Grilled Octopus / Polvo Grelhado

I love grilled Octopus.  It is a wonderful dish that when cooked right has a light smoky crust of paprika, but is tender as a good steak.  Some of the best grilled Octopus we have had was in Portugal and I tended to get this dish wherever I could find it.  Our grilled Octopus recipe is an incredibly flavorful dish and reflects the style we enjoyed in Portugal.  Served as a tapa or as the main dish, grilled Octopus is versatile meal.  Finding fresh, never frozen Octopus can be difficult as the best source is from Spain where the Octopus have a healthy diet of shellfish. Here is a good article about identifying good Octopus to use and overall a good read before trying to cook Octopus your first time.

One store that I can consistently find fresh Octopus is Eataly, so if your city has one it is a good bet you can find what you need there.

Check out these other Portugal and Spanish inspired recipes:

Easy Grilled Squid and Peppers

Portuguese Yellow Rice – The Best Rice Recipe

Baked Turbot Fish

Print Recipe

Grill Octopus / Polvo Grelhado Yum

Octopus is cooked slowly in a bath of water, oil, and seasonings which soften the octopus. After the octopus cools to room temperature, we add some spices and grill for a few minutes to finish off the perfect texture and infused with a little smokiness.

Course

Main Dish, Seafood, Tapas / Petiscos / Apps

Cuisine

Portuguese, Seafood

Prep Time

20 minutes

Cook Time

3.5 hours

Servings

people

Ingredients

For tenderizing tentacles

• 2-3 lbs Octopus legs Fresh, not frozen (if you can find) - we found at Eataly
• 2 stalks celery sliced thin
• 1 cup shallot OR 1/4 yellow onion diced
• 5 sprigs thyme
• 2 sprigs taragon
• 1 garlic diced
• 1 bay leaf
• olive oil Enough to coat bottom of pan
• Sparkling water Enough to cover tentacles
• 1 wine bottle cork

For grilling

• paprika to season
• salt to season
• black pepper to season
• oil oil to coat

Course Main Dish, Seafood, Tapas / Petiscos / Apps Cuisine Portuguese, Seafood Prep Time 20 minutes Cook Time 3.5 hours Servings people Ingredients For tenderizing tentacles 2-3 lbs Octopus legs Fresh, not frozen (if you can find) - we found at Eataly 2 stalks celery sliced thin 1 cup shallot OR 1/4 yellow onion diced 5 sprigs thyme 2 sprigs taragon 1 garlic diced 1 bay leaf olive oil Enough to coat bottom of pan Sparkling water Enough to cover tentacles 1 wine bottle cork For grilling paprika to season salt to season black pepper to season oil oil to coat

Instructions

1. Preheat over to 250 degrees F
2. Rub rock salt all over the octopus to break down the fibers and help make it more tender, let sit for 10 minutes
3. Wipe away rock salt from octopus and place in a large oven safe pot deep enough to be able to cover water/oil
4. Add all of the other ingredients into the pot
5. Cook uncovered at 250 degrees F in oven for 2 hours.
6. Remove from oven and then let cool in the liquid until at room temperature
7. Cut apart the tentacles so they are all separate (if they were attached together)
8. Heat grill so that it is hot ~400 degrees F
9. Before grilling, toss tentacles in olive oil and season with paprika, salt, and black pepper
10. Grill on high for 3-4 minutes on each side
11. Slice tentacles to serve and top with some good olive oil

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