Baby octopus in tomato sauce

Cook & Prep Time

50 min

Serves

4

This baby octopus dish is based on a Neapolitan recipe called alla Luciana which tradition has it is named after the fishermen of the historical seaside neighbourhood of Santa Lucia in the city. These local fishermen, also called ‘luciani’, were well known for their octopus fishing skills. Apparently, they used to catch octopus using terracotta amphorae placed on the seabed!

Ingredients

600g baby octopus, cleaned
800g canned organic whole peeled tomatoes
60g black olives, stoned
25g capers, rinsed well
a pinch of marjoram
extra virgin olive oil, to make the tomato sauce
1 clove of garlic
salt and pepper

Directions

Step 1

Purée the canned organic tomatoes in a blender. Take a large frying pan, add a little extra virgin olive oil, the pureed tomatoes and the whole garlic clove, bring to the boil and simmer gently for a few minutes.

Step 2

Then add the baby octopus and cook gently for 20 minutes, then add the capers, olives and marjoram. Season with salt to taste, and simmer for another 20 minutes.

Step 3

Check if the baby octopus are done by testing with a fork; if they are tender then the dish is ready. If not, cook a few minutes more.

RGFE