Octopus Eatable?

[gMaster]

First time post here, long time surfer.

Caught a nice size octopus today , not sure what it is or whether its eatable, any idea?

Thanks

[Flightmanager]

Yes , most octopus are edible , but there is a bit if a knack required to cook them so they dont resemble leather !! Some of our members of Mediterranean descent may be able to help out here!!

Ross

[Davemmm]

edible but a lot of bloody effort for not a great result

[gMaster]

thanks ... give me a lot of comfort ... the color is just too scary for the first timer ..

[Guest Reely]

Good edible Occy you got there, just smash the crap out of it on the concrete when you catch them, keep throwing them at the ground as hard as you can for over a minute! It will soften them up, grab their head turn it inside out and scoop the brain the yellow stuff out. Just be careful of the beak. They taste yummy if cooked the right way.

[james1990]

AHHHHHHHHHHHH I hate those things, honestly you ask anyone that fish's with me, thats the only thing im scared of, i dont mind sharks, snakes, doing big jumps on my bike, i try to avoid occys as much as i can.

Back to topic.Do occys have to be skinned before eaten/cooked?

cheers james

[gMaster]

it sure does look scary, a few kids actually cried when their parents make them to take photo with it..

Well I've skinned it as it feels tough, and how it taste I will let you know after dinner tonite.

[Robbielites]

Hi Mate.

Here is a pic of my mate who is a chef with one we got last week. Although we didn't keep it he says the secret with cooking them is to let them soak in milk for a day, after you have pulverised the crap out of them of course.

Cheers.

Robbie.

[stylo]

Robbielites, is that the channel @ the spit ?

[Robbielites]

Sure is

The shallow southern channel.

Robbie.

[Flattieman]

Do occys have to be skinned before eaten/cooked?

I think so, James.

Yes - as everyone has pointed out, that octopus would've been most probably edible. You do need to really tenderise them, though!

Flattieman.

[fishyfingers]

did someone say Mediteranian decent?

what you do is put it in a sturdy plastic bag and tie the end off... then smash the living daylights out of it on your driveway and/or pergola floor!

once you've kinda belted it for a minute or so, get a brick and go over it lightly while it's still in the bag making sure you get every tentacle and especially the head.

dunno about the milk thing but what i do is cut it all up and soak for at least 3 or 4 hours in virgin olive oil, rock salt and red wine vinegar.

then heat up your pan or hot plate till it's SIZZLING!

throw the mix on (not all of the marinade) and toss it about constantly until the bits stop curling up then turn your flame down a bit.

in the mean time, have a big bowl of mixed lettuce and baby spinich ready, some cherry tomotes go well also.

once the occy's coocked (6 or 8 minutes) and the marinade's reduced, throw it on top of the salad mix and toss. Add a little more fresh vinegar and the juice form a whole lemon and eat away!

if you really want to get a nice taste out of it, crush some garlic up in the salad bowl beofore you mix it up.... YUMMY !

[Deschanel]

Your making me hungry

[Penguin]

I had some Ocy last nite,cut into small pieces put in a big pot with a dab of

olive oil and some finely chopped onion,let it heat up a bit then add some

spuds and sweet potato and tomato puree and a cup of water and let it cook thru,

Ocy comes up nice and tender.

Also baby octopus is great on the bbq.

penguin

Edited May 15, 2007 by penguin

[SUBLiME]

ive had the fortune of getting two massive ones... one at clifton gardens which another fisherman gave as he had no idea of wat to do with it and another even bigger one down south...personally id prefer baby octopus as they dont need to be cleaned as much as the larger ones and also taste better as they are a LOT more softer...

[kinghazza]

edible but a lot of bloody effort for not a great result

you're obviously not greek...

smash it on the rocks etween 40 and 80 times then rub all parts of its body on the rocks until it foams up like soap...

get the bbq up to a furnace put it on for 15 minutes depending how hot it is...

have a bowl with olive oil, oregano, salt and a tonne of lemon, give a go mix and prepare to have a party in your mouth.

[thereddragon]

If you have any brickie mates, chuck it in thier cement mixer

[Bigfoot]

Great to eat!!!

and let's not forget

they are also

FANTASTIC BAIT !!!!

