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I wish I could tell you that I first ate this grilled octopus while sitting at a seaside bistro in Greece, staring out at a Peloponnesian sunset and knocking back tumblers of ouzo. But I can’t. Sadly, I’ve never been to Greece, although I’ve wanted to go for more than a decade. The Fates seem always to prevent me. Someday.
I can, however, tell you that this Greek-inspired recipe is so wonderful I’d happily feed it to Great Aphrodite, or some mortal facsimile thereof… like Holly, who just so happens to be part Greek. Holly loves octos, and so do I. Enough to post a recipe for a store-bought ingredient. Yes, it’s true. I did not catch these octopi. I bought them at a fish market.
There are any number of methods to tenderize octopus, but over the years I’ve found the best way is to slowly braise them in their own juices, over a bed of mixed herbs. The grilling part only adds some char and scorch to the party. Serve these simply, with lemon, a drizzle of fine olive oil and a grind of black pepper.
Bread is a must, as are olives. I like some feta cheese with my octos, too. And you gotta have either an austere, crisp white wine — I recommend a Greek Assyrtiko — or lots and lots of ouzo.
If you like calamari, you will like this recipe. If you like octopus, you will love this recipe. So much so that you will find yourself eating ore than you think you might be able to; Holly and I ate this full two-pound recipe at one sitting. Glad we did not have to take a cholesterol test the next day…
[recipe_name]Grilled Octopus, Greek Style[/recipe_name]
[summary]I used small octopi for this recipe, but it works just as well with larger ones, too. If you use a big octo, you will need to braise it longer, and you will want to cut it into chunks when you are ready to grill. Octopus is readily available at both Asian and Latin markets; the Mexicans, apparently, eat a lot of pulpo. It might be harder to find in an Anglo market, however. There is no easy substitute for octopus, although cuttlefish would work. But good luck finding cuttlefish.
Below I give a minimum time for marinating the octopus before grilling. You can marinate them for as long as a day or two beforehand and the octos will still taste fine. You can also braise on one day and grill on another. Once they’ve been braised, the octopi will keep a few days in the fridge. You also can serve this hot or at room temperature, so it really is a perfect make-ahead appetizer.
For another great octopus recipe, check out my Spanish pulpo gallego. [/summary]
[yield]Serves 4 as an appetizer. [/yield]
Prep Time: [preptime time=10M] 10 minutes [/preptime]
Cook Time: [cooktime time=3H] 3 hours, includes marinating time. [/cooktime]
- 2 pounds octopus
- Salt
- 3 to 4 bunches of herbs, such as parsley, oregano, fennel fronds and green onions
- 4 to 6 bay leaves
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- Juice of a lemon
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano
- 1 chopped fresh hot chile, or 1/2 teaspoon chile flakes
- Fine olive oil, black pepper and lemon wedges for garnish
___________
[instructions]
- Â Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and blanch the octopus for 90 seconds. Remove the octopus and let it drain on a colander.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 300°F. Line the bottom of a brazier, a Dutch oven or other large, ovenproof pot with a lid with the herbs and bay leaves. Lay the octopus on the nest of herbs, cover the pot and cook in the oven until tender, which will be somewhere between 90 minutes for small octopi to 4 hours for a really gigantic one. Two hours is about normal.
- When the octopus is tender, cut it into chunks. Leave small octopi whole. Mix the olive oil, lemon juice, oregano and chile and marinate the octopus in this for at least 1 hour, and as much as a day.
- To finish, get your grill blazing hot. Make sure the grill grates are clean. Grill the octopus over high heat until you get a little bit of charring here and there; they’re already cooked, so you are just adding flavor. Drizzle with really good olive oil, grind some black pepper over them and serve with a wedge of lemon — and a shot of ouzo.
[/instructions]
Just pulled these off the grill with fantastic results. Marinating at the end really adds the additional herbal flavors. Grilled over pecan wood/lump charcoal…fantastic.
I was in Greece many years ago. I stayed on a the island of Ios.
