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Pulpo a Feira – Octopus Galician-Style

Mind if I start eating my Octopus without waiting for you to have your napkin on your lap? Are you an Octopus fan? Or are you an Octopus detractor?

If you are a fan, then copy and paste this recipe instructions because you will just love it!!! You will need such a few ingredients and the result is so tasty and flavourful!

This Octopus is typical from Galicia. I even found a page in Wikipedia where it talks about this recipe. Galicia is the evergreen land, up in the northwest of Spain, just over Portugal. I’ve never been there but I positively know that I would fall in love with their people, their food and their landscapes!!! One of the most famous foods there is their Seafood, not to mention their cheese!. All good restaurants in Spain have Galician products in their Menus.

See what Matt Gross from The New York Times thinks about Galicia in his article written 2 years ago.

Galicia has strong Celtic influences; the Bagpipes is their musical instrument and Meigas (Witches) live in the dark, humid and green forests… or that is what legends say! So, here is my opportunity to add my special dressing today: Van Morrison and Moondance. Yes, I know he is Irish but I LOVE him! He is one of my favourites ever!!!

Now, turn the player on and follow these easy instructions :D

Ingredients for 4 servings: 4 to 5 big potatoes, 4 black pepper balls, 1 bay leaf, 500 to 600 grs of octopus (legs), half a glass of Extra virgin olive oil, 2 garlic cloves, red sweet ground paprika, red hot ground paprika, thick sea salt and water.

Octopus is a bit tricky to cook, if you don’t follow the boiling process properly it can be too chewy or too rubbery. Here you have a few tips: *If you buy it fresh at your fishmonger, what I do to get it softer is freeze it first: have two days in the freezer at least, and then one day before cooking it, have in the fridge and let defreeze little by little. Prepare a big pot with boiling water and one onion inside, put the octopus in the boiling water for 1 minute and take it out. Repeat the procedure for 5 times in a row (this is done to avoid the skin to fall). Leave it inside the pot and let it boil for 25 minutes at medium/high heat. Use a fork to see if it’s completely done and reserve. *If you buy it frozen or canned and cooked (La Tienda has some canned octopus) then you can directly go to the next step.

Peel and wash the potatoes. Have another big pot ready with water, the black pepper balls and the bay leaf. Cut the potatoes in thick slices and put in the pot, make sure the water covers them. Boil until potatoes are done. Reserve.

Mince the garlics and add to the half glass of extra virgin olive oil. Also add two teaspoons of sweet red paprika and one teaspoon of red hot paprika. Stir and reserve.

Get a wooden plate or tray and set the potatoes on it, drop the thick sea salt on them, add the octopus cut in circles on top and pour the oil mixture over the octopus. Tachán!!! The 8th wonder is ready to be devoured!!!

PLEASE NOTICE: Pilar, a Galician foodie blogger has sent me this comment which I feel I should publish in the post. For those of you who want to know the REAL recipe please see her instructions. I’ll translate it the better I can.

Nuria, he intentado varias veces dejarte mi comentario pero no sé qué pasa.Bueno quisiera puntualizar unas cuantas cositas. Espero que no te parezca mal. Como gallega, y residiendo actualmente en Galicia, te diré:1. El pulpo “a feira” no suele llevar ajos picados. En algunos lugares de Ourense se los ponen, pero son los menos.2. Las patatas quedan más sabrosas si las cueces en el mismo agua de cocer el pulpo. Toman un sabor y un color maravilloso.3. El orden en el que se pone el condimento es: primero la sal gruesa, luego el pimentón y finalmente el aceite de oliva virgen. No se suele mezclar el pimentón y el aceite, ya que de ésta forma lo que estás preparando es una “caldeirada”.Espero no te molesten mis indicaciones pero me ví en la obligación de explicarte estos pequeños detallitos que para nosotros los gallegos, son tan importantes.Un bicoPilar
Nuria, I’ve been trying to leave you a comment but don’t know what’s going on. Well, I would like to emphasize some things. Hope you don’t take it bad. As a Galician and living now in Galicia, I’ll tell you that: 1. The Pulpo “a feira” normally doesn’t have minced garlic. In some Ourense places they add it, but it’s not a general habbit. 2. Potatoes are much more flavourful if you boil them in the octopus water. They absorb a wonderful taste and colour. 3. The order to follow when adding the rest of ingredients is the following: first the thick sea salt, the paprika, and after the olive oil. You shouldn’t mix the paprika and the olive oil because then what you get is a “caldeirada”. I hope that this small indications don’t make you mad but I felt I should explain you these small details which are so important for us Galicians. A kiss, Pilar.