Try a tenticle on a jighead one day,

give it a couple of flicks now and then

on the retrieve and

" Hey Presto"

Cheers

Bigfoot

[gianniz]

koreans love big occies very simple cooking method.

first you lots of rock salts and rub the crap out of them. It will remove all the slimy stuff on the exterior.

then you have to clean them by removing the stuff inside the head (if you want you can also chop off the head as we tend to only eat the legs)

now throw the beast in the boiling water (with bit of salt) for about an hour.

take it out and cool it.

now slice up the legs in to thin slices and get your wasabi or korean chilli sauce.

its kind like sashimi but cooked

you don 't usually eat this for the taste but the texture. Since its rubbery and chewy its quite fun to eat. My folks say you would eat this not for the taste of the occy but the taste of the chilli sauce.

[CR@ZY OS@M@]

[VA911]

bash it as described, clean the thing in a bit of fresh and then put it in the pasta sauce and let it bubble at LOW heat (i mean very low) for at least 2 hours and its amazing. Add Spices to taste!

where is Jamie oliver when you need him?

This is the best way i know to deal with bigger ockys.

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm *drools*

otherwise if you dont want them just let me know and i will surely take it off your hands.........

[tangs sister]

First time post here, long time surfer.

Caught a nice size octopus today , not sure what it is or whether its eatable, any idea?

Thanks

Ahh boys, your theories are pretty but very funny.

the milk one is

I am of Greek origin and we have octopus coming out of our ears.... these species are definately edible and bloody good too if you don't want them i'll take them. We snorkel for them all up and down the coast of this counrty.

A good secret for you. Now this is a golden secret, one passed on through generations.

1. catch it

2. turn the head inside out and feed other fish with all the gut (the food chain is very important) it may still crawl around for an hour or so so keep it secure.

3. first chance you get to land a nice flat rock belt the occy against the rock about (no joke) 100 times. obviously the bigger the occy the more your belting it.

4. once the belting is over and your biceps are full rub it into the rock to create a white foam (this too may take a while. the beak will pop out on it own at this time, if not just pop it out with your thumb.

5. by this time you will notice that the firmness has been lost and the occy has lost most of its colour and slime so you've almost finished now. colour turns to a pale light brown almost white

6. the last test to see if your hard work has been done is to try and tear the webbing between each of its 8 legs. tearing the webbing by holding two legs (one in each hand) will tell you that the tenderising process has been successful. But remember tear the webbing a little don't tear it off.

my grandparents would be turning in their graves for telling you all this.

i hope it helps.

[Squizy]

I used to love going to the Greek festival in Darwin they do the best octopus. they load up the cement mixer and leave it for about 1/2 hour or so before cooking MMMMMMM.

Chilli Occy and Beer for me, Baklava and coffee for the Missus.

Squizy

Edited July 11, 2008 by Squizy

[jewexpert]

i know if u soak squid in milk and kiwi fruit for a few hours then cook it is very tender and soft it might work on octopus to

[tangs sister]

i know if u soak squid in milk and kiwi fruit for a few hours then cook it is very tender and soft it might work on octopus to

not as good as a good old fashioned belting

[Dreamtime]

We cook tough cuts of meat, or layer hens with pawpaw.

Don't know if it would work on occy or squid though.

Green papaya fruit and the tree's latex are both rich in an enzyme called papain, a protease which is useful in tenderizing meat and other proteins. Its ability to break down tough meat fibers was utilized for thousands of years by indigenous Americans. It is included as a component in powdered meat tenderizers, and is also marketed in tablet form to remedy digestive problems.

Some other uses:-

Green papaya is used in Thai cuisine, both raw and cooked. Papain is also popular (in countries where it grows) as a topical application in the treatment of cuts, rashes, stings and burns. Papain ointment is commonly made from fermented papaya flesh, and is applied as a gel-like paste.

Harrison Ford was treated for a ruptured disc incurred during filming of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom by having papain injected into his back.

Women in India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and other parts of the world have long used papaya as a folk remedy for contraception and abortion.

Medical research in animals has confirmed the contraceptive and abortifacient capability of papaya, and also found that papaya seeds have contraceptive effects in adult male langur monkeys, possibly in adult male humans as well. Unripe papaya is especially effective in large amounts or high doses. Papaya is not teratogenic and will not cause miscarriage in small, ripe amounts. Phytochemicals in papaya may suppress the effects of progesterone.

The black seeds are edible and have a sharp, spicy taste. They are sometimes ground up and used as a substitute for black pepper. In some parts of Asia the young leaves of papaya are steamed and eaten like spinach.