Pickled Octopus

Pickled Octopus
Octopus!
The King of Meze in the Greek Summer and Lenten Days, with accompanying ouzo par excellence!
Here it was prepared to be pickled, to be closed in our most transparent jars and to be able to enjoy it as a precious meze whenever we want!

Octopus boiled and flavored in a Court-bouillon, meaning «short broth». This is an intensely flavored vegetable broth, spices and aromatic herbs (bouquet garni) and which contain an acidic ingredient such as vinegar, wine or lemon juice. Court-bouillon is usually for poaching, need not be elaborate, used for the preparation of crustaceans (lobster) and other seafood and is very simple, because the broth is not generally served as part of the end plate.
Yours!

work: 20′ time: 40′ easy:


Pickled Octopus Pickled Octopus

Court-bouillon

  • ~2,7kg (6 lbs), 2 octopuses
  • 200g (7.1 oz) white wine
  • 4 tbsp vinegar
  • 1 onion
  • 1 carrot
  • 3 bay leaves
  • 10 pepper grains
  • 6 cedar pits + 6 allspice berries
  • 1 star anise
Clean the octopuses, removing the hood and the central tooth. Wash them thoroughly and place them in a colander to drain.
To make the Court-bouillon, in which you will season and boil the octopus, pour in the pressure cooker white wine, 4 tablespoons vinegar, onion into thick slices, carrot into rings, bay leaf and spices the star anise, pepper, allspice and cedar pits.
Once it starts to boil the contents of the pot add the octopus and close the pressure cooker.

Maintenance, 3 large jars

  • cooked octopus
  • broth from cooking the octopus
  • 200g (7.1 oz) vinegar
  • 150g (5.3 oz) oil
  • 1 tsp oregano
  • 1 tsp pink Himalayan salt
  • 1 tsp hot pepper
  • 2 tsp sweet pepper
  • 6 cardamon seeds slightly broken
Cook in pressure cooker 8'-10'. Test with a fork to puncture well the flesh but to keep and not to have melted octopus.
Remove them from the pan and place in colander to drain and cool to be able to dissect.
Strain the broth in which you boiled the octopus, do not throw it away, let it aside to use in the vases, which will fill with the octopus. Cooked vegetables and spices you do not need.
Cut each tentacle in two or three depending on the size.
You gather together in a large bowl and sprinkle over the spices: oregano, pink Himalayan salt, pepper spicy and sweet and seeds of cardamom. Mix carefully.
Pour the vinegar into the broth kept by the court-bouillon. Mix.
Divide the chopped tentacles of the octopus in sterile jars and fill with broth mixture / vinegar, leaving 3 cm (1.2 in) from the edge of the jar. Fill with oil leaving a gap of 1 cm (0.4 in) up the lid. Screw the caps and store the jars in the refrigerator.
Pickled Octopus Pickled Octopus



Prepare the pickle a few days ago to get the right flavor and bring out the aromas and acidic tones.
Serve accompanied with ouzo, drizzled with extra virgin olive oil and sprinkled with oregano and pepper flakes sweet.

☛ If you boil the octopus in a conventional pot, cooking times will vary, they will be larger.

Pickled Octopus Pickled Octopus Pickled Octopus

Author Zambia G. Sifaki