Braised octopus with tomato and olives

by Ed Halmagyi

Ingredients

  • 800g baby octopus, cleaned, patted dry
  • 1 red onion, sliced
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • 1 tsp fennel seeds
  • 1 sprig rosemary, picked
  • 2 sticks celery, sliced
  • ½ head fennel, sliced
  • ¼ cup green olives, pitted and halved
  • ¼ cup black olives, pitted and halved
  • 2 x 400g tins whole peeled tomatoes
  • 2 sprigs basil

Instructions

1 Sautee the onion, garlic and fennel seeds in a little olive oil until softened over a moderate heat.
2 Add the octopus, rosemary, celery and fennel and cook for 3 minutes.
3 Add the olives, tomatoes and basil, and season well with salt and pepper.
4 Turn the heat to low, place the lid on, and cook for 2 hours, stirring occasionally.
5 Serve with saffron rice or flat bread.

PROFESSIONAL TIP: Another easy way to tenderise octopus is to freeze it, meaning that buying frozen octopus can be just as handy as getting fresh.