Lidia’s Favorite Recipes
Lidia Bastianich
I love octopus. Sometimes I eat it plain, just boiled with a little salt and pepper and fresh lemon juice. Other times, I make it in a salad and add other ingredients to shake things up a little. But any way I decide to make it, I always enjoy it. I haven’t made this particular salad in quite some time simply because I forgot about it. But it was very good and I had every intention of making it again. So I guess I will at some point. When I remember to buy some octopus, that is…
Ingredients:
2-3 pound octopus, cleaned
1 wine cork
2 fresh bay leaves, or 3 dried
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 medium Idaho potatoes, whole
5 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 red onion, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley
Lemon wedges for garnish
Place the octopus, wine cork, bay leaves, and salt and pepper in a large pot. Cover generously with water, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, and cook the octopus at a vigorous simmer until tender but slightly al dente, about 25 minutes. (Test periodically by inserting the tines of a fork into the thickest part of the octopus. It is done when the form penetrates easily and can be removed with only a little resistance.)
Meanwhile, cover the potatoes with cold water in a second pot, and bring to a boil. Cook about 25 minutes, until just tender, then cool, peel and cut them into 1-inch cubes.
Drain the octopus, discarding the bay leaves and cork. Cut the tentacles away where they join the head. Clean the octopus head, which looks like a pouch the size of your fist, by squeezing out the core with your fingers, and cut the meat into thin slices. Cut the tentacles into inch-long pieces, and toss the octopus pieces with the warm potatoes. Toss with the olive oil, red-wine vinegar, onion, and parsley. Place on a plate, garnish with lemon wedges, and serve.
Dinner With Diana 