We bought some frozen Octopus the other day, and we had a lot of fun cooking it. For this particular recipe, we initially thought of Crab Cakes, but as we thought more, we opted to borrow from the idea from our Shrimp and Okra Burgers (specifically the food processed seafood). As we let our appliance chop the octopus, we realized that it created a texture a little like cooked Okra (from a stickiness standpoint), so that was a fortuitous happening that we certainly weren’t expecting. As the cakes cooked, we started to gain some confidence that this idea was going to work, and when we started eating, our hopes were confirmed! These cakes would be good on their own with some sauce on top…or even on a bun as a burger!
We served our cakes as part of our Octopus trifecta (we really should have made 8 components) along with Charred Octopus and Avocado Rolls and an Edamame and Avocado Stuffed Octopus Head (which needs to go back to the lab and improved before it can be posted….they can’t all be winners!).
Time: 20 Minutes
Ingredients:
- Cleaned Octopus
- Garlic Powder
- An Egg
- Panko Bread Crumbs
- Optional Sauces:
- Sriracha Mayo (what we used)
- Honey Teriyaki Edamame Sauce
- Wasabi Cream Sauce
- Ginger Wasabi Sauce
- General Tso Sauce
Method:
- Rinse your octopus and pat it dry.
- Slice your octopus into chunks. You can use the whole thing or cut off the tentacles and keep them aside for a (cooked) Sushi Roll!
- Put your octopus pieces into your food processor, and pulse to break it down into a chunky paste (there’s an appetizing phrase!).
- Scoop your quasi-pureed octopus into a large bowl, and add a cracked egg and some panko bread crumbs. Sprinkle on a copious amount of garlic powder as well.
- Mix by hand to fully combine your ingredients, and add more panko as necessary to get your mixture to a consistency that will hold together like a crab cake.
- Heat up a large heavy bottomed pan (cast iron if you have it!), and add a little oil.
- When your pan and oil are hot, form your octopus into patties, and pan fry for about 4-5 minutes on each side. You want your cakes to be golden brown with some crispiness on both sides.
- Plate, top with your sauce, devour, and enjoy!
