heat and stir in the parsley.
- You should have 2 cups or so of braising juices in the skillet.
- If there's much more than that, boil to reduce the sauce
extravirgin olive oil, garlic, onions, octopus, olives, bay leaves, salt, fresh italian parsley, heavy saucepan, skillet
Taken from www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/braised-octopus-recipe.html (may not work)