Thanks so much Pilar for showing me how to perform a Real Pulpo “a feira” :D. I really appreciate that!
In my defense ;-) I want to say that I went through different ways of cooking it and all of them claimed to be the real one. None of them mentioned the boiling of the potatoes should be done in the same water used for the octopus. I thought about it but didn’t follow my instinc. The garlics addition is something I found in a couple of recipes, I saw it was not a majoritarian tendence but I liked it. And concerning the order of the ingredients in the dressing… my fault, I thought it would be better if I just mixed the ingredients and poured them on top of the octopus and potatoes… that was my cooking license!

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05/21/2008 · 11:00 h by Bellini Valli

If I could I would be on a plane right now!!!

05/21/2008 · 13:32 h by Ben

Oh my dear Nuria! I think I am in love :-p I do love pulpo but nobody here shares my taste :( I think I need to move close to you so we can have this delicias everyday :-p

05/21/2008 · 13:54 h by Peter M

Oh Nuria, you know I love octopis, dont you? lol

The dish looks fabulous and I learned from you a method to keep it’s skin on (which I like).

05/21/2008 · 15:04 h by JennDZ - The Leftover Queen

Man Nuria, this looks amazing! All that olive and and garlic AND potatoes with octopus! Wow, this is truly great! Sounds like I want to go to Galicia! Sounds like a magical place!

05/21/2008 · 15:35 h by Judy @ No Fear Entertaining

That look incredible Nuria. I was looking at some frozen octopus at my fish market just the other day. I am going to try this over the weekend!!!

05/21/2008 · 16:59 h by Jen of A2eatwrite

I love octopus, too! I’d be scared to eat it in the Midwest, though… and I haven’t attempted cooking it yet.

05/21/2008 · 18:06 h by Núria

Just buy the plane ticket Val and the octopus tapas is on me ;-)

He, he, my husband would love to have these delicias every day too, darling Ben!!! Don’t know when I’ll cook octopus again :D… but I’ll tell you in advance so that you can fly over ;-)

I know you love octopis Peter! and I know about the cork trick too… see I have my own tricks and I’m happy you learnt something from me :D

Jenn, if you ever come to Spain, yes you should step on Galicia and yes it’s a magical land and… I would love to meet you and cook for you♥

Oh, Judy…. if you try it, please let me know how it was!!!! I would love to have some feedback :D

Jen if you find it frozen is no problem… Cook it and enjoy :D… the recipe is sooooo easy!

05/21/2008 · 20:06 h by Peter G

La comida de Galicia, soy gusto mucho (phew! trying to remember all my Spanish!). Love all the ajo in this dish Nuria…and what a great method to cook octopus!

05/22/2008 · 2:32 h by glamah16

Im a huge fan!

05/22/2008 · 6:46 h by Pixie

Nuria, I’m sorry it’s been so long, I absolutely adore all of your recipes and how, I would most certainly love this. I wanted you to know we’ve been making your paella and it’s so far better now. Thank you sweetie- when we come up with one with the best ingredients I will post about it. Oh and consider yourself tag- please feel free to do the 10 pics tag- I’ll just add your name to the list.

05/22/2008 · 10:58 h by canarygirl

Oh my Gawd! Pulpo a la Gallega is one of the best tapas EVER! You’ve done a beautiful job, Núria! Yum Yum! :)

05/22/2008 · 12:23 h by Núria

Hey Peter, I love when you “talk” in Spanish :D.
Most Octopus dishes don’t use ajo but I think it enriches the dish so much!

Courtney Hola! Who are you a huge fan of: Van Morrison or the Octopus? ;-)

Pixie, don’t worry at all for me!!! Now that it will soon be a year blogging I understand and see some things I missed at the begining. We all have a LIFE and sometimes can not blog as much as we wish :D
So happy you tried the paella!!!! It took me some years to cook it right :D Practice is important!!!

Thank you darling Nikki :D. It’s one of my favourite tapas too!!!

05/22/2008 · 21:17 h by Mallory Elise

oooh i love octopus. but i dont use napkins. i love food so much I’m proud to sport it around. hehe.

yes, you should probably stay away from aligot, its very much FULL OF CHEESE! but we are going to have to start working on your fromage-aversion sometime, life is not worth living without the fermented dairy products!

05/23/2008 · 2:03 h by giz

So now we’re even – this to me is like peanut butter is to you. We need to have a cooking exchange program. I have much to learn.

05/23/2008 · 2:05 h by Heather

Ooohohhooo……puuulllpppoooo….

