Certainly, dishes with octopuses are among the most beloved by all the inhabitants of the Mediterranean countries. But only in Greece there is the octopus’ cult. Here they were called the food of the gods in ancient times. Huge octopuses stretched out on ropes hang-drying under the hot sun near each coastal tavern, where local fishermen rest after their morning fishing while their catch dries. The octopus is prepared in a wide variety of ways, but the most common is the grilled octopus. It can be ordered in any Greek tavern or cooked after to my recipe.
Certainly, dishes with octopuses are among the most beloved by all the inhabitants of the Mediterranean countries. But only in Greece there is the octopus’ cult. Here they were called the food of the gods in ancient times. Huge octopuses stretched out on ropes hang-drying under the hot sun near each coastal tavern, where local fishermen rest after their morning fishing while their catch dries. The octopus is prepared in a wide variety of ways, but the most common is the grilled octopus. It can be ordered in any Greek tavern or cooked after to my recipe.- Prep time: 5 minutes + boiling
- Cook time: 15 minutes
- Serves: 6-8
- Difficulty: easy
- Course: appetizer
- Cookware: grill
- Cuisine: Greek
Ingredients
- 1 (1½-2 kg) whole fresh octopus
- 300 ml white or red wine
- olive oil
- oregano
Cooking method
Step 1
You need to prepare octopus before cooking. It is most convenient to cut an octopus with kitchen scissors. Rinse the octopus under running water. Remove the entrails from the head so that it can be turned inside out – it should be smooth on both sides. Use scissors to remove the eyes and beak, which is located at the place where the tentacles meet. Rinse the cleaned octopus again under running water.
Step 2
Cooking time is determined based on the weight of the octopus: it takes 25 minutes for each kilo of octopus. In a large pot heat the olive oil, add the octopus. It will begin to give its water. After 10 minutes add wine and cover the pot. Cook for a time calculated based on the weight of the octopus.
Step 3
Cut the boiled octopus into pieces and grease with olive oil. Grill on each side until grill marks appear. Sprinkle the octopus lightly with oregano. Serve with ladolemono.
My tips and tricks:
When you buy an octopus, don’t be fooled. Look carefully at its tentacles and count how many there are. The octopus has 8 tentacles and each has 2 rows of suckers. The cuttlefish has 10 tentacles and there is only one row of suckers. Cuttlefish is much cheaper than octopus, and all vendors are different.
If you don’t want to stand over the pot, you can easily cook the octopus in the oven. To do this, wrap the octopus in several layers of foil leaving a small hole. Pour in 2 tbsp wine and 2 tbsp olive oil. Wrap the octopus in another layer of foil so that all the liquid that it lets out doesn’t leak. Bake the octopus in the oven for 30 minutes at 200˚C and then for another hour at 180˚C.
- 1 (1½-2 kg) whole fresh octopus
- 300 ml white or red wine
- olive oil
- oregano
- You need to prepare octopus before cooking. It is most convenient to cut an octopus with kitchen scissors. Rinse the octopus under running water. Remove the entrails from the head so that it can be turned inside out - it should be smooth on both sides. Use scissors to remove the eyes and beak, which is located at the place where the tentacles meet. Rinse the cleaned octopus again under running water.
- Cooking time is determined based on the weight of the octopus: it takes 25 minutes for each kilo of octopus. In a large pot heat the olive oil, add the octopus. It will begin to give its water. After 10 minutes add wine and cover the pot. Cook for a time calculated based on the weight of the octopus.
- Cut the boiled octopus into pieces and grease with olive oil. Grill on each side until grill marks appear. Sprinkle the octopus lightly with oregano. Serve with ladolemono.
If you don't want to stand over the pot, you can easily cook the octopus in the oven. To do this, wrap the octopus in several layers of foil leaving a small hole. Pour in 2 tbsp wine and 2 tbsp olive oil. Wrap the octopus in another layer of foil so that all the liquid that it lets out doesn’t leak. Bake the octopus in the oven for 30 minutes at 200˚C and then for another hour at 180˚C.