We bought an octopus from Bucks County Seafood (our favourite fishmonger), and we used half of it to make Buffalo Octopus Fritters. That, of course, left the other half still to be turned into something delicious! We had some thin spaghetti in the pantry, and we had an open jar of tomato sauce in need of use…so we decided to go with a spicy Italian dish!
We started by sous viding our octopus tentacles for 7 hours to make sure they’d be extremely tender once they were on our plates. We then added some canned clams to the mix before finally simmering in our tomato sauce (with some added seasonings). Then, we served that over the thin spaghetti for a very tasty, high protein pasta meal!
While we served this without any sides, we think this would go well with steamed veggies or a side salad if you’re looking to add some greenery to your plate.
Time: 7 Hours and 30 Minutes (7 hours of which is sous viding the octopus)
Ingredients:
- Octopus
- Canned Clams (or you can use fresh and steam them yourself)
- Marinara Sauce
- Red Pepper Flakes. A lot of them.
- Angel Hair or Thin Spaghetti Pasta
- Parmesan Cheese
Method:
- Fill a pot with water, and set your sous vide to 170 degrees F. Start to heat the water.
- Break Down your Octopus. Then, pat the tentacles dry, and place them in a zip top bag. Leave part of the bag unzipped, and slowly dip the tentacles into the water to remove all air from the bag via displacement. Then, finish zipping. Let sit for 7 hours to cook until extremely tender.
- As your octopus cooks, turn your attention to your clams.
- If using fresh clams, rinse them, and place them in a deep sided pan with enough water to almost cover. Then, heat the water and steam until all the clam shells open. Then remove, and let cool.
- If using canned, open the can, and rinse.
- When your octopus is nearly done, begin to boil a pot of water with a little salt in it for your pasta. When it comes to a boil, add your pasta, and cook to your desired doneness.
- As your pasta cooks, remove your octopus from the sous vide water, and open the bag. Remove the tentacles, and pat them dry. Then, slice them into rounds.
- Heat a little olive oil in a pan, and add your octopus and clams. Sprinkle in your red pepper flakes as well, and sautee quickly.
- Pour some tomato sauce over your seafood, and bring to a low simmer.
- Drain your pasta, and add it back to the pan. Stir in more tomato sauce to coat, and heat the pasta again.
- Scoop your pasta onto your plate, and top it with your seafood.
- Top with Parmesan cheese, devour, and enjoy!
