The rice salad with octopus and eggplants is an original cold first course perfect for the hottest days of the year and special occasions. Ideal to serve even on special occasions, perhaps pairing it with one of my favorite appetizers: octopus and potato salad.
A recipe for those days when you crave cold and light dishes, but no less tasty. For this preparation, I hope purists of rice salads won’t mind, I chose Carnaroli rice. True, it’s not among the most suitable for salads, but I prefer it over other varieties, even for this type of preparation. The octopus, however, I used the whole frozen one, but fresh will also do. Cooked in a pressure cooker, it will maintain its nutritional properties, and you’ll also have the advantage of optimizing the preparation times of the recipe.
A recipe that should be prepared in advance, so that all the flavors blend perfectly, giving a truly special result. Now, follow me into the kitchen, because the rice salad with octopus and eggplants will be ready in a click!
If you’re interested in other rice salad recipes, also read:
- Difficulty: Very Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Preparation time: 30 Minutes
- Portions: 4 people
- Cooking methods: Pressure Cooker
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Summer
- Energy 353.38 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 48.78 (g) of which sugars 7.66 (g)
- Proteins 15.36 (g)
- Fat 10.96 (g) of which saturated 1.87 (g)of which unsaturated 0.86 (g)
- Fibers 3.43 (g)
- Sodium 1,269.61 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 275 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients
- 1 cup rice
- 1 3/4 cups water
- 1 teaspoon coarse salt
- 14 oz octopus
- 1 oval black eggplant
- 5 oz cherry tomatoes
- 3 tbsps extra virgin olive oil
- salt (to taste)
Tools
- 2 Pressure Cookers
- Knife
- Bowl
- Pan
First, wash the octopus very well under cold water and clean it if your trusted fishmonger hasn’t done it yet. Empty the sac, remove the eyes and the central beak. Meanwhile, bring the water to a boil with the salt, juniper berries, and bay leaves. Once the water reaches a boil, immerse the octopus and close the pot, bringing it to maximum power.
From the start of the whistle, cook the mollusk for 8 minutes. After the cooking time has elapsed, gradually release the steam and let the octopus cool inside its closed pot with its cooking water. It will take a few hours because the pot reaches high pressure during cooking, so the cooling time will be a bit long. But if you follow this advice, you will surely get a very tender and tasty octopus.
When the octopus has cooled, drain it from its cooking water and rinse it under cold water to peel it. With your hands and gently, remove most of the skin.
Then place it on a cutting board, pat it gently with absorbent paper, and cut it into rings or chunks.
Now proceed to cook the rice, which you can cook in plenty of salted water, or in a pressure cooker as I did. Put the rice with water and salt in the pot, close it, and bring it to maximum power. From the start of the whistle, cook the rice for 4 minutes. Of course, the cooking times are relative because they depend on the type of pressure cooker. In any case, you should halve the cooking times indicated on the package.
For this recipe, I used Carnaroli rice because it’s a type of rice I particularly like, but you can also use Basmati or Arborio rice.
Once the cooking time has elapsed, gradually release the steam, open the pot, and drain the rice. Then pass it under cold water for a few minutes to crumble and cool it.
Then transfer the rice to a bowl and season with extra virgin olive oil.
Now clean the eggplant: wash it under water and remove the stem. Then cut it into slices and then into cubes. I left the skin on, but you can also remove it if you prefer.
Put a drizzle of oil in a non-stick pan and brown the eggplant cubes for a few minutes, seasoning with salt. Separately clean the cherry tomatoes by washing them under water and cutting them into quarters.
Then transfer all the ingredients to the bowl with the rice and mix.
The rice salad with octopus and eggplants is ready! Add a drizzle of oil if necessary and serve.
Variations and tips for rice salad with octopus and eggplants
The rice salad with octopus and eggplants can be prepared in advance and stored in the refrigerator for one or two days at most.
Questions and answers for rice salad with octopus and eggplants
What can I substitute for eggplants?
If you prefer, you can substitute the eggplants with zucchini sautéed in a pan with a clove of garlic.
How to store rice salad?
You can store it for one or two days in the refrigerator in an airtight container and leave it at room temperature for at least half an hour before serving.