There they beat the octopus on a rock, then hung it to dry in the wind like laundry. It was grilled and dressed with olive oil, and lemon. I’m sure it was braised or boiled first
Best octopus I have ever cooked…as delicious and tender as the stuff I ate in Greece! Amazing recipe thank you! Am about to cook it for the second time in 2 weeks! Worth every step and minute of prep and cooking!
Thank you for this fabulous recipe. I used your technique to braise 3 octopuses. The flavor was far superior to simmering in water. By the way, according to the Oxford dictionary , “The standard plural in English of octopus is octopuses. However, the word octopus comes from Greek, and the Greek plural form octopodes is still occasionally used. The plural form octopi is mistakenly formed according to rules for Latin plurals, and is therefore incorrect.” You are in good company as virtually every online recipe for octopus that I have read makes the same mistake.
This looks PHENOMENAL! I absolutely ADORE octopus when cooked correctly and this looks like perfection!
For cuttlefish, try any grocery store. I’ve never lived anywhere in the USA (10 states) where it could not be easily found. Or, go where the Latino’s shop.
Your inference that octopus is bad for your cholesterol level is just the opposite. Octopus is full of good cholesterol and actually improves lipid profiles. Like many shellfish and eggs, people should be encouraged to eat them if they want to eat healthy. Best to leave the medical opinions to the medical community.
I made this today, it’s the best octopus recipe I have ever made!
I found they needed to be seasoned with salt at the end, but other than that the recipe was very accurate.
Thanks so much 🙂
I have been to Greece and all I did was look for grilled Octopus. Fantastic, just as you are are imagining it. Thanks for the recipe!
P.S. What is up with the last post? Is he a friend of yours?
WOW…. Octopus cooked this way will never be eaten by anyone other than the cook. 2kgs and my guest will be lucky to taste the juices let alone the octopi it self. Thank you.
Just finished my first try of this recipe, simply stated EXCELLENT! Next time I will try for some larger Octo’s, did it with baby, like to try it with some that have finger sized tentacles.
Meg: Never tried it, but it might work. Since the heat comes from right under the pot in a slow cooker, I’d add just enough water to cover the bottom. Otherwise it might scorch. If you do this, can you report back here to let us all know how it went? Thanks!
What do you think about using the crockpot to braise it?
I am down in south FL and the idea of heating up an oven to braise something for hours is oppressive… but I do love octopus!
Hank, It is indeed a great time for the grill… the cooler air signals fall is officially on its way. I just secured 10 lbs of baby octopi last week and had a phenomenal grilling session this past weekend. I’m waiting on a good supply of squid ink to make some black pulpo in the next week or two. Keep it up!
I’ve been to greece. what they do there with the octopus, is that they leave it to dry for about a day, then grill it. you need a northern wind for that, some fantastic chef at a small family restaurant in Rhodos told me (the prevalent summer wind in greece, the meltemi, is a dry, northern wind).
I have always cooked it like you do, boiling+grilling, liked it that way and always wondered what is the deal with drying it. Never had access to that dry wind for long enough… but it is worth it if you can try it. The flesh will stay a little more rubbery, while still very chewable but it keeps that amazing fresh taste of the sea that is lost when the seafood is not fresh out of the water.
And this is how that guy in rhodos served it – in his own words: no garlic, no sauce. Some lemon juice and maybe a little olive oil. It was fantastic, I have to say.
I’m anxious to try this. One of the best meals I ever ate was grilled octopus at one of those little Peloponnesian seaside cafes. Your post brought back great memories!
Ian: Correct. There is so much liquid in the octopus, it braises in its own juices. Pretty cool, eh?
No additional liquid is required for the braise?
Off the market!
Yum. Definitely doing this with squid though – no octopus around this house but plenty of access to fresh squid.
~M
John: Squid will work fine — just skip the whole braising step. Conch? I’ve only ground it and made it into fritters, but I expect you’d need to braise it pretty good before grilling. Flavorwise it will work, though.
Sounds great! How would it work with squid or conch?