Poulpe Provencal (Octopus Braised in Tomato and Wine)

⏱ 115 mins 🍽 6 serving(s) 🏷 Octopus

This classic Provencal dish features baby octopus braised slowly in a fragrant sauce of tomatoes, dry white wine, and saffron. The octopus is first cleaned and blanched before being cooked with onion and garlic until beautifully tender. The resulting stew is rich and aromatic, finished with fresh parsley. It is delicious served either warm or at room temperature, making it a versatile centrepiece for a meal. The recipe serves six people.

Poulpe Provencal (Octopus Braised in Tomato and Wine)

Ingredients

  • 1 lb ripe tomatoes
  • 2 lbs baby octopus
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 1 large brown onion, chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 1 1/3 cups dry white wine
  • 1/4 teaspoon saffron thread
  • 2 sprigs fresh thyme
  • 2 tablespoons flat leaf parsley, rough chopped

Method

  1. Clean each octopus by separating the head from the tentacles with a sharp knife. Remove the eyes from the head base. Slit each head open to clean out the gut, then rinse well and cut the heads in half. Push the beak out from the centre of the tentacles and cut them into sets of two or four. Set the prepared octopus aside.
  2. Make a cross cut at the base of each tomato. Submerge them in boiling water for 10 seconds before transferring to cold water. Peel the skin starting from the cross.
  3. Halve each tomato and use a teaspoon to scoop out the seeds. Chop the remaining tomato flesh and set it aside.
  4. Briefly blanch all the octopus pieces in boiling water for 2 minutes. Drain them and let cool a little, then pat dry with paper towels.
  5. Warm the olive oil in a heavy frying pan. Cook the chopped onion for 7-8 minutes until it turns a light golden colour.
  6. Place the octopus and garlic into the pan with the onion. Cook together for another 2-3 minutes.
  7. Add the chopped tomatoes, dry white wine, saffron threads, and fresh thyme sprigs to the pan.
  8. Pour in just enough water to completely cover the octopus in the pan.
  9. Let the mixture simmer without a lid for 1 hour. After this, continue cooking uncovered for a further 15 minutes or until the octopus is tender and the sauce has thickened slightly. The required time may vary based on octopus size.
  10. Season the dish with salt and pepper according to your taste. Serve it hot or at room temperature, garnished with the roughly chopped flat leaf parsley.

Nutrition (per serving)

Sodium356500 mg

Recipe details

CategoryOctopus
AuthorJostlori