Baby Octopus with Tomato, Potatoes, and Olives are truly delicious and very easy to prepare. Few ingredients, but they make them very tasty. As always, I try to use fresh products for my fish recipes, but sometimes I also buy frozen ones because they are certainly more practical to manage. No problem, the important thing is to buy good quality frozen food. In this case, I turned to my trusted fishmonger and got them cleaned, which saved me precious time; Andrea is always very helpful and professional.
They are also excellent as an appetizer, on slices of toasted bread.
If you like mollusks, don’t miss the next recipes:
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Medium
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: 4 servings
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
- 1.75 lbs Baby Octopus
- 14 oz potatoes
- 3 tbsps Gaeta/Taggiasche olives
- 24.6 oz tomato pulp
- 6 tbsps Extra virgin olive oil
- to taste salt
- 2 cloves Garlic
- 1 bunch parsley
Tools
- 1 Saucepan
- 1 Knife
- 1 Cutting board
Preparation
Take the baby octopus out of the refrigerator at least 40 minutes before cooking them, so they can reach room temperature. Peel the potatoes, wash them well under running water, and dry them. Cut them into 8 lengthwise and dice them. Rinse the baby octopus, let them drain for a few minutes, and then dry them. Meanwhile, put two whole garlic cloves inside a saucepan, along with 4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil.
Add in the potatoes, season with salt, and let them brown over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes. When a kind of crust forms on their surface, add the baby octopus and continue browning for a few minutes until they turn pink. At this point, add the tomato pulp and as much hot water as the can hold to prevent a thermal shock.
Finally, add the pitted Taggiasche or Gaeta olives, according to your taste, and cook for about 40 minutes, maintaining a medium flame to prevent them from boiling. You can also cover them with a lid, but only three-quarters, so that the steam can escape from the pot. If you want to make them a bit spicy, incorporate some chili pepper pieces.
Serve your Baby Octopus with Tomato, Potatoes, and Olives hot, but not before sprinkling them with fresh parsley and another two tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil raw.
Advice
We can keep the baby octopus in the fridge for no more than two days, closed inside a glass or ceramic container.
They are also ideal for freezing, but remember they should only be thawed in the refrigerator and never at room temperature.
If you want, you can also preserve them, so you always have a supply available. For this purpose, have a look at my article: Homemade Preserves
