Pasta with octopus, cherry tomatoes and Taggiasca olives, an easy and tasty seafood first course suitable for everyone. The PASTA with OCTOPUS, CHERRY TOMATOES and Olives is a seafood first course that’s simple and quick to make, like Fresh tuna pasta with cherry tomatoes, perfect for a seafood lunch or dinner. Don’t worry if the octopus cooking seems a bit challenging; with the tips I’ll give you, you won’t have problems and you can also prepare Lemon-marinated octopus carpaccio or Octopus salad with potatoes and olives. The sauce for this first course is very easy to make: the main ingredients are octopus, cherry tomatoes and olives and just a few extras, but together they will give you a sauce with an intense yet delicate flavor that will enhance the taste of the octopus, especially if you use an excellent fresh octopus. The octopus, cherry tomato and olive sauce can be prepared in advance so you can organize ahead, even if you have guests, and I assure you it will be impressive!
Ready to discover the recipe for pasta with octopus and cherry tomatoes and Taggiasca olives, a tasty and really easy first course for everyone? Let’s go to the kitchen, and as always I remind you that if you want to stay updated on my recipes you can follow my Facebook page (here) and my Instagram profile (here).
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- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Budget-friendly
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 3
- Cooking methods: Stovetop, Boiling
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients to make pasta with octopus, cherry tomatoes and olives
- 10.6 oz pasta
- 1.1 lb octopus
- 1 1/3 cups cherry tomatoes
- 1.4 oz Taggiasca olives
- to taste parsley
- to taste salt
- Half lemon
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 1.7 fl oz white wine
Tools
- Pentola
- Padella
Preparation
For this dish you can use fresh octopus or frozen octopus; in the latter case let it thaw slowly in the fridge before cooking before proceeding.
In the case of fresh octopus, remove the entrails and the beak, or ask your fishmonger to do it for you, then rinse it under running water. If you’re using frozen octopus it may already be cleaned and you can skip this step.
To make Pasta with octopus, cherry tomatoes and olives, start by cooking the octopus. To cook the octopus you can choose one of the two methods below, both valid.
-Fill a pot with cold water, immerse the octopus, add the half lemon cut in half and from the moment the water boils count 25 minutes for 1.1 lb of mollusk (my octopus was 2.2 lb that I used for two preparations).
-If instead you want the tentacles to curl, when the water comes to a boil immerse the octopus and lift it up three times. Continue cooking as above. After the time has passed, pierce with a fork to check the texture of the flesh, remove the octopus from the water and let it cool before cutting it into pieces.
Sauté one clove of garlic in a generous drizzle of olive oil. Add the cherry tomatoes, rinsed and halved, season with salt and once they are flavored add the Taggiasca olives, well drained if packed in oil. Remember to put the water for the pasta on the heat and salt it to your taste.
Add the octopus pieces to the cherry tomato sauce, deglaze with the white wine and add 1/2 cup of water and the tomato paste. Stir, cook for a couple of minutes and turn off the heat: the sauce is ready!
Cook the pasta and drain it al dente, combine it with the sauce adding a little pasta cooking water if necessary, toss over high heat to finish and plate immediately.
Storage and tips
Pasta with octopus, cherry tomatoes and olives should be enjoyed immediately, but if you have leftovers store it in the fridge for up to 24 hours and sauté it in a pan over high heat with a little oil before eating; it won’t be as good as freshly made, but it will still be tasty. The sauce can be kept in the fridge for up to 2 days in an airtight container and can be frozen.
