Portuguese octopus salad is a delightful recipe from the Portuguese coast. It’s typically light, and bursting with flavour. It’s surprisingly simple to make at home!
If you go to a traditional Portuguese restaurant or café and order a salad, the chances are high that you might be disappointed with your choice. That’s because in the rare cases they do make it to Portuguese menus, they are usually very simple and aren’t meant to be a main dish. They’re usually made of lettuce, tomatoes, and raw onions, and served as an accompaniment to grilled meats and steak. This recipe is an exception to that rule, an octopus salad that’s perfect for the warmer months and stands on its own.
About our Octopus Salad Recipe
This recipe is very simple to prepare and quite straightforward, the only task that can be more demanding is that of cooking the octopus. There are several methods you can follow, it can be poached, cooked in a pressure cooker, etc… Our preferred method is to bake it covered with foil, alongside vegetables and herbs. The foil helps trap all the moisture and steam, so in the end you have incredibly tender octopus and a rich stock that can be used in other recipes such as our Octopus Rice.
What Octopus Should you use in an Octopus Salad?
There’s nothing worse than octopus that has tough or chewy texture. The secret to tender meat is to use frozen octopus, in Portugal it’s easily found in almost every supermarket and grocery stores. For those outside of Portugal, if you cannot find it at your regular supermarket, perhaps you will find it in Asian grocery stores.
How to Make Portuguese Octopus Salad
Apart from the octopus you will also need onions, tomatoes, fresh herbs, olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper. Although it’s called octopus salad, it’s more similar to a pickle or octopus vinaigrette. In any case it’s a delicious way to eat octopus, and a great option for the hot summer days.
Portuguese Octopus Salad
Portuguese Octopus Salad – How to Make Salada de Polvo
6
servings10
minutes1
hour266
kcalPortuguese octopus salad is a delightful recipe from the Portuguese coast. It’s typically light, and bursting with flavour.
Ingredients
1 Small Frozen Octopus – 1.5kg
4 Small Onions (400g)
4 Small Tomatoes (250g)
2 Garlic Cloves
1 Bay Leaf
Fresh Thyme
Fresh Rosemary
1/2 Bunch of Coriander
Black Pepper
1/3 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 tbsp White Wine Vinegar
1/2 tsp Chili Powder
Directions
- Place the thawed octopus at room temperature for at least 30 minutes prior to cooking. Meanwhile pre-heat the oven to 190°C, slice 2 onions and 2 tomatoes, and peel the garlic cloves.
- Spread half of the onions and tomatoes on a baking tray, place the octopus on top. Cover it with the remaining sliced onions and tomatoes and the whole garlic cloves. Add in the bay leaf, and a couple of sprigs of rosemary and thyme. Season with black pepper.
- Once the oven has heated up, tightly seal the tray with foil and bake for approximately one hour. The time may vary depending on the size of the octopus.
- Once the octopus finishes cooking, remove the foil, then carefully strain the stock that formed. This octopus stock can be used to make Portuguese Octopus Rice or Fish Stew.
- Cut off the tentacles where they converge, and discard the beak and eyes from the octopus. Slice the tentacles and set them aside to cool. You can also use the remaining parts of the head.
- Meanwhile, dice the remaining onions, remove the seeds from the tomatoes, and dice it too.
- Once the chopped octopus has cooled down completely, combine it with your diced onions and tomatoes. Roughly chop your fresh coriander, toss it in. Dress with the olive oil and vinegar, season with the piri piri and freshly ground black pepper.
- Chill for at least 30 minutes before serving. Since octopus can be pretty salty, we recommend you taste the salad before adding any extra.
Notes
- The left over octopus stock can be used to make Portuguese Octopus Rice or Fish Stew.
Have you tried this recipe? Let us know in the comments!
