Octopus Galician style

January 30th, 2018 | starter

Pulpo á la Gallega or Pulpo á feira (carnival style) is the name of this artful, but simple dish that you can eat everywhere in the streets of Barcelona’s port area. A traditional dish, which uses dried Octopus on the big festivals. Anyhow, in the bars in the “Barrio Gótico” in Barcelona’s gothic quarter, cooked Octopus is used. Our favorite shore leave place in Barcelona is the tapas bar “Celta Pulpería“. Anyone who should believe the preparation of Pulpo á feira is difficult, definitely is wrong!

Best is of course, to buy a fresh octopus and cook it. But, from our own experience we know that octopus is not available always and everywhere. Therefore, you can also use cooked and frozen octopus. This is a really workable alternative. I personally cook octopus in stock when I get fresh one. So I have always something in the freezer and can quickly prepare octopus appetizer with it.

Octopus Galician style (Pulpo a la Gallega)

(4 servings – or more, if served as Tapas)

Octopus, 1.6 - 2 kg

rinse the octopus and cut off the body just behind the eyes, cut off and throw away the part with the eyes, rinse the body carefully from inside. Cut off and throw away the masticatory organs (situated in the center of the tentacles), cut off the tentacles.

Water and white wine (I use Riesling)

put the octopus parts into a pot and add half water and half white wine. The octopus should be well covered with liquid. You can also cook the octopus as a whole, then you need more water and wine.

1 onion with skin, cut in half

2 bay leaves

2 whole garlic cloves, crushed

add and bring to a boil, simmer for 10 minutes, remove from the heat and let the octopus in the stock for 4 hours until it’s done, rub down the red skin

cut he pulpo in discs and place it on a (traditionally) wooden plate

Coarse sea salt

Paprika noble sweet

Rose-hot pepper

Olive oil

if any, drain cooking liquid from the pulpo, sprinkle with salt and paprika and olive oil

serve with baguette bread and a good house wine, which is served in porcelain bowls that look like tea cups in the Pulpería Celta

If you like octopus Galician style for sure you will love octopus salad Mimmo style!

And that’s how the wife of the captain does it

You get around 750 g of cooked octopus out of a fresh weight of 1,6 kg. I reckon 100 – 150 g per portion of Pulpo á Gallega, this is already a very decent appetizer portion. For Tapas you need less.

You can freeze cooked octopus – that’s perfect for having guests.

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Vito says:

May 29th, 2022 at 16:36

Brilliant

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1. Bettina Wiebe says:
  
  May 29th, 2022 at 18:21
  
  Many thanks, Vito!

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