Sous Vide Grilled Octopus

Anova Culinary

Grilled octopus is surprisingly easy to make. They key is to tenderize it before you grill it. The sous vide method results in extremely succulent and tender octopus. Prepping for sous vide takes just a little while, but it takes five hours in the sous vide bath. The good news is this is all hands-off time and the results are absolutely delicious.

Author

David LaForce

I am a dynamic figure, often seen scaling walls and crushing ice.  I have been known to remodel train stations on my lunch breaks, making them more efficient in the area of heat retention.  I translate books on tape for refugees, I write award-winning operas, and I manage time efficiently. Occasionally, I tread water for three days in a row.  I woo people with my godlike trombone playing, I can pilot bicycles up severe inclines with unflagging speed and I can cook thirty-five minute brownies in twenty minutes.  I am an expert in stucco, a veteran in love, and an outlaw in Peru. Using only a hoe and a large glass of water, I once single-handedly defended a small village in the Amazon Basin from a horde of ferocious army ants.  I play bluegrass cello, I was scouted by the Cubs and I am the subject of numerous documentaries.  When I am bored, I build large suspension bridges in my yard.  I enjoy urban hang-gliding and on Wednesdays, after work, I repair electrical appliances free of charge. I am an abstract artist, a concrete analyst and ruthless bookie.  Critics worldwide swoon over my original line of corduroy evening wear.  I don’t perspire, children trust me and I bat 400. I am a private citizen, yet I receive fan mail.  I have been caller number nine and have won the weekend passes and last summer I toured New Jersey with a traveling centrifugal-force demonstration.  My deft floral arrangements have earned me fame in international botany circles. I can hurl tennis rackets at small moving objects with deadly accuracy, I know the exact location of every food item in the supermarket and I have performed several covert operations for the CIA.  I once read Paradise Lost, Moby Dick and David Copperfield in one day and still had time to refurbish an entire dining from that evening.  I sleep once a week and when I do sleep, I sleep in a chair.  While on vacation in Canada, I successfully negotiated with a  group of terrorists who had seized a small bakery. I balance, I weave, I dodge, I frolic and my bills are all paid. On weekends, to let off steam, I participate in full-contact origami. Years ago I discovered the meaning of life but forgot to write it down. I have made extraordinary four course meals using only a mouli and a toaster oven. I breed prizewinning clams and the laws of Physics do not apply to me. I have won bullfights in San Juan, cliff-diving competitions in Sri Lanka and spelling bees at the Kremlin. I have played Hamlet, I have performed open-heart surgery and I have spoken with Elvis.

Prep Time: 00:00

Recipe Time: 05:00

Temperature : 171F / 77.2C

Ingredients

Directions

  1. Set your Anova sous vide precision cooker to 171°F / 77°C.
  2. First we have to clean and prep the octopus. If your octopus comes with the head, remove by cutting just below the eyes. The head is also edible and if you want, then cut out the eyes, turn the head sac inside out and remove the organs.
  3. Next you have to remove the beak. The beak will be in the center of the body. To remove cut around the beak from either side and push through the flesh.
  4. Now we have to blanch the octopus to remove the slime. Bring a large pot of water to boil.
  5. When boiling, dip the octopus tentacles first into the boiling water 3 times for 10 seconds each time.
  6. Blanch octopus for 10 minutes. While blanching prepare an ice water bath.
  7. When done blanching immediately submerge in water bath. Remove when cool enough to handle.
  8. Cut into desired portion size and vacuum seal / ziploc bag with a generous drizzle of olive oil and pinch of salt.
  9. Place vacuum sealed bag / ziploc bag using water displacement method into the water bath. Cook for 5 hours.
  10. When done, the octopus will be covered with a gelatinous coating. Gently remove most of this by either rubbing with a paper towel or rinsing under the sink. Take care not to over remove this jelly and do not rub so hard you remove the suckers. The suckers will crisp up when you sear them and are delicious. 

Finishing Steps

  1. To finish, completely dry the octopus and brush with olive oil. Sear on a grill or in a cast iron pan for 3 minutes on each side. Serve with slices of lemon.
  2. Optional Charred Orange and Balsamic Sauce Ingredients 1 Large Naval Orange 1 Garlic Clove 1 Small Shallot 1 Sprig Rosemary 1/3 Cup Balsamic Vinegar 1 Tsp Sugar Directions 1. Halve orange and grill until charred. 2. Juice orange (should give about 1/2 cup) 3. Mix remaining ingredients plus pinch of salt and pepper and reduce until desired consistency.
  3. Optional Sweet Potato, Pearl Couscous, Pumpkin Seed Salad. Ingredients 1 Large Sweet Potato 3/4 Cup Pearl Couscous 1 1/4 Cup Chicken Stock 1/4 Cup Pumpkin Seeds 1 Tbsp Maple Syrup Juice Half a Lemon 1/4 Cup Fresh Parsley, chopped Directions 1. Preheat oven to 400°. 2. Dice sweet potato and toss with olive oil, salt, pepper and maple syrup. Roast 20-25 min until soft and starting to color. 3. In saucepan, add 1 tbsp olive oil and saute pearl couscous until it starts to brown. About 5 min. 5. Turn to low heat and add chicken stock cooking until fully absorbed. 6. Mix with pumpkin seeds, lemon juice, parsley and salt & pepper to taste.