Thaw the octopus overnight in the fridge. The good news is that most octopus you buy in the US will be frozen and cleaned.
Plan on spending $55 to $70 for one 4 - 7 pound octopus. Once prepared it will provide an appetizer quantity for eight or dinner for four. (More on that later.) A 4 - 7 pound octopus sounds like enough to feed an army, but they shrink a lot. They are cleaned before frozen, but will include the head and the beak. A whole Spanish octopus will typically weigh between 4 and 7 pounds. I purchase mine at Santa Monica Seafoods in Costa Mesa, California.
How to cook octopus how to#
I provide two different ways to tenderize it both work beautifully.įree e-cookbook: 15 Recipes To Make You Look Like A Star How to Buy Octopus This octopus recipe is almost foolproof if you follow my instructions.
Fear not, cooking these cephalopods is not hard and makes for a fun group activity. Here is my seared octopus recipe so you can enjoy this Greek dish at home.įor most Americans, the idea of cooking octopus sounds challenging, unsettling and plain old scary. Grilled octopus was always on the menu and I dare say we ordered it every night. It was a fabulous experience in so many ways, but we particularly enjoyed exploring the islands and finding new tavernas (small Greek restaurants) for dinner each night. We rented a boat with three couples and cruised the Saronic Gulf. I fell in love with grilled octopus last summer when I was in Greece.