I love it so much! I think this weekend I will go buy some baby ones. I can only get them frozen, but if I stew them a long time I think they’ll be delicioso. I like canned pulpo too – so tender!

05/23/2008 · 6:54 h by Núria

Hola Mallory :D… I guess we are all crazy about food!!! Concerning the Aligot… yes I should do something with my cheese aversion!

He, he… I bet these look like purple martians to you, ugh? I don’t tell you what I think about peanut butter, though I would like to try it someday :D

I knew you were gonna like this one, Heather!!! Tinny ones are delicious too :D

05/23/2008 · 11:59 h by Barbara

I’m happy to have discovered your site. I’ve been to Galicia and it is fabulous. I went to a special pulpo restaurant and my friends didn’t like the smell so we left. I ate pulpo in Portugal.

05/23/2008 · 13:04 h by Núria

Hi Barbara! Welcome to Spanish Recipes :D Hope you enjoy my meals!!! I wish I could go to a Pulperia… Mmmmmm. Good you tried it!

05/23/2008 · 14:34 h by We Are Never Full

No one, no one does octopus as delicious as the Spanish. I love this recipe.My husband has been to Galicia and i can’t wait to go one day. sigh…

05/23/2008 · 15:19 h by JennDZ - The Leftover Queen

I would like that too Nuria…a lot! Hugs!

05/23/2008 · 16:18 h by Pilar - Lechuza

Nuria, he intentado varias veces dejarte mi comentario pero no sé qué pasa.
Bueno quisiera puntualizar unas cuantas cositas. Espero que no te parezca mal. Como gallega, y residiendo actualmente en Galicia, te diré:
1. El pulpo “a feira” no suele llevar ajos picados. En algunos lugares de Ourense se los ponen, pero son los menos.
2. Las patatas quedan más sabrosas si las cueces en el mismo agua de cocer el pulpo. Toman un sabor y un color maravilloso.
3. El orden en el que se pone el condimento es: primero la sal gruesa, luego el pimentón y finalmente el aceite de oliva virgen. No se suele mezclar el pimentón y el aceite, ya que de ésta forma lo que estás preparando es una “caldeirada”.
Espero no te molesten mis indicaciones pero me ví en la obligación de explicarte estos pequeños detallitos que para nosotros los gallegos, son tan importantes.
Un bico
Pilar

05/23/2008 · 16:26 h by Núria

Thanks Jenn :D

No me molesta en absoluto Pilar, al contrario, muchas gracias por enseñarme la verdadera receta. He visto unas cuantas antes de publicarla y me decidí por los ajos aunque sabía que no era mayoritario. Si no te sabe mal, traduciré y añadiré tu comentario al post. Gracias guapa!!! :D

05/24/2008 · 16:28 h by Pilar - Lechuza

Núria, gracias por publicar mis recomendaciones. Me pareció importante que las supieses. Te dejo un enlace a mi receta que publiqué en mi blog hace ya algún tiempo:

PULPO A FEIRA

Espero que te guste.
Un saludo

05/25/2008 · 10:04 h by Núria

Iré a verla, Pilar.
Un abrazo.

05/26/2008 · 18:20 h by Ivy

Nuria, I am definitely an octopus lover and the ingredients sound great. Have never made an octopus with potatoes. I want to congratulate Pilar for having the courage to say her opinion and she shouldn’t apologize for doing so. I have never seen any negative comments anywhere and everyone is trying to be pleasant. When I tried to point out something wrong I was criticized and told not to open my mouth if I don’t have something nice to say.. How hypocritical.

05/26/2008 · 18:31 h by Núria

Wow Ivy… didn’t know you were criticized!!! From my point of view, I’m not perfect and always learning, so any comments or adjustments to the recipes are welcome… if done properly! Good manners are basic! But I understand that not everybody is the same way. I know that in life, in the long run, you always get what you gave ;-). So let’s be positive, generous and nice :D. This is my aim.

05/28/2008 · 14:07 h by taste memory

oh my ~ that looks absolutely delcious….I love this type of cooking – very fresh, savory and lots of intensity in every bite!

Love your posts and thank you for commenting on my blog recently….

05/28/2008 · 14:20 h by Núria

Thanks so much Taste of memory and welcome to Spanish Recipes :D

06/09/2008 · 17:23 h by Sophie

I’m Sophie, Key Ingredient’s Chief Blogger. We would like to feature this recipe on our blog. Please email sophiekiblogger@gmail.com if interested. Thanks :)

Sophie
http://blog.keyingredient.com/

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