Octopus Confit with Chimichurri Sauce
…Have you ever made chimichurri sauce before? It’s an Argentinean sauce or condiment, similar to pesto, that is popular throughout South America. This basic version includes a little bit of chili pepper, although the variations on the theme are endless. Chimichurri is used both as a marinade and a sauce for grilled steak, but you can also use it on fish, chicken, lamb, or even pasta. Today, I made some octopus confit and added chimichurri sauce to it, which happens to be my husband’s favorite combination. Chimichurri is made with chopped fresh parsley, oregano, garlic, olive oil, red wine vinegar, and red pepper flakes. It’s a colorful and flavorful addition to octopus confit as well. The herbs remove the octopus’ smell, and the meat becomes very tender. I found that the octopus confit we ate at a restaurant can be easily made at home, and my grandson enjoyed it very much. Now, grandma will make it for you!Confit is deep-frying in fat, whereas barbecue is grilling low and slow. Confit is most commonly seen with octopus, which makes sense considering it’s a technique that stems from southwest France as a cooking method. This is good with any meat that has a good deal of connective tissue for tenderizing. It is delicious to eat by itself, but it is even more delicious to eat with various vegetables. This confit recipe is from @comble2.
Servings: 4
Time: 40 minutes
Ingredients:
- 500g lightly boiled octopus, pat dry
2. 2 stems of rosemary
3. 3–4 stems of fresh thyme
4. 15 peppercorns
5. 3 peperoncini (optional)
6. 3 bay leaves
7. 300ml olive oil
For chimichurri sauce:
- 1 cup parsley leaves, minced
- 1 tbsp oregano, minced
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tsp red pepper flake
- 1/4 cup(65 ml) red wine vinegar
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- black pepper to taste
- 1/2 cup(125 ml) extra virgin olive oil
Cooking Instructions:
- Heat a pot with medium heat and add the octopus, bay leaves, thyme, rosemary, peppercorn, and olive oil into the pot to boil.
2. After boiling heat down to low heat to keep heating for 30–40 minutes(flip it upside down and cook).
3. Turn off the heat and place the octopus confit onto a tray.
4. Put the parsley, oregano, garlic, red pepper flake, red wine vinegar, sea salt, black pepper, and extra virgin olive oil into a bowl to mix well.
5. Serve it with the chimichurri sauce.
You can also view this recipe on instagram.
