Try out the recipe below at your next dinner party and impress your guests with your advanced culinary expertise!

Prep Time

    •    Prep & Cook time: about 6 hours
    •    Yield: Serves 4

Ingredients

    •    Octopus
    •    good pinch salt
    •    pinch dried chilli
    •    flake salt to season
    •    ½ anchovy, chopped
    •    1 lemon cheek to finish
    •    100ml extra virgin olive oil
    •    4 Large Fremantle Octopus ‘hands’
    •    good pinch freshly ground black pepper

Salad:

    •    extra virgin olive oil
    •    1 tsp white wine vinegar
    •    1 large Royal Blue potato
    •    1 punnet rainbow cherry tomatoes

Red sauce:

    •    1 chilli, chopped
    •    200ml tomato puree
    •    1 clove garlic, minced

Garnish:

    •    nasturtium leaves
    •    bronze fennel fronds
    •    oxalis or woodland sorrel leaves
    •    100g rinsed capers, drained well
    •    150g cheeks of mixed local olives
    •    ½ cup vegetable oil for deep frying
    •    3 anchovy fillets, premium quality, cut into 4

Method

1. For the octopus, cut legs into individual tentacles and run under cold water for 5 minutes. Rub tentacles between 2 tea towels to remove excess slime until dry.
   
   
2. To wrap them into a ‘scroll’ shape, start with the thickest part of the tentacle and slowly wrap around itself, suckers pointing out, until you get to the end and tuck thin end between 2 rows of suckers. Season.
   
   
3. Place octopus scrolls in a sous-vide bag with olive oil, seasoning, anchovy and chilli. Seal on full suction. Cook the legs at 85°C for 3 hours in a sous-vide poacher (such as the Breville ‘The One’ Precision Poacher).
   
   
4. Plunge bag into ice water and chill for 1 hour. Remove from bag and pat dry. Reserve the juices.
   
   
5. For the salad, blanch the cherry tomatoes in boiling water for 10 seconds and refresh in plenty of ice water. Once cool, peel, toss in olive oil and a few drops of white wine vinegar and place in dehydrator for 2 hours to intensify and dry slightly.
   
   
6. Scoop 12 balls of potato with a parisienne scoop and poach in pot of seasoned water until tender. Set aside.
   
   
7. Rinse, drain and chill garnish herbs.
   
   
8. For the red sauce, fry minced garlic and chopped chilli in a wide pan.
   
   
9. Add the octopus cooking juices and reduce by half. Add tomato puree and cook until thick and glossy and starting to split. Taste for seasoning and set aside.
   
   
10. To finish and garnish, deep fry the capers until no bubbles come from them, drain on paper towel and set aside.
    
    
11. Brush octopus with oil and chargrill as needed. Season with flake salt and squeeze over lemon cheek.
    
    
12. Place grilled octopus on a serving plate. Press potato balls in between coiled layers to create a gap.
    
    
13. Drizzle with the red sauce. Top with warmed semi-dried tomatoes. Scatter with anchovy pieces, olive cheeks and fried capers.
    
    
14. Scatter garnish herbs and add some fresh cracked pepper and a drizzle of olive oil.

This great family recipe is thanks to Harvey Norman Recipes at https://www.harveynorman.com.au/blog/recipes/chargrilled-fremantle-octopus-puttanesca/