1 Octopus

Ingredients 

• 1 large Octopus
• 1 Onion, large dice
• 1 Carrot, large dice
• 1 Celery Stalk, large dice
• 1 Garlic Head
• 1 bunch Thyme 
• 1 Tbsp coriander seeds
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 cup white wine
• 1 lemon, sliced
• Olive oil

Preparation

In a large pot, sweat the onions, carrots, and celery. Add the garlic, thyme, coriander seeds, and bay leaves, and cook 2 more minutes. Deglaze with white wine and add the octopus. Cover with water and bring to a boil and then turn down to a gentle simmer and cook for about 1 hour or until tender. When knife tender, remove the octopus and discard the liquid. When cool, break down the octopus by cutting off the head and cutting in half, then remove the tough beak from the center and cut down each tentacle separately. Marinate with the sliced lemons and coat with a good amount of olive oil.

Preserved Lemons

Wash lemons and quarter. Place in a container and cover with salt. If preserving a large amount, be sure to salt each layer. Seal container and allow at least 1 week to preserve.

2 Salad

Ingredients

• 3 lemons
• 10 baby artichokes
• 1 cup white wine
• 5 preserved lemons
• 5 Calabrese peppers in oil, finely sliced (add to taste, very hot!)
• 2 Tsp garlic puree
• 2 Tbsp chopped chives
• Olive oil

Preparation 

Juice the three lemons into some water to keep the artichokes from turning brown while you clean them. Clean the baby artichokes by removing the tough outer leaves and cutting off the top half of remaining leaves, about ½ inch above the heart. Peel the stem, and place in the acidulated water.

Place the artichokes in a pot with the white wine and enough of the lemon water to cover. Season with salt. Bring to a boil and simmer for about 3 minutes, until the artichokes are tender. Remove them from the liquid and cool, then cut in half.

Rinse the preserved lemons well to remove some of the salt. Cut the flesh away from the rind, removing the white pith, so that you are left with just the flesh and the outer yellow skin. Reserve the skin for the parsley sauce, and combine the flesh with the artichokes.

On a hot grill or under a broiler, char the artichokes and preserved lemon flesh. Toss with the Calabrese peppers, garlic puree, chives, and olive oil to coat. Tip:  Do not season with salt as preserved lemons are very salty.

3 Parsley Sauce

Ingredients

• 1 large bunch parsley leaves, washed
• 2 cloves garlic
• 3 preserved lemon skins
• Olive oil

Preparation

In a blender, combine garlic cloves, lemon skins, and just enough oil to blend well. Add the parsley leaves and blend again with just enough oil to combine. Season with salt.

4 Serve

When ready to serve, char octopus on a hot grill and serve on top of the charred artichokes and preserved lemon salad. Top with parsley sauce.