Slow Cooked Fremantle Octopus

Recipe courtesy of Indiana, Greenhouse and Brendan Pratt

INGREDIENTS

Octopus

600g raw octopus, trimmed and finely sliced
100g butter
1 sprig rosemary
2 tbl spoon raspberry vinegar

White Almond Puree

200g flaked almonds
1 slice white bread, crust removed
100ml milk
100ml water
100ml olive oil
1 clove of roasted garlic
3 tbl spoon raspberry vinegar
1 pinch salt

Chicken Jus

1kg chicken bones, roasted
Water, to cover
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, diced
1 sprig rosemary
1 bay leaf
1 cup white wine

Samphire

1 cup samphire
2 tbl spoon butter

“Pickled” Grapes

10 red seedless grapes
100ml raspberry vinegar

METHOD

For the octopus, place the octopus into a cryovak bag, add the butter, rosemary & raspberry vinegar and seal in a cryovak machine, removing the air. Place the octopus into a preheated water bath @ 70 degrees Celsius for 6 hours.

For the white almond puree, add all of the ingredients except for the olive oil to an immersion blender and start blending. As its blending add the olive oil slowly, this allow the puree to absorb the oil and not split.

For the chicken jus, add the chicken bones to a pot and just cover with water. Bring to a boil and turn down to a simmer for approximately 2 hours. In a pot, sweat the onion and garlic down until translucent and slightly caramelised, add the white wine and herbs and reduce the wine by 1/2. Strain the chicken stock and skim the fat. Add the chicken stock to the onion mix and reduce by approximately ¾ until a glossy rich gravy is obtained.

For the chorizo crumb, place the slices of chorizo onto a roasting pan and place into the oven @ 180 degrees Celsius for approximately 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and place onto a resting rack, reduce the oven heat to 90 degrees and return the chorizo for a further 3-4 hours until its completely dry. Gently blend the chorizo in a blender or spice grinder until small crumbs are obtained.

For the grapes, slice the grapes in half lengthways and place them into a bowl. Add the raspberry vinegar and sit for a few minutes.

To plate, place a pan onto a medium heat and add a little oil. Slice the octopus into 3-4cm lengths and gently fry in to pan to caramelise. Meanwhile, gently heat a small pot and add a tbl spoon of butter, when it is gently bubbling add the samphire and stir to coat, after 20 second remove from the heat and set aside. Add a dollop of white almond puree to the plate, followed by the pieces of octopus. Gently place the grapes and samphire to the plate and sprinkle with chorizo crumb. Finish with the chicken jus, and for a final touch if you have a smoking gun, using dried lavender, add a little smoke for theatre and a great smoky touch