What Baba Cooked

Fresh, simple and full of Mediterranean flavour, octopus salad is a favourite along the Dalmatian coast. Tender octopus is tossed with potatoes, olive oil, garlic and parsley to create a light meal or appetiser that’s perfect for sharing.

My secret is simple: using a huge octopus and cooking it low and slow in red wine gives you maximum tenderness and flavour wth minimal effort.

What You Need

• One very large octopus, at least 2kg, cleaned
• One bottle of good red wine, something like a Shiraz
• The aromatics: six garlic cloves, a few bay leaves, flat leaf parsley inclduing stems, peppercorns, a few celery stalks, one halved brown onion
• One kilo of red waxy or kipfler potatoes
• Lots of extra virgin olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, finely grated
• A handful of fresh parsley, finely chopped
• Salt and black pepper, to taste
• Optional: salted capers (rinsed) and pitted green olives

What To Do

1. Place the octopus in a large pot with the bottle of wine and just enough water to barely cover the octopus, plus all the aromatics. Bring to a gentle simmer, and cook for about two to three hours, using a skewer to test until it’s unmistakably tender and soft as butter.
2. While the octopus is cooking, cook the potatoes in their skins by bringing them to the boil in salted water then simmering until cooked (you don’t want them too soft so they turn into mashed potatoes when you go to dress the salad). Allow them to cool slightly, then peel and cut into bite-sized pieces.
3. Remove the octopus from the water and let it cool enough to handle. Cut into small pieces. Remove any of the dark slimy bits.
4. Place the octopus and potatoes in a large bowl and dress with lots of olive oil, garlic, and parsley. Season with salt and pepper.
5. Gently toss everything together until well combined. If you’re using the capers and olives add them now.
6. Serve slightly warm or chilled, and give it another generous drizzle of olive oil before serving.