Octopus with garlic prawns

How to prepare octopus with garlic prawns.

A  simple but high quality octopus recipe   . The person in charge is one of the Galician products par excellence, the octopus .

Connoisseurs say that the best octopus is from Mugardos or Ons but there is no one to prepare it like the pulpeiras do Carballiño, and that is in Ourense, inland province and about 100 km from the coast.

So important is the octopus there that they celebrate their main party with him, the octopus party or “Festa do polbo” on the first weekend of August, if you have the opportunity to go it is a highly recommended party.

The octopus is incorporated into all the menus of restaurants, taverns and taperías in Galicia but one of my favorites is prepared in Ourense, “A Feira” where they also serve a famous local coffee liqueur (for dessert and if you don’t drive).

I also recommend going to Illa de Ons, at Casa Checho I have tried the best octopus (after the one prepared by my mother) and the best barnacles.

A recipe that will delight anyone who likes octopus, I also assure you that it will be perfect with all the secrets to cook the octopus  and that it is cooked .

Imagine a good octopus, a delicious cover of shrimp with garlic and if we put it all together … uff! Doesn’t that sound heavenly to you?

Well, that crossed my mind and the result is this recipe that I present today. I hope you like it. ” The secret of taste … simply quality ”

Preparation of the octopus. Cooking

1. It is very important to soften the octopus by hitting it before cooking, it helps the meat to be tender.
2. The normal thing is to buy the octopus already frozen, which achieves a similar effect. So if we buy it fresh, all we have to do is freeze it.
3. We take the octopus out a day before the freezer and put it in the fridge to defrost.
4. It is important to do it in a saucepan or a large bowl because it will release a lot of liquid and it can overflow.
5. At the time of cooking we pass it a little through cold water to clean it and remove possible impurities.
6. We put a casserole (the largest we have) on the fire with water and a whole peeled onion, we do not add salt because the octopus is salted at the end, in the presentation.
7. When it starts to boil we add the octopus, we take it by the head and “we scare it”, this technique consists of putting the octopus in and out 3-4 times from the saucepan to make it stiff and the skin does not fall off during the cooking.
8. We cook the octopus for about 45 – 50 m. over medium heat depending on size.
9. You have to click it from time to time to see how hard it is. The first time you cook it, it will cost you to take the point but then it will come out pearl-free.
10. When we finish cooking we let it rest for a few minutes and then we take it to a source.
11. We cut the octopus with kitchen scissors, the legs into pieces 1 cm thick and the head into small pieces. We reserve.

Preparation of the prawns with garlic

1. Next we will prepare the prawns, the recipe can also be prepared with prawns (which in certain times and areas may be cheaper than prawns).
2. It is important but not essential to have fresh prawns or prawns.
3. Excess water is fatal for the recipe, so they are fresh or frozen we must remove excess water with absorbent paper.
4. We add a good olive oil to the casserole and heat, when the oil is hot we add the chilli in 2-3 pieces.
5. Peel the garlic and chop it into very small pieces. Fry the garlic over low heat for 1 minute, remove the garlic and the chilli with a slotted spoon to a plate.
6. We introduce the prawns in the previous oil. We stir the prawns at all times while they are cooking for about 2 minutes.
7. We add garlic, salt and pepper. We remove from the fire so that it does not cook more.

Final presentation of the octopus with garlic prawns

1. In the casserole of the prawns we add the octopus that we have prepared before.
2. We mix in temperate with softness so that the flavors come together well.
3. We serve in a clay pot if presented individually or in a ceramic dish.
4. Accompany with a good bread to dip in the oil. The loaf of bread will be finished in a few minutes.

Here you can see all the photos of the step-by-step recipe of octopus and garlic prawns . Do not miss any detail and it will be perfect.