Charred Octopus with Mole Verde

Holey moley I cooked an Octopus!!

A few months ago we were in Tulum and I did a Mexican fine dining cooking class. Our teacher was Chef Javier, the owner of Ginger Tulum, private catering company. He helped me overcome my fear of cooking octopus. It’s really just a ‘boil then quick grill’ type of method. The result is a deliciously tender octopus.

He also introduced us to mole verde, which is a pumpkin seed and tomato sauce. It’s a smoky, sweet, spicy and crunchy sauce which pairs perfectly with the octopus. Here’s the recipe!

Ingredients

• 1 whole octopus (approximately 800g- 1kg)

  • Make sure to ask the fishmonger to remove the eyes and beak.

• 1 lemon

Mole Verde

• 5 garlic cloves

• 1 medium purple onion

• 3 jalapeños or 2 ancho chillies.

• 2 medium tomatoes

• Handful of mixed sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds and pine nuts

• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

• 1 tablespoon of honey

• 1/2 tablespoon of cumin.

Method:

1. WASH the octopus in cold water and rub olive oil, lemon, salt & pepper all over.

2. BOIL a large pot of water, filled around 80%.

3. DUNK the tentacles 3 times in the water. This will allow them to curl.

4. COOK for 45 minutes in medium to high heat.

5. DRAIN the water and let the octopus cool off at room temperature. Dry the skin a little with a paper towel.

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6. ON medium to high heat, char all the mole verde ingredients for around 7 minutes. You want to see burn marks (only marks, not completely burnt!).

7. BLEND the mole verde ingredients with the apple cider, honey, 1/4 cup of water and 1/3 cup of olive oil.

8. CHAR octopus tentacles on high heat on a grill pan, 2 minutes each side.

9. PLATE up by making a thick line of the mole verde on the plate first, followed by the octopus and garnish with fresh parsley, pomegranate and chilli oil (optional).

This is becoming a Nonna Lizzie special in Portugal. For every guest we have, I will make this dish for sure! I love serving it with a side of lemon mash potato or roasted eggplants. It’s also always better with a crispy glass of white wine ;) enjoy xx

Lizbeth Pal-DevelterOctober 9, 2021Comment

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